Race riot and lynchings, Georgia, USA
Jenkins County riot of 1919
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![Map](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/1950_Census_Enumeration_District_Map_Of_Jenkins_County.jpg/300px-1950_Census_Enumeration_District_Map_Of_Jenkins_County.jpg) Census Enumeration District Map Of Jenkins County
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Date
| April 13, 1919
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Location
| Carswell Grove Baptist Church and Cemetery
,
Jenkins County, Georgia
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Participants
| White mobs attack the black community
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Deaths
| Official death toll was 6:
- W. Clifford Brown, a white sheriff's deputy
- Thomas Stevens, a white police marshal
- Edmund Scott
- Henry Ruffin
- John Ruffin
- Willie Williams
The
New York Tribune
reported that a seventh man was pulled from the Millen prison.
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- April ? June
- Morgan County, WV
(April 10)
- Jenkins, GA
(April 13)
- Sylvester, Georgia
(April 14)
- Pickens, Mississippi
(May 5)
- Philadelphia
(May 9)
- Charleston, SC
(May 10)
- Sylvester, Georgia
(May 10)
- El Dorado, Arkansas
(May 21)
- Milan, Georgia
(May 26)
- Putnam County, GA
(May 27?28)
- New London, CT
(May 30)
- Monticello, Mississippi
(May 31)
- Macon, MS
(June 7)
- Memphis, Tennessee (June 13)
- Bibb County, Alabama
(June 18)
- Annapolis
(June 27)
- Macon, Mississippi
(June 27)
- New London, CT
(June 29)
- July
- Bisbee, AZ
(July 3)
- Dublin, Georgia riot
(July 6)
- Philadelphia
(July 7)
- Coatesville, PA
(July 8)
- Tuscaloosa, Alabama
(July 9)
- Longview, TX
(July 10?12)
- Baltimore
(July 11)
- Garfield Park, IN
(July 14)
- Port Arthur, TX
(July 15)
- Louise, Mississippi
(July 15)
- Washington D.C.
(July 19?24)
- New York City
(July 20)
- Norfolk, VA
(July 21)
- New Orleans, Louisiana
(July 23)
- Darby, PA
(July 23)
- Newberry, SC
(July 24)
- Hobson City, Alabama
(July 26)
- Chicago
(July 27?August 3)
- Newberry, South Carolina
(July 28)
- Bloomington, Illinois
(July 31)
- Philadelphia
(July 31)
- Syracuse, NY
(July 31)
- August ? November
- Whatley, AL
(August 1)
- Lincoln, Arkansas
(August 3)
- Hattiesburg, Mississippi
(August 4)
- Texarkana, Texas riot of 1919 (August 6)
- New York City
(August 21)
- Austin, TX
(August 22)
- Laurens County, GA
(August 27?29)
- Knoxville
(August 30?31)
- Bogalusa, Louisiana
(August 31)
- Clarksdale, Mississippi
(September 10)
- Omaha
(September 28?29)
- Montgomery, Alabama
(September 29)
- Elaine, AR
(September 30?October 1)
- Baltimore
(October 1?2)
- Corbin, KY
(October 31)
- Macon, Georgia
(November 2)
- Ocoee, FL
(November 2?3)
- Magnolia, Arkansas
(November 11)
- Wilmington, DE
(November 13)
- Bogalusa, LA
(November 22)
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The
Jenkins County riot of 1919
took place on Sunday, April 13, 1919, a black man killed two white police officers in an altercation during a traffic stop. In response, a white mob burned several buildings in the black community and killed four black men.
Background
[
edit
]
The event began at
Carswell Grove Baptist Church
, a black church, which was celebrating its anniversary. Preachers from several counties were coming, the
Knights of Pythias
were present in uniform,
[2]
the choir was giving a special performance, and a cookout would follow.
[3]
: 1
More than 3,000 were expected; it was one of the largest gatherings in east Georgia.
[3]
: 1?2
Joe Ruffin was a prosperous farmer and distinguished black
Mason
, "one of the wealthiest negros of Jenkins County."
[2]
He was to have been the
marshal
of the event.
[2]
The riot
[
edit
]
Ruffin was driving to the church celebration when he had to stop because of the congestion of people. A car pulled alongside Ruffin, containing W. Clifford Brown, a
Jenkins County
sheriff's deputy, Thomas Stevens, a
Millen, Georgia
police marshal, whose presence outside his jurisdiction is unexplained, and Joe's friend Edmund Scott, in handcuffs. They were there in search of alcohol; Georgia had been a
dry state
since 1907. Not having found any, they arrested Scott for having a pistol.
[2]
Ruffin pulled out a checkbook to cover Scott's $400 bail, but Brown, "who the white papers said had a bad temper,"
[2]
said that cash was needed. That much cash was not available on a Sunday, and Brown said that he was taking Scott in. Ruffin reached into the car to pull Scott out, but Brown took out his gun. He struck Ruffin in the face with his pistol, and the gun went off and struck Ruffin on the head, knocking him unconscious but not seriously injuring him. Joe's son Louis, just discharged from the
United States Army
, thought that his father had been killed. Louis Ruffin consequently shot and killed Brown in retaliation.
[2]
Louis then shot Stevens, wounding him, and subsequently beat him to death. Scott, in the middle of the gunfire, was killed accidentally.
"Hundreds of white men" came to Carswell Grove under the false impression that Joe Ruffin had been the one to fire the lethal shots, despite having been rendered unconscious by a nonlethal blow to the head.
[2]
[4]
[5]
"Many of these remained out all night."
[4]
They burned the church and Ruffin's car and lynched two of Ruffin's sons,
[7]
either burning them to death or throwing their bodies into the fire after they had been killed. The three black Masonic lodges in Millen were burned. White mobs roamed the county for days. The
New-York Tribune
reported that seven black churches had been burned down.
The Tribune also reported that a seventh man was pulled from the Millen prison and lynched.
The six fatalities included two white lawmen and four black men: Scott, two sons of Ruffin, Henry and John, and Joe's friend Willie Williams, who had been at the scene and was also lynched.
[8]
Joe's son Louis fled and despite a bounty having been issued, was never apprehended.
[7]
Joe Ruffin's fate
[
edit
]
Ruffin was sure he would be
lynched
, and news accounts confirm that he would have been.
[9]
[10]
(Georgia led the nation in lynchings in 1918.) He hid, then surrendered to Sheriff M. G. Johnston, who had arrived. Johnston drove him to the nearest large city,
Augusta
, for safety; he was placed in the jail.
A mob headed to Augusta to lynch Ruffin. He was moved for safety to jail in
Aiken, South Carolina
, where he remained for two weeks,
[7]
registered under a false name. A mob of some 30 Georgians came to Aiken but accepted the jailer's statement that Ruffin was not there.
[11]
He was indicted for the murders of the two officers; charges were not filed against any whites.
Ruffin hired "the best white lawyer he could find."
[3]
: 75
He was granted a
change of venue
to
Savannah
.
[10]
[7]
He was first tried for killing Stevens, convicted, and sentenced to be hanged. A motion for a new trial was successful,
[12]
and he was acquitted. He was then tried for the killing of Brown and was again acquitted. "So strong was the sentiment in Jenkins county that an indictment was found charging him with the murder of his friend Scott."
[13]
He was tried for the killing of Scott,
[14]
was found guilty of
manslaughter
and sentenced to 15 years prison. The Georgia Supreme Court set that aside and ordered a new trial, which was never held.
[15]
Because of public sentiment he could not be totally exonerated, so he was charged, convicted, and fined $500 for embezzlement, for although he never wrote a check, he had displayed the checkbook of a church of which he was treasurer.
[3]
: 260?261
After friends paid the fine, by 1923 he was a free man.
[15]
Impoverished after his legal expenses, he lived out his days in South Carolina, since he would not have been safe in Georgia.
[3]
: 266
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
Pickens, William (April 24, 1919).
"Race riots at Millen, Ga"
.
Buffalo Morning Express
. p. 9.
Archived
from the original on January 26, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
McWhirter, Cameron (2011).
Red Summer
. The Summer of 1919 and the Awakening of Black America
.
Henry Holt
.
ISBN
9780805089066
.
- ^
a
b
"Six Persons Dead of Race Clash at Negro Church near Millen, Ga"
.
Atlanta Constitution
. April 14, 1919. p. 1.
Archived
from the original on January 25, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
"Six Persons Killed in a Pistol Fight"
.
Wilmington Morning Star
. April 14, 1919. p. 2.
Archived
from the original on January 25, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Trial of Joe Ruffin Is Again Postponed"
.
Atlanta Constitution
. November 12, 1919. p. 6.
Archived
from the original on January 25, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
"Louis Ruffin Sought in Three Counties"
.
Atlanta Constitution
. April 15, 1919. p. 6.
Archived
from the original on January 25, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
Ellison, J. G. (April 17, 1919).
"Gives Millen Account of Recent Disorders"
.
Atlanta Constitution
. p. 5.
Archived
from the original on January 26, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
a
b
"Trial of Joe Ruffin, Negro, Facing Murder Charge, for Savannah"
.
Atlanta Constitution
. September 28, 1919. p. 13.
Archived
from the original on January 25, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
"A Parallel Case"
.
Aiken Standard
. September 7, 1921. p. 4.
Archived
from the original on January 25, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
"Joe Ruffin Trial to be Heard Oct. 26"
.
Atlanta Constitution
. June 22, 1920. p. 13.
Archived
from the original on January 25, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
Sutlive, W. G. (June 19, 1923).
"Color Line Is Not Drawn in Georgia Court"
.
Rock Island Argus
(
Rock Island, Illinois
)
. p. 2.
Archived
from the original on January 26, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
"Ruffin To Be Tried Again"
.
Aiken Standard
. January 4, 1922. p. 1.
Archived
from the original on January 25, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
- ^
a
b
"Joe Ruffin Is Freed"
.
Atlanta Constitution
. May 31, 1923. p. 2.
Archived
from the original on January 25, 2019
. Retrieved
January 25,
2019
.
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July
|
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- Bisbee, Arizona
(July 3)
- Dublin, Georgia
(July 6)
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
(July 7)
- Coatesville, Pennsylvania
(July 8)
- Tuscaloosa, Alabama
(July 9)
- Longview, Texas
(July 10?12)
- Baltimore, Maryland
(July 11)
- Garfield Park riot of 1919
(July 14)
- Port Arthur, Texas
(July 15)
- Louise, Mississippi
(July 15)
- Washington, D.C.
(July 19?24)
- New York City, New York
(July 20)
- Norfolk, Virginia
(July 21)
- New Orleans, Louisiana
(July 23)
- Darby, Pennsylvania
(July 23)
- Gilmer, Texas
(July 24)
- Newberry, SC
(July 24)
- Hobson City, Alabama
(July 26)
- Chicago, Illinois
(July 27?Aug 3)
- Newberry, South Carolina
(July 28)
- Bloomington, Illinois
(July 31)
- Syracuse, New York
(July 31)
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
(July 31)
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Before 1900
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1900?1940
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After 1940
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Multiple victims
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- Death of Joseph Smith
(
Joseph Smith
,
Hyrum Smith
) (1844)
- Marais des Cygnes, KS, massacre
(1858)
- Great Hanging at Gainesville, TX
(1862)
- New York City draft riots
(1863)
- Detroit race riot (1863)
- ? Lachenais and four others
(1863)
- Fort Pillow, TN, massacre
(1864)
- Plummer Gang
(1864)
- Memphis massacre
(1866)
- Gallatin County, KY, race riot
(1866)
- New Orleans massacre of 1866
- Reno Brothers Gang
(1868)
- Camilla, GA, massacre
(1868)
- Steve Long and two half-brothers
(1868)
- Pulaski, TN, riot
(1868)
- Samuel Bierfield and Lawrence Bowman
(1868)
- Opelousas, LA, massacre
(1868)
- Bear River City riot
(1868)
- Chinese massacre of 1871
- Meridian, MS, race riot
(1871)
- Colfax, LA, massacre
(1873)
- Election riot of 1874
(AL)
- Juan, Antonio, and Marcelo Moya
(1874)
- Benjamin and Mollie French
(1876)
- Ellenton, SC, riot
(1876)
- Hamburg, SC, massacre
(1876)
- Thibodeax, LA, massacre
(1878)
- Mart and Tom Horrell
(1878)
- Nevlin Porter and Johnson Spencer
(1879)
- Elijah Frost, Abijah Gibson, Tom McCracken
(1879)
- T.J. House, James West, John Dorsey
(1880)
- New Orleans 1891 lynchings
(1891)
- Ruggles Brothers (CA)
(1892)
- Thomas Moss, Henry Stewart, Calvin McDowell (TN)
(1892)
- Porter and Spencer (MS)
(1897)
- Phoenix, SC, election riot
(1898)
- Wilmington, NC, insurrection
(1898)
- Julia and Frazier Baker
(1898)
- Pana, IL, riot
(1899)
- Watkinsville lynching
(1905)
- 1906 Atlanta race massacre
- Kemper County, MS
(1906)
- Walker family
(1908)
- Springfield race riot of 1908
- Slocum, TX, massacre
(1910)
- Laura and L.D. Nelson
(1911)
- Harris County, GA, lynchings
(1912)
- Newberry, FL, lynchings
(1916)
- East St. Louis, IL, riots
(1917)
- Lynching rampage in Brooks County, GA
(1918)
- Jenkins County, GA, riot
(1919)
- Longview, TX, race riot
(1919)
- Elaine, AR, race riot
(1919)
- Omaha race riot of 1919
- Knoxville riot of 1919
- Red Summer
(1919)
- Duluth, MN, lynchings
(1920)
- Ocoee, FL, massacre
(1920)
- Tulsa race massacre
(1921)
- Perry, FL, race riot
(1922)
- Rosewood, FL, massacre
(1923)
- Jim and Mark Fox
(1927)
- Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith
(1930)
- Tate County, MS
(1932)
- Thomas Harold Thurmond and John M. Holmes
(1933)
- Roosevelt Townes and Robert McDaniels
(1937)
- Beaumont, TX, Race Riot
(1943)
- O'Day Short, wife, and two children
(1945)
- Moore's Ford, GA, lynchings
(1946)
- Harry
and
Harriette Moore
(1952)
- Anniston, AL
(1961)
- Freedom Summer Murders
(
James Chaney
,
Andrew Goodman
,
Michael Schwerner
) (1964)
- Henry Hezekiah Dee and Charles Eddie Moore
(1964)
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