Video: '6th August 1890: William Kemmler becomes the first person to be executed by electric chair'

(Wednesday, August 6, 1890, 6:38 a.m. local time) — The first legal execution by electric chair in the world was carried out today as William Kemmler, 30, of Buffalo, New York, was put to death at Auburn Prison in New York for the ax murder of his common law wife, Tillie Ziegler.

Having been strapped to the chair and attached to electrodes, 1,000 volts were passed through his body for 17 seconds.

Although initially believed to be dead, witnesses noticed that he was still breathing.

The generator was subsequently charged with 2,000 volts, resulting in Kemmler’s skin beginning to bleed and a foul smell start to fill the room as his hair and flesh singed before he died.

The entire procedure took around eight minutes.