George Johnson
George Johnson, a Black man, was one of three men held in the jail at Charlestown, Indiana, when a masked mob of about forty people broke in during the early hours of November 17, 1871. The Democratic Press reports that the mob took him from his cell and hanged him in woods about two miles from town, on the same tree as Squire Taylor. A coroner's inquest found that he died by violence at the hands of parties unknown. Accounts differ on the jail staff's response: one says the sheriff refused to give up his keys before the doors were broken open, while another says the sheriff unlocked a cell once the mob had forced the others.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched. A masked mob took George Johnson from the Charlestown, Indiana jail and hanged him; a coroner's inquest found he died by violence at the hands of parties unknown, and one account says the sheriff refused to surrender the keys before the doors were broken down.
Reported by: Charlestown coroner's inquest (medical examiner or coroner); Indianapolis dispatch reprinted in The Placer Herald (reporters); Fayetteville Observer (reporters).
Sources (11)
- Nashville Union And American, November 18, 1871, page 1
- The Daily Phoenix, November 18, 1871, page 3
- Worcester Daily Spy, November 18, 1871, page 1
- Western Reserve Chronicle, November 22, 1871, page 2
- Juniata Sentinel, November 22, 1871, page 2
- Fayetteville Observer, November 23, 1871, page 3
- The Leavenworth Weekly Times, November 23, 1871, page 3
- The Democratic Press, November 23, 1871, page 2
- The Fremont Weekly Journal, November 24, 1871, page 3
- The Placer Herald, November 25, 1871, page 2
- Painesville Journal, November 25, 1871, page 2