Lynch -- folk etymology

[Dan Goodman]

> Date:    Sun, 21 Jul 2002 10:40:02 -0700
> From:    Dave Wilton <dave at WILTON.NET>
> Subject: Re: Picnic
> The exact etymology is unknown. The most likely explanation is that it
> refers to Captain William Lynch (1742-1820) who led a vigilante
> tribunal in Pittsylvania, Virginia during the American Revolution. The
> earliest recorded use of the term (in OED2), in 1811, refers to him.
>
> Another common explanation is that it is after a judge named Charles
> Lynch who served in Virginia and is credited (perhaps wrongly so) for
> presiding over mob trials of Tories during the American Revolution.
> Supporting evidence for this explanation is sketchier.

The explanation I remember:  Judge Lynch (first name not remembered,
or perhaps not given) was Irish.  He condemned his own son to hanging
for murder -- and when no one else would carry out the sentence, he
did so himself.