George Smith
George "Joe Coe" Smith, a Black man, was a husband and father who had worked as a railroad porter, according to a 2022 Nebraska Examiner account. According to a historical marker placed by the City of Omaha, Douglas County and the Omaha Community Council for Racial Justice and Reconciliation, a mob took him from the Douglas County Jail in Omaha in 1891. The marker says he was beaten to death and hanged from a pole at 17th and Harney streets. The Examiner reports that the local coroner concluded he died of fright. The Examiner reports that no one was held accountable for his death.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched (disputed). A historical marker says a mob beat him to death and hanged him from a pole after taking him from the Douglas County Jail, while the local coroner concluded he died of fright and a memorial plaque describes a homicide.
Reported by: City of Omaha, Douglas County and the Omaha Community Council for Racial Justice and Reconciliation historical marker; local coroner.