Gas Chamber Debuts: Nevada Pioneers Execution Method
Nevada executed Gee Jon on February 8, 1924, using a gas chamber for the first time in American history. The original plan was to pump cyanide gas into Jon's cell while he slept, but the gas leaked through the prison walls, forcing the state to build a sealed execution chamber instead. Jon, a Chinese immigrant convicted of murder in a Tong war, sat in a metal chair while hydrochloric acid dripped onto sodium cyanide pellets beneath him, releasing deadly hydrogen cyanide gas. He reportedly lost consciousness within seconds, though the full process took six minutes. The gas chamber was promoted as more humane than hanging or electrocution, a claim that subsequent executions would contradict: witnesses reported convulsions, gasping, and prolonged suffering. Eleven states eventually adopted the method. Its use declined sharply after lethal injection was introduced in 1977, and California's last gas chamber execution occurred in 1999.
February 8, 1924
102 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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