This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press, 2020. 100 years after hundreds of African Americans were reportedly killed in Elaine, Arkansas, a memorial is set to bring details of the tragedy to light Some observers say the number of people who. One union member, Ed Ware, told her that men had fired into the Hoop Spur church, killing several people, then burned it down the next day with bodies inside. Males had a median income of $27,203 versus $17,250 for females. There were 2,710 housing units at an average density of 304.6 per square mile (117.6/km2). Late in the evening of Sept. 30, black sharecropper families gathered in the Hoop Spur church near Elaine. [24] The Union garrison would face the coming attack with 4,129 men. HELENA-WEST HELENA, Ark. Among the musicians who regularly visited and performed in the area at that time were Robert Johnson, Johnny Shines, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Robert Nighthawk, Howlin' Wolf, Elmore James, David "Honeyboy" Edwards, Memphis Slim and Roosevelt Sykes. [10], Once formed, the plan called for Price, with his 3,095 infantry, to move from Jacksonport to Cotton Plant on June 22, along with Marmaduke's 1,750 cavalry; that 1,339 infantry commanded by Brigadier General James F. Fagan would move from Little Rock to Clarendon, and that Brigadier General Lucius M. Walker would screen Helena with his 1,462 cavalry. In June 1863, Confederate Commander Theophilus Holmes sought to take pressure off of Vicksburg, Mississippi, by attacking the Union-held town of Helena, Arkansas. [51] His dismounted cavalrymen were pushed back by the 29th Iowa and part of the 36th Iowa Infantry Regiment, and his flank was threatened by the 5th Kansas Cavalry Regiment and the 1st Indiana Cavalry Regiment, which were commanded by Powell Clayton. [34] To protect Fagan's flank, Brooks' men were sent up the Lower Little Rock Road at around 1:30 am;[35] the detachment opened the battle in the early dawn by clashing with Union pickets. [91][c] Holmes accused McRae of "misbehavior before the enemy", and in his report placed part of the blame for the failure on McRae, but McRae was cleared by a subsequent court-martial. Major funding provided by the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation. Barry, John M. Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America. Race relations in this area of Arkansas are currently quite strained for a number of reasons, including the events of 1919. Ms. Wells Barnett gathered testimonies that described the sheer horror of the massacre from those who endured and lived to tell their stories. [99], Helena was reinforced and in mid-August, Union forces began a campaign against Little Rock, with Helena as the staging ground. Over 7,500 Confederate troops led by Lieutenant General Theophilus Holmes attempted to capture Helena in hopes of relieving some of the pressure on the Confederate army besieged in Vicksburg, Mississippi. The Arkansas Race Riot. N.p. These 15 Photos Of Arkansas In The 1960s Are Mesmerizing The conflict began on the night of September 30, 1919, when approximately 100 African Americans, mostly sharecroppers on the plantations of white landowners, attended a meeting of the Progressive Farmers and Household Union of America at a church in Hoop Spur (Phillips County), three miles north of Elaine. The economy, traditionally based on cotton and lumber, became increasingly industrialized after World War II, especially at West Helena (founded 1909, incorporated 1917). During this Red Scare, the threat of Bolshevism seemed to be everywhere: not only in the labor strikes led by the radical Industrial Workers of the World but also in the cotton fields of Arkansas. [93][94] The battle also destroyed any positive relationships remaining between Holmes and Price,[95] with the former believing that the latter should have reinforced Fagan. [23] Prentiss originally dismissed rumors of a Confederate attack, but by late June gave more credence to the reports. The Nevada County Depot in Prescott was photographed circa 1960 with the Reader Railroad engine in the foreground. Since Prentiss was aware of a coming attack, the Confederates would not have the advantage of surprise. New York: Pegasus Books, 2020. Legal disfranchisement stripped them of the vote and an ability to share in any benefits of citizenship. A memorial to those killed in the Elaine massacre of 1919 was dedicated on Sunday. The committees narrative appeared in newspapers all over the country. In their view a deliberately planned insurrection had occurred, where black sharecroppers had intended to murder the plantation owners to seize the land. Anyone can read what you share. [33] Holmes made a pledge that he would take personally responsibility for the results of the assault if it failed. Eliza Miller Junior High School and Central High School, the designated secondary schools, were in West Helena. Butler Center for Arkansas Studies. Wormser, Richard, director. [70] Fagan's lines had been badly thinned by not only Union fire but also heat and exhaustion. Ultimately, the Ware defendants were freed by the Arkansas Supreme Court after two terms of court had passed, and the state of Arkansas made no move to re-try the men. [101] The Helena Confederate Cemetery includes burials of Confederate soldiers killed during the battle, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places,[102] as are the remains of the Union batteries.[103]. - Police in Helena-West Helena are investigating a deadly shooting that happened on Friday night. For historic sites related to the battle, see. To Those Known and Unknown: The Elaine Massacre Memorial. Arkansas Times, August 2019, pp. Give a donation in someones name to mark a special occasion, honor a friend or colleague or remember a beloved family member. Dunaway, L. S. What A Preacher Saw Through a Keyhole in Arkansas. Encyclopedia of Arkansas [54] Walker's men had encountered the felled trees across their path of advance, and though he threw forward a skirmish line, most of his men remained back at the barricades. [48] They were now in front of Battery D.[50], Marmaduke has his own problems in his sector on the line. According to Christ, Prentiss lost 220 of the 4,129 men he took into battle: 57 killed, 127 wounded, and 36 missing. 0.73% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. The per capita income for Helena is $13,028. Grif Stockley During the trials, Murphy became ill, and Jones became the principal counsel. Union media later greatly embellished the role played by the regiment in the fighting. [56] Historian Robert E. Shalhope wrote that the Confederate attacks were repulsed "perhaps less by the powerful Union entrenchments than by their own poorly co-ordinated attack". . [21] Walker lost only 12 men; historian Mark Christ attributes this to the weakness of his attack. Paul Hall was one of the twelve men who were slated to be electrocuted, and I believe he was my relative. New York: Crown, 2008. Battle of Helena - Wikipedia Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. He lost 121 acres of cotton and corn. The twelve men were: Frank Moore, Frank Hicks, Ed Hicks, Joe Knox, Paul Hall, Ed Coleman, Alfred Banks, Ed Ware, William Wordlaw, Albert Giles, Joe Fox, and John Martin. [8] He thought the attack would be too costly, and instead suggested placing an artillery battery along the Mississippi river to intercept Union shipping. 1831-12-25 Louisiana & Arkansas are first states to observe Christmas as holiday. Troops and vigilantes, he noted, went into the canebrakes in search of negro desperadoes, leaving dead bodies lying in the road a few miles outside of the city. Damaged Heritage: The Elaine Race Massacre and a Story of Reconciliation. What a travesty of justice. Vigilantes from Mississippi seized another union member, Lula Black, and her four children from her house, knocked her down, pistol whipped and kicked her, then took her to jail. Mulder, Brandon. The trials began the next week, with John Elvis Miller leading the prosecution. In contrast, the correspondent for the Memphis Press on October 2, 1919, wrote, Many Negroes are reported killed by the soldiers. Other anecdotal information suggests that U.S. troops also engaged in torture of African Americans to make them confess and give information. 1E, 6E. If we cant get people to recognize we matter, we will never get past the color of our skin being the reason for unemployment, violence, and intolerance by authorities simply because were black. . 25 federal indictments come from Helena-West Helena, federal partnership In previous months, racial conflict had occurred in numerous cities in America, including Washington DC; Chicago, Illinois; Knoxville, Tennessee; and Indianapolis, Indiana. One hundred years ago this week, one of the worst episodes of racial violence in American history unfolded in Elaine, Ark., a small town on the Mississippi. With the fall of Vicksburg and Port Hudson, the Confederate forces in the Trans-Mississippi were cut off from the rest of the Confederacy. Many families described how they had run into the woods for safety from bloodthirsty mobs, hoping to surrender themselves to the federal troops for safety. Taylor, Kieran. Holmes noted that the defenses of Helena were stronger than he expected, but carried on with the attack anyway. According to the United States Census Bureau, Helena had a total area of 8.9 square miles (23km2), all land. Flood of 1927 - Encyclopedia of Arkansas By early morning Oct. 1, the sheriff sent white veterans from the American Legion post to suppress what he deemed an insurrection. Many denied the massacre had occurred, leaving accounts of the slaughter to witnesses, reports from Wells Barnett, and stories passed down through families of the victims. Additional support provided by the Arkansas Community Foundation. The white leaders put forward their view that black residents had been about to revolt. [20]. Lancaster, Guy, ed. : 1920. A local schoolteacher saw 28 black people killed, their bodies thrown into a pit and burned, and 16 African Americans killed, their bodies hanging from a bridge outside of Helena., A Memphis reporter described events on Oct. 2 after the troops had arrived. New York: St. Martins, 2011. He returned to Little Rock the next day and told a press conference, The situation at Elaine has been well handled and is absolutely under control. On October 31, 1919, the Phillips County grand jury charged 122 African Americans with crimes stemming from the racial disturbances. Helena, AR Map & Directions - MapQuest Holmes planned and executed three different failed attacks on the town. The Memphis Press stated that white locals were so enraged that they were firing bullets into black corpses as they left Helena en route to Elaine. [40] At 4:05 am, Fagan's skirmishers sighted the Union position, and with the day dawning, Fagan attacked with three infantry regiments. After troops arrived in Elaine on the morning of October 2, 1919, the white mobs began to depart the area and return to their homes. Whitaker, Robert. [25] Prentiss' men had advantages over the Confederates through their defenses, batteries, and naval support. In 2 U.S. Cities Haunted by Race Massacres, Facing the Past Is Painful and Divisive. NPR, December 11, 2022. https://www.npr.org/2022/12/11/1137090651/elaine-massacre-tulsa-race-riot (accessed December 12, 2022). Pascal, Olivia. Once there, Holmes provided further orders for the advance: Walker was to screen Fagan's movement to Helena with part of his command, while Price continued on to Helena from Switzer's. Richard Hall asked my father to come to Mississippi to visit him. For the next year, it served as a command post for the Union since it was centrally located on the Mississippi River. The white citizens of the county deserve unstinting praise for their actions in preventing mob violence., From this point forward, two versions of what occurred at Elaine exist. News of the shooting quickly reached the county seat of Helena. The community, originally settled in 1797 and first called Monticello and then St. Francis, grew around a warehouse built for barge shipping. After Marmaduke's withdrawal, Union troops attempted to attack Walker's flank, but the Confederate cavalrymen withdrew from the field before they were caught. Krug, Teresa. Americans have yet to reckon with this horrible past. As racialized violence spread in both Northern and Southern cities during the Red Summer of 1919, Delta planters were paying close attention. ed. Peacock, Leslie Newell. [65] Carried by momentum, some of Price's infantry charged down the hill towards Helena itself, but were driven off. The violence even claimed those who had nothing to do with the union efforts, such as brothers David Augustine Elihue Johnston, Gibson Allen Johnston, Lewis Harrison (L. H.) Johnston, and Leroy Johnston, who were returning to Helena from a hunting trip when they were attacked and killed on October 2. [53] Bledsoe's two guns were driven off, but neither side could defeat the other. The assaults failed, and Vicksburg fell the same day. [25] Trees were felled in front of the Union lines, although it is unclear if they were simply left where they fell as an obstruction or were converted into abatis. Historic Theaters of Arkansas - Only In Arkansas America cannot address the inequality, poverty, inadequate education, the racially biased criminal justice system, and the limited life chances of black people that define contemporary society until the nation confronts and acknowledges this history. [17] Price's advance continued to be slowed by the terrain and weather, to the annoyance of Holmes, who rightly believed that the delay had prevented any remaining chance of the movement being a surprise. They stole Wares cow, two mules, one horse, a farm wagon, his Ford car and various household goods. The research below is a comprehensive historical analysis of every major league baseball player born in Arkansas. On November 5, 2019, the Elaine Twelve were memorialized on the Arkansas Civil Rights Heritage Trail in Little Rock. [59] The cannons in Battery C were manned by men from the 33rd Missouri Infantry Regiment, and they, along with a portion of the 33rd Iowa, poured a deadly fire into Parsons' men, while Battery B fired at McRae's brigade. Brough responded by gaining permission from the Department of War to send more than 500 battle-tested troops from Camp Pike, outside of Little Rock (Pulaski County). https://ualrexhibits.org/elaine/ (accessed August 16, 2022). [Editors note: A professor at UA Little Rock is working to compile such a list.]. The convictions were again affirmed. Roberts, Michael. How could anyone treat people with such horrendous disregard and violence? Attorney Jacob Fink, who was appointed to represent Frank Hicks, admitted to the jury that he had not interviewed any witnesses. Update: Name Released of Man Found Shot to Death on Helena-West Helena The perpetrators suppressed coverage of the events, and the victims, terrified black families, had no one to turn for help. As they ran from the posse, the Colemans saw his neighbor, Jim Miller, and his family burned alive in their house. Local authorities blocked press coverage. One hundred years ago this week, one of the worst episodes of racial violence in American history unfolded in Elaine, Ark., a small town on the Mississippi. Arkansas governor Charles Hillman Brough told a St. Louis, Missouri, audience during the war that there existed no twilight zone in American patriotism and called Wisconsin senator Robert LaFollete, who opposed the war, a Bolshevik leader. Families of union members found no welcome when they returned to their homes. The Forgotten History of America's Worst Racial Massacre - New York Times On the other hand, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in New York, which had sent Field Secretary Walter White to investigate the events in Elaine, contested such allegations from the outset. Two Narratives: How a 1919 Massacre Tore Elaine, Ark., Apart. Howard Center for Investigative Journalism, November 15, 2021. https://lynching.cnsmaryland.org/2021/11/14/two-narratives-how-a-1919-massacre-tore-elaine-ark-apart/ (accessed August 16, 2022). 100 Rock Street Cortner, Richard C. A Mob Intent on Death: The NAACP and the Arkansas Riot Cases. [18] The Confederate columns finally united on July 3,[19] and that day began the final movement towards Helena. [36] Brooks' Confederates also encountered a camp of African-American refugees. Helena was defended by about 4,100 Union troops led by Major General Benjamin Prentiss, manning one fort and four batteries. I have been trying to close a chapter in my family history. Union, Reaction, and Riot: The Biography of a Rural Race Riot. Elaine sits in Phillips County, on one of the many bends in the Mississippi, roughly 95 miles southwest of Memphis. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 1988. By days end, countless black women, men and children had been slaughtered. [48] The 43rd Indiana Infantry Regiment had been facing Fagan's Confederates, and was reinforced by parts of the 33rd Iowa Infantry Regiment and the 35th Missouri Infantry Regiment, under orders from Salomon. Although the posse encountered minimal resistance from the black residents of the area around Elaine, the fear of African Americans, who outnumbered whites in this area of Phillips County by a ratio of ten to one, led an estimated 500 to 1,000 armed white peoplemostly from the surrounding Arkansas counties but also from across the river in Mississippito travel to Elaine to put down what was characterized by them as an insurrection. On October 1, Phillips County authorities sent three telegrams to Gov. Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press, 2020. Wells-Barnett, Ida B. [50] Price's command consisted of the brigades of Brigadier Generals Dandridge McRae and Mosby Monroe Parsons, and was led by the 9th Missouri Sharpshooter Battalion and a company of Arkansans local to the Helena area. [24] Each of the four batteries was located on a high point of Crowley's Ridge. [22] Although Prentiss was in command of the general district around Helena, the garrison itself was operationally commanded by Brigadier General Frederick Salomon, the commander of the division. Collins, Ann V. All Hell Broke Loose: American Race Riots from the Progressive Era through World War II. [78] Including the men of the 37th Arkansas, about 250 Confederates surrendered in Fagan's sector. Historian Robert Kerby describes the Confederate plan as "a model of brutal irresponsibility". [84] Marmaduke received orders to withdraw at about 11:00 am, but being angry at Walker over Walker's failure to support his attack and believing that Walker faced only a small force, decided against informing Walker of his retreat. The Elaine Riot: Tragedy & Triumph. [1] The American Civil War began on April 12, when Confederate troops bombarded Fort Sumter. Race, Labor, and Violence in the Delta: Essays to Mark the Centennial of the Elaine Massacre. See this venue in scenes from the 2004 film, "Walk the Line . Because Price had not yet attacked, Fagan's men came under fire from both Battery D and Battery C.[49] Fagan's Confederates broke through the second Union line, then a third and fourth, but then halted at about 7:00 am, their attack spent. Telephone lines to Elaine were cut. Neuman, Scott. Corrections? In June 1863, Confederate Commander Theophilus Holmes sought to take pressure off of Vicksburg, Mississippi, by attacking the Union-held town of Helena, Arkansas. HELENA WEST HELENA, Ark. It is impossible to establish an accurate death toll. Improve this listing Full view All photos (4) Top ways to experience nearby attractions Memphis City Tour with Optional Riverboat Cruise & Sun Studio Add-On Options 438 Recommended Bus Tours from $40.00 per adult Pop. Further Reading: Richard C. Courtner, A Mob Intent on Death: The N.A.A.C.P. It is a deliberately planned insurrection of the Negroes against the whites directed by an organization known as the Progressive Farmers and Household Union of America, established for the purpose of banding Negroes together for the killing of white people.. Consequently, plantation owners and lumber mills had to pay higher wages to have the cotton picked or timber milled. Edgar Hoover and the Red Summer of 1919. Journal of American Studies 28 (April 1994): 3959. On September 29, 2019, a memorial to those who died during the massacre was dedicated in downtown Helena-West Helena. E. M. Allen, a planter and real estate developer who became the spokesman for Phillips Countys white power structure, told the Helena World on October 7, The present trouble with the Negroes in Phillips County is not a race riot. Helena is the birthplace of many notable people including prominent African Americans and Arkansas' former senior United States senator, Blanche Lincoln. [45], Price's attack had been delayed. Black people were thus blamed, sentenced and jailed for their own massacre. Even worse from the planters perspective, the much-feared radical Industrial Workers of the World, or Wobblies, were rumored to be organizing in the fields and mills. Local officials and businessmen conducted their own investigation of what had transpired in the Elaine area. By late November, Jones was working with Murphys firm to save the Elaine Twelve. Upset about unfair low wages, they enlisted the help. I first learned of the Elaine Massacre today, February 7, 2017, and I am both saddened and angered. Rate and review titles you borrow and share your opinions on them. As you know, our black history is very limited in some areas. Throughout the day at least 1,000 white vigilantes came from all over the state and from Mississippi to join plantation owners, their managers, sheriffs, deputies and the veterans to put down what they called an uprising. Fort Curtis was not directly attacked at the Battle of Helena since the Confederacy focused its attacks on the outlying batteries. In Phillips County, this struggle directly challenged planter dominance. He praised his troops for their restraint in suppressing the rebellion. [37] The felled trees slowed Fagan's main attack,[38] which was on the Upper Little Rock Road,[39] and forced the Confederates to leave their supply wagons and cannons behind. The Elaine Massacre and Arkansas: A Century of Atrocity and Resistance, 18191919. [32] Walker's specific orders were to "act against the enemy as circumstances may justify", a vague order that left him under his own initiative and resulted in him accomplishing little in the coming battle. Confederate infantry deserted in large numbers, their morale shattered. Omissions? [5] The service was restored on October 1, 2015, and two new freight customers were quickly gained. The murders, thefts, violence and terror continued long after the troops had gone and the convicted men had been released.
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what happened to helena, arkansas