Died in jail or a lockup
John Talley
John Talley, an eighteen-year-old Black delivery wagon driver, was held in the jail at Dyersburg, Tennessee, according to most accounts, though one report places the jail at Pittsburg, Texas. On November 7, 1913, a crowd of about three hundred people broke into the jail with sledgehammers, took him to the courthouse yard and hanged him from a locust tree. One report says the jailer fled and gave the crowd the wrong keys before they broke through. The crowd's stated reason was an accusation against him, which this record does not repeat as fact.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody