In the century after the Civil War, as many as 5000 people of color were murdered by mobs who believed the cause of white supremacy:

You will find them here mapped.

On average, mobs like these killed 9 people per month during the 1890s.

And the average over the next 20 years would be 7 people per month.

It was not until 1918 that one member of Congress, a Republican, attempted any action.

Yet there were heroes who did not wait for that.

How did this happen?

What happened in your state?

Start this lesson

Time needed: 30-40 minutes

Photo above by Richard Koch is the Clinton Courthouse in Clinton, Louisiana. From the Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division (public domain). At least seven lynchings occurred in East Feliciana Parish from 1875-1907.