Forsyth 1912: The Lynching Epidemic

Illustration showing the ghostly figure of a manic-looking man, labeled “Judge Lynch,” carrying a book labeled “Lynch Law,” and a lighted torch, hovering over a procession of people. “Judge Lynch” was the personification of lynching, which was the practice of executing people suspected of crimes without the benefit of trial. Crawford, Will, Artist. Start the recall of judges with this one / Will Crawford., 1912. N.Y.: Published by Keppler & Schwarzmann, Puck Building. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2011649123/

by Monique Rojas
Communications Coordinator

Most people recognize lynchings primarily as the act of hanging Black individuals indiscriminately. However, lynching is defined as the public killing of someone who was not afforded their Sixth Amendment right to due process.

Starting in 1889, Black individuals were more frequently the victims of lynchings. This shift can be attributed to white sentiment following the enfranchisement of Black citizens.

After the Civil War ended in 1865, Congress ratified the 13th Amendment (1865), 14th Amendment (1868), and 15th Amendment (1870). These amendments constitutionally abolished race-based enslavement, granted citizenship to Black individuals born in the U.S., and ensured voting rights for Black men. However, many white Americans struggled with the idea of living alongside individuals they had not previously recognized as their social equals or as Americans. This tension led to increased anti-Black violence, including racial massacres and lynchings, across the country.

Rebecca Latimer Felton, 1880. Atlanta History Photograph Collection, Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center

In an 1897 speech, Georgia politician and activist Rebecca Felton Latimer said, “As long as your politicians take the colored man into their embrace on election day… so long will lynching prevail… If it needs lynching to protect a woman’s dearest possession from the ravening human beasts, then I say lynch a thousand times a week if necessary.”

Georgia most notably experienced this violence during the 1906 Atlanta Race Massacre, in which about 23 Black individuals were killed by racist vigilantes. The violence was sparked by inaccurate local newspaper headlines claiming Black men had sexually assaulted white women.

View of Lake Abana at Grant Park in Atlanta, Georgia. There is handwritten text on the front of the postcard that references the 1906 Race Massacre: “There is a race riot going on here, there has been about 40 people killed since Saturday night your card was very interesting. J. G. Butler. Raphael Tuck & Sons, Atlanta History Center postcard collection, Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center

The Equal Justice Initiative, also known as EJI, has published a comprehensive report analyzing racial lynchings in the U.S., emphasizing its commitment to end mass incarceration and excessive punishment. The findings reveal that from 1877 to 1950, Georgia witnessed 594 racial lynchings, ranking it second in the South, surpassed only by Mississippi’s 656. Fulton County, bearing the heaviest burden, experienced 36 of these lynchings, making it the most affected county in the state.

Men at a Dixiecrat Convention jeer at an anti-lynching protestor in 1948. Marion Johnson, Marion Johnson Photographs, Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center

Atlanta History Center’s Forsyth 1912 project focuses on the lynching of Rob Edwards, a Black resident of Forsyth County. On September 12, 1912, Edwards was lynched after being accused of murdering white teenager Mae Crow.

His lynching led to the forced displacement of Black residents of Forsyth County by white residents. The EJI, in collaboration with the Community Remembrance Project of Forsyth County, memorialized the presumed site of Edwards’ death.

A contextual plaque, part of their Community Plaque Project, was placed at the entrance of Cumming Square. Additionally, a jar of soil was collected to symbolize the unjust killing. Commemorative plaques are also in Dekalb County, Gwinnett County, and Roswell.

A contextual plaque at the entrance of Cumming Square memorializing the presumed site of Rob Edwards’ death. Sophia Dodd, Atlanta History Center

Edward’s jar is just one of many. The EJI has collaborated with communities nationwide to commemorate victims of racial lynchings. The entire collection can be found at the Legacy Museum in Montgomery, Alabama, the Peace and Justice Memorial, and the EJI office.

As Americans have deeper conversations about the significance of memorials and what or whom they commemorate, it’s vital to acknowledge the racial terror that gripped the nation after Reconstruction. Lynching is a blatant breach of the Sixth Amendment to the Constitution, ensuring every person the right to due process and a fair trial. In a country founded on democratic principles, the history of lynching underscores persistent racial disparities and systemic injustices.