In the winter of 1910, Special Officer Samuel Boyer, a man who had dedicated a decade of his life to the Southern Railway Police Department, patrolled the Royster Yards just south of Charleston, South Carolina. On a cold Monday night, the 24th of January, he came across several men breaking into a boxcar. As he approached to intervene, the men attacked him and managed to take his service revolver from him.
One of the men then used Officer Boyer's own weapon against him, firing a shot
that would prove fatal. The suspects fled the scene, leaving the wounded officer behind. He was quickly transported to a local hospital, where he fought for his life for four days. Despite the efforts of the medical staff, Samuel Boyer succumbed to his injuries.
The individuals responsible for the death of Special Officer Boyer were never publicly identified or apprehended. The case remains a somber reminder of the dangers faced by law enforcement officers, and the ultimate sacrifice made by a man in the line of duty. Prior to his ten years with the railway police, he had also served with the Columbia Police Department.
