Died in jail or a lockup
Herman Arthur
Herman Arthur, a Black man, was held with his brother Irving in the jail on the top floor of the courthouse in Paris, Texas. On the evening of July 6, 1920, a mob broke down the iron outer door of the jail, took the two men to the fairgrounds north of the city and burned them at a stake. The Paris sheriff was quoted as doubting that the men taken were the ones the crowd was after, and one paper reported him calling the killing a grievous mistake.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched. A mob broke into the Paris, Texas jail, took Herman Arthur and his brother from their cells and burned them at the stake on the fairgrounds.
Reported by: news reports.
News reports (11)
- The Birmingham Age-Herald, July 7, 1920, page 1
- The Montgomery Advertiser, July 7, 1920, page 1
- Brownsville Herald, July 7, 1920, page 1
- El Paso Herald, July 7, 1920, page 1
- The Log Cabin Democrat, July 7, 1920, page 1
- Pine Bluff Daily Graphic, July 7, 1920, page 1
- The Pensacola Journal, July 7, 1920, page 1
- Alexandria Gazette, July 7, 1920, page 4
- Atlanta Tri-Weekly Journal, July 8, 1920, page 1
- Richmond Planet, July 17, 1920, page 1
- Richmond Planet, July 17, 1920, page 2