Died in jail or a lockup
Louis Whitaker
Louis Whitaker, a Black man, was held in the jail at Gadsden, Florida. According to a dispatch datelined New York and printed in the Knoxville Daily Chronicle on April 26, 1881, masked men took him from the jail on Saturday night, April 23, and hanged him from an oak tree. The dispatch does not say whether jail staff resisted the mob or handed over the keys.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched. A Columbus, Georgia dispatch reported in New York says masked men took Louis Whitaker from the Gadsden, Florida jail and hanged him from an oak tree.
Reported by: Columbus, Ga. dispatch reported in New York (reporters).