Gene Yerby
Gene Yerby, a Black man, was held at the Watkinsville jail in Georgia when a masked mob took him from the jail in the early morning of June 29, 1905, according to the Birmingham Age-Herald, though the Montgomery Advertiser gave June 28. The mob tied him to a fence post about 100 yards from the jail and shot him to death. The Courier-Journal reported that the town marshal was seized and forced to give up the jail key after he refused. Reports put the number of men the mob took from the jail at between seven and nine. Governor Joseph M. Terrell said he would investigate the killings.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched. A masked mob took Gene Yerby from the Watkinsville jail and shot him, and the town marshal was seized and forced to give up the jail key.
Reported by: Birmingham Age-Herald (reporters); Associated Press (reporters); Governor Joseph M. Terrell.