Lynching of Roosevelt Townes and Robert McDaniels
| Lynching of Roosevelt Townes and Robert McDaniels | |
|---|---|
Robert McDaniels (left) and Roosevelt Townes (right) pictured prior to being lit on fire | |
| Location | Duck Hill, Mississippi, US |
| Date | April 13, 1937 |
| Target |
|
Attack type | Assault, kidnapping, murder, torture, lynching |
| Weapons | Blow torch, chains, guns, rope |
| Deaths | 2 |
| Victims |
|
| Assailants | Lynch mob |
No. of participants |
|
| Motive | |
| Convictions | None |
On April 13, 1937, Roosevelt Townes and Robert McDaniels, two black men, were lynched in Duck Hill, Mississippi, United States, by a white mob after being labeled as the murderers of a white storekeeper. They had only been legally accused of the crime a few minutes before they were kidnapped from the courthouse, chained to trees, and tortured with a blow torch. Following the torture, McDaniels was shot to death and Townes was burned alive.
Pictures taken, prior to Townes being lit on fire, were the first lynching photographs to be published by the national press. They were reprinted in Time Magazine and Life Magazine, and then in national newspapers.