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130
telegraphs in the progressive business
community, news among the white elites
traveled quickly from one location to the
next, helping to organize troops and civilian
support, and to seek medical assistance. 36
Racing across the city to find family
members, black men and women spread
rumors of murder and fire well before the
full- scale conflict.
Because of the frantic nature of the
story and the way in which it was reported at
the time of the event— often with papers
going to press while guns were fired in the
streets— many inaccurate or incomplete
accounts were circulated and survive today.
Letters and other primary documents survive
from witnesses and participants to add their
personal experiences to printed versions of
the day’s activities. Some who participated
in the riot and later recalled the day in order
to record the “ rebellion” for posterity added
through their memories many of the
reporting inaccuracies. Confusion has arisen
over the accuracy and truthfulness of
participant records, contemporary
newspaper articles, and similar data.
Therefore, one must piece the day’s events
together using multiple, often overlapping,
information sources.
To comprehend the ensuing riot, it
must be understood that groups of four to
eight armed white men were patrolling every
block throughout the city from the day’s
36 Wilmington and Raleigh were the first two cities in
North Carolina to establish telephone exchanges in
North Carolina in 1879. Access to telephones was
limited to businesses and leading businessmen. The
1897 city directory provides the numbers for fifty-three
patrons of the Southern Bell Telephone and
Telegraph Company and for twenty- seven customers
of the Interstate Telephone and Telegraph Company.
Patrons included many men central to the story of the
riot: Hardy Fennell, the Orton hotel, Charles
Schnibben, Iredell Meares, Roger Moore, Robert
Orrell, Walker Taylor, and James Woolvin. Howell,
Book of Wilmington, 162; 1897 Wilmington City
Directory; Jane Cronly letter, nd, Cronly Papers,
Duke University Library, Durham.
first light until nightfall and had been doing
similar patrols throughout the weeks leading
up to the election. 37 Because tensions were
high after the mass meeting on the ninth, the
men and their patrols were even more on
edge than previously. Exhaustion and fear
were prevalent emotions. 38 Still, many black
and white workers proceeded to work as if
nothing had changed. In addition to the
patrols, the WLI and Naval Reserves were
well prepared— having at the ready several
horse drawn wagons mounted with machine
guns and cannons, or designed for troop
transport.
Hell Broke Loose
Harry Hayden wrote that “ Hell broke
loose” about an hour after the Record was
destroyed. The majority of the violence and
bloodshed that took place was found in
Brooklyn, the traditionally African
American neighborhood in the northern
section of the city. 39 The first shots between
whites and blacks were fired at Fourth and
Harnett as armed white men returned to their
neighborhood from the march that burned
37 EY Wootten to “ Edward,” November 8, 1898,
Wootten Papers, University of North Carolina at
Wilmington Library.
38 Many of the letters and accounts used in this report
contain references to exhaustion on the part of the
participants because they were consistently awakened
for patrol duty and to assemble for threats of armed
blacks that never materialized. Collections
containing such letters include, Cronly Papers, James
Spencer Worth Papers, Wootten Papers, Hinsdale
Papers, Eccles Family Papers, and the Louis T.
Moore Collection.
39 Brooklyn has historically been considered the
African American section of the city. Documents
relating to the violence of November 10 indicate that
Brooklyn “ began” at the Fourth Street Bridge.
Research using the city directory and maps generated
by Hayumi Higuchi indicate that the area around
Fourth and Harnett was a mixed- race neighborhood
with a nearly 50/ 50 mix of whites and blacks.
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| Title | 1898 Wilmington race riot report - Page 153 |
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| Full Text | 130 telegraphs in the progressive business community, news among the white elites traveled quickly from one location to the next, helping to organize troops and civilian support, and to seek medical assistance. 36 Racing across the city to find family members, black men and women spread rumors of murder and fire well before the full- scale conflict. Because of the frantic nature of the story and the way in which it was reported at the time of the event— often with papers going to press while guns were fired in the streets— many inaccurate or incomplete accounts were circulated and survive today. Letters and other primary documents survive from witnesses and participants to add their personal experiences to printed versions of the day’s activities. Some who participated in the riot and later recalled the day in order to record the “ rebellion” for posterity added through their memories many of the reporting inaccuracies. Confusion has arisen over the accuracy and truthfulness of participant records, contemporary newspaper articles, and similar data. Therefore, one must piece the day’s events together using multiple, often overlapping, information sources. To comprehend the ensuing riot, it must be understood that groups of four to eight armed white men were patrolling every block throughout the city from the day’s 36 Wilmington and Raleigh were the first two cities in North Carolina to establish telephone exchanges in North Carolina in 1879. Access to telephones was limited to businesses and leading businessmen. The 1897 city directory provides the numbers for fifty-three patrons of the Southern Bell Telephone and Telegraph Company and for twenty- seven customers of the Interstate Telephone and Telegraph Company. Patrons included many men central to the story of the riot: Hardy Fennell, the Orton hotel, Charles Schnibben, Iredell Meares, Roger Moore, Robert Orrell, Walker Taylor, and James Woolvin. Howell, Book of Wilmington, 162; 1897 Wilmington City Directory; Jane Cronly letter, nd, Cronly Papers, Duke University Library, Durham. first light until nightfall and had been doing similar patrols throughout the weeks leading up to the election. 37 Because tensions were high after the mass meeting on the ninth, the men and their patrols were even more on edge than previously. Exhaustion and fear were prevalent emotions. 38 Still, many black and white workers proceeded to work as if nothing had changed. In addition to the patrols, the WLI and Naval Reserves were well prepared— having at the ready several horse drawn wagons mounted with machine guns and cannons, or designed for troop transport. Hell Broke Loose Harry Hayden wrote that “ Hell broke loose” about an hour after the Record was destroyed. The majority of the violence and bloodshed that took place was found in Brooklyn, the traditionally African American neighborhood in the northern section of the city. 39 The first shots between whites and blacks were fired at Fourth and Harnett as armed white men returned to their neighborhood from the march that burned 37 EY Wootten to “ Edward,” November 8, 1898, Wootten Papers, University of North Carolina at Wilmington Library. 38 Many of the letters and accounts used in this report contain references to exhaustion on the part of the participants because they were consistently awakened for patrol duty and to assemble for threats of armed blacks that never materialized. Collections containing such letters include, Cronly Papers, James Spencer Worth Papers, Wootten Papers, Hinsdale Papers, Eccles Family Papers, and the Louis T. Moore Collection. 39 Brooklyn has historically been considered the African American section of the city. Documents relating to the violence of November 10 indicate that Brooklyn “ began” at the Fourth Street Bridge. Research using the city directory and maps generated by Hayumi Higuchi indicate that the area around Fourth and Harnett was a mixed- race neighborhood with a nearly 50/ 50 mix of whites and blacks. |
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