Eli Pigot
Eli Pigot, a Black man, was being brought by train to Brookhaven, Mississippi, on February 10, 1908, under the escort of Sheriff Greer, two deputies and National Guard soldiers. According to a Times-Democrat correspondent's account, a mob that had gathered from Ruth and the surrounding area took him from the sheriff and soldiers, shot him, and hanged his body from an electric light pole in front of the courthouse. The report says the sheriff and soldiers were overcome by the crowd. The body was later cut down, placed in a cheap coffin and taken to the county jail, and because no relatives claimed it, he was buried in the potter's field on the county farm.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody. A mob took Eli Pigot from Sheriff Greer, two deputies and National Guard soldiers while he was being brought by train to Brookhaven, shot him and hanged his body from an electric light pole.
Reported by: Times-Democrat special correspondent (reporters).