Died in jail or a lockup
Ted Smith
Ted Smith was an 18-year-old Black man held in the Greenville jail in Hunt County, Texas. On July 28, 1908, a mob overpowered the officers at the jail, took him from custody, and killed him by burning in the public square while a large crowd watched. According to the Waxahachie Daily Light, Sheriff D. L. Hemsell and Chief of Police W. F. Norman first tried to keep the crowd back, but were overpowered at the jail door after returning from a trip with him. The account comes from a single 1908 newspaper report.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched
Reported by: news reports.