1912 racial conflict in Forsyth County, Georgia facts for kids
In September 1912, in Forsyth County, Georgia, two separate events led to Black men being accused of crimes against white women. One woman said two Black men broke into her home. Another teenage girl was sadly found beaten in the Oscarville area.
A young man named Earnest Knox was linked to the Oscarville case. He confessed to the Sheriff and named his half-brother and his mother's boyfriend. His mother spoke against her sons in court. Both young men were sentenced to death and executed 21 days later.
In the other case, a Black preacher and his church members went to Cumming. They wanted the men held for the Big Creek incident to be released. This led to a large group of white people gathering. The preacher was badly beaten for suggesting the first woman might have known the Black man. The Sheriff protected him by locking him inside the courthouse overnight.
Another man, Rob Edwards, was arrested for the second incident. A white crowd took him from the jail and killed him. In total, five Black men were charged in the second case. Rob Edwards was killed by the crowd, an act known as lynching. Two young men, aged 16 and 17, were found guilty of murder and sentenced to death.
In 1910, over 1,000 Black people lived in Forsyth County. There were more than 10,000 white people. After the trials and executions, groups of white men called Night Riders began to threaten Black families. These families were forced to leave their homes. Most fled to nearby Hall and Gwinnett Counties. Within four months, about 98% of the Black residents had left Forsyth County. The Night Riders then tried to do the same in other counties. They were stopped when the Hall County Sheriff arrested eleven of them.
This event, where a whole group of people was forced out, was shown in a TV show. It was called Banished: American Ethnic Cleansings. It aired on PBS in 2015.
Contents
Understanding the Past
After the American Civil War, Black people who had been enslaved became free. They also gained the right to vote and become citizens. However, by the early 1900s, many Southern states passed laws to stop Black people from voting. Georgia passed such a law in 1908.
States also created laws to keep races separate in public places. These were called Jim Crow laws. Most Black people in rural areas worked as sharecroppers. This meant they farmed land owned by white people. They often struggled to escape poverty.
The Atlanta Race Riot of 1906 showed the high tensions between white and Black people. A doctor from Cumming wrote that many Black people were killed in this riot. Lynchings, where white mobs killed Black people, were common in the South. These acts were used to enforce white supremacy. This meant keeping Black people in a lower social position.
In 1910, Forsyth County had over 10,000 white residents. It also had 858 Black residents and 440 people of mixed race.
The Ellen Grice Incident
On September 5, 1912, Ellen Grice, a 22-year-old white woman, said two Black men attacked her. She claimed Toney Howell and Isaiah Pirkle were involved. Her mother scared them away, she said.
Within days, Sheriff William Reid arrested these two men. He also arrested Fate Chester, Johnny Bates, and Joe Rogers. All five men were held in the small Forsyth County jail.
Attack on Grant Smith
News of the Grice incident spread. Grant Smith, a Black preacher, suggested that Ellen Grice might have lied. He said she might have been caught in a relationship with a Black man. Angry white people then whipped the preacher in front of the courthouse. Sheriff Reid saved him and took him inside. Smith was very badly hurt.
Sheriff Reid and local ministers asked the growing crowd to leave. But angry white people tried to storm the courthouse. Deputy Sheriff Mitchell Lummus locked Smith in a large vault. This saved his life. No one was ever arrested for attacking Smith.
White Patrols and Prisoner Moves
Rumors spread that Black people planned to attack the town. Armed white men then patrolled Cumming. To prevent a riot, Governor Joseph Mackey Brown declared martial law. This meant the military took control. He sent 23 members of the National Guard to keep the peace.
Later that day, Sheriff Reid sent Smith and the other Black suspects away. They went to the Cobb County jail in Marietta for safety. The Governor then moved them again to Fulton County jail in Atlanta. This was to protect them from any angry crowds.
Toney Howell's Trial
Police said Toney Howell confessed to attacking Ellen Grice. He also said Pirkle helped him. Howell was tried by an all-white jury. Black people were not allowed to be jurors because they could not vote. Howell was found guilty in February 1913.
The Mae Crow Incident
On September 9, 1912, Sleety Mae Crow, an 18-year-old white girl, was reportedly attacked. Ernest Knox, age 16, was accused.
Sleety Mae Crow's death was never fully solved. Knox reportedly told three friends what he had done. They were Oscar Daniel, 17; his sister Trussie "Jane" Daniel, 22; and Jane's boyfriend Robert "Big Rob" Edwards, 24. They supposedly talked about hiding Crow's body. But they decided it was too risky. They left her in the woods. These claims were never proven. Knox's confession was reportedly obtained by threatening him.
Arrest of Ernest Knox
The next morning, searchers found Mae Crow. She was still alive but barely breathing. They found a small pocket mirror said to belong to Ernest Knox. Police arrested him at home. They took him to the Gainesville, Georgia jail to avoid trouble in Cumming. On the way, Knox confessed to attacking Crow.
When news of the attack spread, a white mob started to gather at the Gainesville jail. At midnight, police moved Knox by car to Atlanta. This was to prevent the mob from killing him.
Suspects Arrested; One Killed
Oscar Daniel, Jane Daniel, and Rob Edwards were arrested the next day. They were suspects in Crow's attack. Their neighbor Ed Collins was also held as a witness. They were taken to the jail in Cumming. About 2,000 white people had gathered there.
Later that day, a mob of hundreds, possibly thousands, attacked the jail. Some men got inside. They shot and killed Edwards in his cell. Sheriff Reid had left the area.
The Trials
Charges against Trussie Daniel and Ed Collins were dropped. Trussie agreed to testify against her brother and Knox. Knox and Oscar Daniel then went to trial. Both young men were quickly found guilty of murder by an all-white jury.
The next day, October 4, both teenagers were sentenced to death by hanging. The execution was set for October 25. State law said executions should not be public. Only the victim's family, a minister, and officers were supposed to watch. Gallows were built near the town square. A fence was put up around them. But the fence was burned down the night before. A crowd of 5,000 to 8,000 people gathered. They watched what became a public execution of the two youths. The county's total population was about 12,000 at that time.
Aftermath: Forced Departures
In the months that followed, a small group called "Night Riders" terrorized Black citizens. They warned them to leave within 24 hours or be killed. Those who stayed faced more harassment. Shots were fired into their homes. Their farm animals were killed. A few white residents reportedly tried to stop the Night Riders but could not. About 98% of Black residents left Forsyth County.
Some property owners managed to sell their land, likely for less than it was worth. Renters and sharecroppers left to find safer places. Those who abandoned their property and stopped paying taxes eventually lost their land. White people then took it over. Much of this land was in the village of Oscarville, Georgia. This village was later covered by the waters of Lake Lanier. This campaign against Black people happened across parts of Georgia. Forsyth County was the third to force out its Black population. Others followed in nearby counties.
In Books and Films
The forced removal of Black people from Forsyth County was featured in a film. It was called Banished: American Ethnic Cleansings. It aired on PBS in 2015 as part of its Independent Lens series.
Patrick Phillips, a professor at Drew University, wrote a book about these events. It is called Blood at the Root: A Racial Cleansing In America (2016). Phillips lived in Forsyth County for a long time. He said he first heard about the forced removal when he was seven years old.
