Died in jail or a lockup
Name not reported
Williams was one of three Black men held in the Rosebud jail in Texas in May 1897. Guards refused a mob's demand for the prisoners, and officers then tried to move the men out of town for their safety. About 1,000 masked men overtook the officers, took the three men and hanged them from a small tree a few miles east of town. The sheriff said nothing had yet been learned about who made up the mob, and an inquest was opened.
Cause of death, as reported: Taken from custody and lynched. A mob overtook officers moving Williams out of Rosebud after guards refused the mob's demand for the prisoners at the jail, and hanged him from a small tree.
Reported by: news reports.