The Execution of Summers and Koontz: A Post-War Tragedy
"Try to meet me in Heaven where I hope to go . . ."
Sergeant I. Newton Koontz in a letter to his fiancé shortly before his death
On May 22, 1865, Captain George W. Summers, Sergeant I. Newton Koontz, and two other young veterans of Co. D, 7th Virginia Cavalry were returning home to Luray after their unit disbanded at the surrender at Appomattox. As they traveled, the four men came upon six Union cavalrymen near Woodstock. Koontz, Summers and the other two men robbed the Federal cavalrymen of their horses and possessions.
When the young soldiers returned home to Luray, their families feared their actions might bring repercussions from the occupying Union army and urged the men to return the stolen horses. The horses were returned the next day to the 192nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry at Rude's Hill. The Luray men were given receipts for the returned property and all was said to be forgiven. Despite this, an order was later issued for the men to be arrested.
The others escaped, but Summers and Koontz were captured and shot without trial on June 27, 1865. A monument was erected on the site of the two men's death in 1893, just north of New Market. The nine-foot tall marble obelisk still stands and can be visited today.
Sources: Wheeler, Linda. "Summers-Koontz Monument Rededicated, Washington Post". 27 June 2009.
