Robert Hughes
Robert W. Hughes was an 18-year-old Black man who had worked as a hotel porter and as a driver for a Black business owner, and his family, including a great-niece who searched for years for information about him, has kept his memory alive. He was held in the Allegany County Jail in Cumberland, Maryland, in October 1907, when a white mob broke in, took him from the building, and beat and shot him to death. According to the historian's account, only one officer was on duty as a crowd gathered outside, and no one was ever held accountable for his death. Sources disagree on his age, reporting 18 in some places and 22 in others, and at the time some papers reported him as William Burns.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched (neglect alleged). The Equal Justice Initiative says a white mob broke into the Allegany County jail, dragged him out and beat and shot him, and that armed authorities did not disperse the crowd; historian Heidi Gardner says only one officer was on duty as the crowd gathered.
Reported by: Equal Justice Initiative (advocates); Heidi Gardner's historical research.