R. D. Brown
R. D. Brown, a 16-year-old Black boy, was held at the Arkansas Negro Boys Industrial School in Wrightsville, Pulaski County, when a fire swept through his dormitory on March 5, 1959. He was one of 21 boys who died in the blaze. The Encyclopedia of Arkansas reports that the dormitory doors were reportedly locked from the outside. He is buried in Haven of Rest Cemetery in Little Rock. In 2019 the Arkansas Department of Correction dedicated a memorial bearing the names of the boys who died.
Cause of death, as reported: Died in an accident (neglect alleged). The Arkansas Department of Correction attributes the death to a dormitory fire, and reports say the doors were locked from the outside, so the boys could not leave.
Reported by: Arkansas Department of Correction (the agency that held him). The only account of how this person died comes from the agency that held him.