Rufus Springs
Agency patch
Deputy U.S. Marshal

Rufus Springs

Felonious
End of Watch April 19, 1878
Age 24
The Vigil Panel 5 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Deputy U.S. Marshal Rufus Springs was shot and killed by moonshiners as he and several revenuers raided a still in South Carolina. During the raid Marshal Springs stood outside of the still looking for suspects when a shot rang out, striking him. The rest of the officers on the scene fled the area. The same suspect had also murdered Deputy U.S. Marshal Alfred Duckworth on March 1st, 1876, in Transylvania County, North Carolina, and had been acquitted of murdering Deputy U.S. Marshal Van Buren Hendrix in Greenville County, South Carolina, on February 12th, 1877. Deputy Marshal Springs is buried in Sardis Methodist Church Cemetery, Buncumbe County, North Carolina.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-FED-7604418A
Stewardship
Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw
August 2, 2026
Last updated
August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

Are you family? This record can be claimed and maintained by those who knew Rufus. Claim this record.

This page is permanent and free. No fee to view it, no advertising, no tracking, and no account required. It will not be taken down.

Tributes

148 years is a long time for a name to go unread. Not today.
Deputy U.S. Marshal Springs served with the United States Department of Justice.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Type Federal Agency
Location Washington, DC
Platform Identity usms.fed.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch April 19, 1878
Age 24
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious
Weapon Rifle

Deputy U.S. Marshal Rufus Springs is one of 1 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.

In DC, 754 of 1,418 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 53.2% of this state's fallen. That is 53.2 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At United States Department of Justice - United States Marshals Service, 251 of 313 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 80.2% of this agency's fallen.

United States Department of Justice - United States Marshals Service
251
of 313 officers
80.2% Felonious
DC — Statewide
754
of 1,418 officers
53.2% Felonious
Nationwide
1
of 97,772 officers
0% Felonious

National Cause Distribution

How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Rufus Springs's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
1 (0%)
Accident
1 (0%)
Illness
1 (0%)
Cardiac
1 (0%)
Undetermined
1 (0%)
Suicide
1 (0%)

How Rufus Springs Compares

Age at Death
24
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. Rufus Springs is highlighted in Apr.

Jan
1,392
Feb
1,295
Mar
1,373
Apr
1,516
May
1,504
Jun
1,442
Jul
1,587
Aug
1,517
Sep
1,491
Oct
1,371
Nov
1,447
Dec
1,624

Weapons Used Against Officers

Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths. Rufus Springs was killed by rifle.

Handgun
3,684
Gun
3,592
Gun; Unknown type
1,492
Shotgun
1,109
Rifle
935
Officer's handgun
909