So I said, 'Okay guys, I'm opening the closet with the skeletons, because if we don't learn from mistakes, we're doomed to repeat them'." They crossed dirt roads one at a time, then hid under brush until they had all gathered away from Rosewood. (Moore, 1982). She never recovered, and died in 1924. [54], Arnett Doctor told the story of Rosewood to print and television reporters from all over the world. [3][21], Sylvester Carrier was reported in the New York Times saying that the attack on Fannie Taylor was an "example of what negroes could do without interference". "Wiped Off the Map". The Hall family walked 15 miles (24km) through swampland to the town of Gulf Hammock. [47], In 1982, an investigative reporter named Gary Moore from the St. Petersburg Times drove from the Tampa area to Cedar Key looking for a story. [62], After hearing all the evidence, the Special Master Richard Hixson, who presided over the testimony for the Florida Legislature, declared that the state had a "moral obligation" to make restitution to the former residents of Rosewood. He lived in it and acted as an emissary between the county and the survivors. [19] On the day following Wright's lynching, whites shot and hanged two more black men in Perry; next they burned the town's black school, Masonic lodge, church, amusement hall, and several families' homes. The incident was sparked by a rumor that a white woman in the nearby town of Sumner had been beaten and possibly sexually assaulted by a black man. The massacre was ignited by a false accusation from Fannie Taylor, a White woman who lived in the nearby predominantly White town of Sumner and claimed she'd been beaten by a Black man. In Gainesville which was 48 miles away the Klan was holding its biggest rally ever in that city. Rosewood, near the west coast of Florida where the state begins its westward bend toward Alabama, is one of more than three dozen black communities that were eradicated by frenzied whites, but above the others it remains stained. Some survivors' stories claim that up to 27 black residents were killed, and they also assert that newspapers did not report the total number of white deaths. Fannie is related to Mary Taylor and Jessie Taylor as well as 1 additional person. This accusation set off a chain of events that would lead to the violent massacre of the black residents of Rosewood by a mob of white men. As was custom among many residents of Levy County, both black and white, Williams used a nickname that was more prominent than his given name; when he gave his nickname of "Lord God", they shot him dead. (, William Bryce, known as "K", was unique; he often disregarded race barriers. [50] A psychologist at the University of Florida later testified in state hearings that the survivors of Rosewood showed signs of posttraumatic stress disorder, made worse by the secrecy. It took them nearly a year to do the research, including interviews, and writing. In Gainesville which was 48 miles away the Klan was holding its biggest rally ever in that city. [16][17] An editor of The Gainesville Daily Sun admitted that he was a member of the Klan in 1922, and praised the organization in print. Rosewood houses were painted and most of them neat. On January 1st, 1923, Fannie Taylor of Sumner, Florida was assaulted by her lover while her boyfriend was at work. Many black residents fled for safety into the nearby swamps, some clothed only in their pajamas. The white Democratic-dominated legislature passed a poll tax in 1885, which largely served to disenfranchise all poor voters. Moore addressed the disappearance of the incident from written or spoken history: "After a week of sensation, the weeks of January 1923 seem to have dropped completely from Florida's consciousness, like some unmentionable skeleton in the family closet". The influx of black people into urban centers in the Northeast and Midwest increased racial tensions in those cities. "Movies: On Location: Dredging in the Deep South John Singleton Digs into the Story of Rosewood, a Town Burned by a Lynch Mob in 1923", mass racial violence in the United States, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, List of incidents of civil unrest in the United States, Mass racial violence in the United States, Timeline of terrorist attacks in the United States, "Rosewood Descendant Keeps The Memory Alive", "Florida Lynched More Black People Per Capita Than Any Other State, According to Report", "From the archives: the original story of the Rosewood Massacre", Film; A Lost Generation and its Exploiters, "Longest-living Rosewood survivor: 'I'm not angry', "Pasco County woman said to be true Rosewood survivor passes away", Real Rosewood Foundation Hands Out Awards", "Levy Co. Massacre Gets Spotlight in Koppel Film", "Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes: Online Sunshine", This book has been unpublished by the University Press of Florida and is not a valid reference, The Rosewood Massacre: An Archaeology and History of Intersectional Violence, "Owed To Rosewood Voices From A Florida Town That Died In A Racial Firestorm 70 Years Ago Rise From The Ashes, Asking For Justice", A Documented History of the Incident Which Occurred at Rosewood, Florida in 1923, Is Singleton's Movie a Scandal or a Black, List of lynching victims in the United States, William "Froggie" James and Henry Salzner, Elijah Frost, Abijah Gibson, Tom McCracken, Thomas Moss, Henry Stewart, Calvin McDowell (TN), Thomas Harold Thurmond and John M. Holmes, Henry Hezekiah Dee and Charles Eddie Moore, Association of Southern Women for the Prevention of Lynching, Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act, The National Memorial for Peace and Justice, National Museum of African American History and Culture, "The United States of Lyncherdom" (Twain), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rosewood_massacre&oldid=1142201387, Buildings and structures in Levy County, Florida, Racially motivated violence against African Americans, Tourist attractions in Levy County, Florida, White American riots in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, 6 black and 2 white people (official figure), This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 02:00. He said he did not want his "hands wet with blood". In 1866 Florida, as did many Southern states, passed laws called Black Codes disenfranchising black citizens. Sarah Carrier was shot in the head. Hence, the intelligence of women must be cultivated and the purity and dignity of womanhood must be protected by the maintenance of a single standard of morals for both races. Sarah Carrier's husband Haywood did not see the events in Rosewood. Brown, Eugene (January 13, 1923). Several white men declined to join the mobs, including the town barber who also refused to lend his gun to anyone. Out of hate they dragged black men to death, lynched them, burned others alive and shot others including women, children and babies which they buried in mass graves. Number of people Fannie Taylor Obituary (1932 Lee Ruth Davis died a few months before testimony began, but Minnie Lee Langley, Arnett Goins, Wilson Hall, Willie Evans, and several descendants from Rosewood testified. People don't relate to it, or just don't want to hear about it. You're trying to get me to talk about that massacre." When they learned that Jesse Hunter, a black prisoner, had escaped from a chain gang, they began a search to question him about Taylor's attack. The United States as a whole was experiencing rapid social changes: an influx of European immigrants, industrialization and the growth of cities, and political experimentation in the North. Wilson Hall was nine years old at the time; he later recounted his mother waking him to escape into the swamps early in the morning when it was still dark; the lights from approaching cars of white men could be seen for miles. It concluded, "No family and no race rises higher than womanhood. [21] The mob also destroyed the white church in Rosewood. The incident was the subject of a 1997 feature film which was directed by John Singleton. Sylvester Carrier would emerge . Doctor was consumed by his mother's story; he would bring it up to his aunts only to be dissuaded from speaking of it. It started with a lie. A confrontation regarding the rights of black soldiers culminated in the Houston Riot of 1917. He was ostracized and taunted for assisting the survivors, and rumored to keep a gun in every room of his house. It was a New York Times bestseller and won the Lillian Smith Book Award, bestowed by the University of Georgia Libraries and the Southern Regional Council to authors who highlight racial and social inequality in their works. Fannie Taylor and her husband moved to a different town and Fannie later died of cancer. Carrier and Carter, another Mason, covered the fugitive in the back of a wagon. She lived in Sumner FL. [3] In 1920, whites removed four black men from jail, who were suspects accused of raping a white woman in Macclenny, and lynched them. Although she was not seriously injured and was able to describe what happened she allegedly remained unconscious for several hours due to the shock of the incident. David Colburn distinguishes two types of violence against black people up to 1923: Northern violence was generally spontaneous mob action against entire communities. [58] The report was titled "Documented History of the Incident which Occurred at Rosewood, Florida in January 1923". The village had about a dozen two-story wooden plank homes, other small two-room houses, and several small unoccupied plank farm and storage structures. We always asked, but folks wouldn't say why. Men arrived from Cedar Key, Otter Creek, Chiefland, and Bronson to help with the search. W. H. Pillsbury was among them, and he was taunted by former Sumner residents. Some survivors as well as participants in the mob action went to Lacoochee to work in the mill there. Frances "Fannie" Taylor was 22 years old in 1923 and married to James, a 30-year-old millwright employed by Cummer & Sons in Sumner. On January 1, 1923, in Sumner, Florida, a young, married white woman named Fannie Taylor claimed she had been . Armed guards sent by Sheriff Walker turned away black people who emerged from the swamps and tried to go home. By 1900, the population in Rosewood had become predominantly black. Rosewood is a 1997 American historical drama film directed by John Singleton, inspired by the 1923 Rosewood massacre in Florida, . "Her. [3], Black newspapers covered the events from a different angle. That be just like throwing gasoline on fire to tell a bunch of white people that." Taylor specifically told the Sheriff that she had not been raped. [note 6] As they passed the area, the Bryces slowed their train and blew the horn, picking up women and children. [53] He also called into question the shortcomings of the report: although the historians were instructed not to write it with compensation in mind, they offered conclusions about the actions of Sheriff Walker and Governor Hardee. Her son Arnett was, by that time, "obsessed" with the events in Rosewood. A white town that was a few miles from Rosewood. He raised the number of historic residents in Rosewood, as well as the number who died at the Carrier house siege; he exaggerated the town's contemporary importance by comparing it to Atlanta, Georgia as a cultural center. John Wright's house was the only structure left standing in Rosewood. [59][60] Gary Moore, the investigative journalist who wrote the 1982 story in The St. Petersburg Times that reopened the Rosewood case, criticized demonstrable errors in the report. [48][49] He was able to convince Arnett Doctor to join him on a visit to the site, which he did without telling his mother. Carter took him to a nearby river, let him out of the wagon, then returned home to be met by the mob, who was led by dogs following the fugitive's scent. In 1995, survivor Robie Mortin recalled at age 79 that when she was a child there, that "Rosewood was a town where everyone's house was painted. [21], Quickly, Levy County Sheriff Robert Elias Walker raised a posse and started an investigation. Fanny Taylor +99 +98 +97 +95 . In The New York Times E.R. Gary Moore published another article about Rosewood in the Miami Herald on March 7, 1993; he had to negotiate with the newspaper's editors for about a year to publish it. In February 1923, the all-white grand jury convened in Bronson. In 1993, the Florida Legislature commissioned a report on the incident. Gary Moore believes that creating an outside character who inspires the citizens of Rosewood to fight back condescends to survivors, and he criticized the inflated death toll specifically, saying the film was "an interesting experience in illusion". As white residents of Sumner gathered, Taylor chose a common lie, claiming she'd been attacked by an unnamed Black assailant. Over the following week hundreds of white men descended upon Rosewood vengeance in mind and torches in hand. Rosewood massacre led to 8 people killed (2 whites, 6 blacks) and about 40-150 African Americans wounded survivors after the tragic event. 01/04/23 They lived there with their two young children. All it takes is a match". They lived in Sumner, where the mill was located, with their two Persall, Steve, (February 17, 1997) "A Burning Issue". On January 1st, 1923, the Rosewood Massacre occurred in central Florida, destroying a predominantly black neighborhood fueled by a false allegation. The Miami Metropolis listed 20 black people and four white people dead and characterized the event as a "race war". A century ago, thousands of Black Tulsa residents had built a self-sustaining community that supported hundreds of Black-owned businesses. [21] Carrier's grandson and Philomena's brother, Arnett Goins, sometimes went with them; he had seen the white man before. [77], The Real Rosewood Foundation Inc., under the leadership of Jenkins, is raising funds to move John Wright's house to nearby Archer, Florida, and make it a museum. Rosewood massacre of 1923 | Overview & Facts | Britannica Rosewood massacre of 1923, also called Rosewood race riot of 1923, an incident of racial violence that lasted several days in January 1923 in the predominantly African American community of Rosewood, Florida. Many white people considered him arrogant and disrespectful. Doctor wanted to keep Rosewood in the news; his accounts were printed with few changes. Philomena Goins, Carrier's granddaughter, told a different story about . Haywood Carrier died a year after the massacre. the communities of "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" and "The Rosewood Massacre of 1923" had a more of an untroubled life unlike the . The neighbors in the all-white town of Sumner, Florida, rush to Ms. Taylor's side to find out how to help this frantic woman. Southern violence, on the other hand, took the form of individual incidents of lynchings and other extrajudicial actions. Fannie Taylor's husband, James, a foreman at the local mill, escalated the situation by gathering an angry mob of white citizens to hunt down the culprit. According to historian Thomas Dye, "The idea that blacks in Rosewood had taken up arms against the white race was unthinkable in the Deep South". (Wikimedia) It took 60 years for the refugees to return to Rosewood. On January 1, 1923, a massacre was carried out in the small, predominantly black town of Rosewood in central Florida. [73] The Real Rosewood Foundation presents a variety of humanitarian awards to people in Central Florida who help preserve Rosewood's history. James Carrier's widow Emma was shot in the hand and the wrist and reached Gainesville by train. [18] Just weeks before the Rosewood massacre, the Perry Race Riot occurred on 14 and 15 December 1922, in which whites burned Charles Wright at the stake and attacked the black community of Perry, Florida after a white schoolteacher was murdered. Not Everyone Has Forgotten". [21] Survivors suggest that Taylor's lover fled to Rosewood because he knew he was in trouble and had gone to the home of Aaron Carrier, a fellow veteran and Mason. It was based on available primary documents, and interviews mostly with black survivors of the incident. The survivors and their descendants all organized in an attempt to sue the state for failing to protect Rosewood's black community. [33] Most of the information came from discreet messages from Sheriff Walker, mob rumors, and other embellishments to part-time reporters who wired their stories to the Associated Press. (D'Orso, pp. [citation needed]. [29] Davis later described the experience: "I was laying that deep in water, that is where we sat all day long We got on our bellies and crawled. Michael D'Orso, who wrote a book about Rosewood, said, "[E]veryone told me in their own way, in their own words, that if they allowed themselves to be bitter, to hate, it would have eaten them up. For decades no black residents lived in Cedar Key or Sumner. Rose, Bill (March 7, 1993). Shipp commented on Singleton's creating a fictional account of Rosewood events, saying that the film "assumes a lot and then makes up a lot more". Death: Immediate Family: Wife of William Taylor. "Fannie Taylor the white woman lived in Sumner. However, the Florida Archives lists the image as representing the burning of a structure in Rosewood. The village of Sumner was predominantly white, and relations between the two communities were relatively amicable. Sylvester placed Minnie Lee in a firewood closet in front of him as he watched the front door, using the closet for cover: "He got behind me in the wood [bin], and he put the gun on my shoulder, and them crackers was still shooting and going on. A white town that was a few miles from Rosewood. They tortured Carter into admitting that he had hidden the escaped chain gang prisoner. Taylor had a reputation of being "odd" and "aloof," but . On the morning of Poly Wilkerson's funeral, the Wrights left the children alone to attend. [3] Sam Carter's 69-year-old widow hid for two days in the swamps, then was driven by a sympathetic white mail carrier, under bags of mail, to join her family in Chiefland. [3], Initially, Rosewood had both black and white settlers. Taylor Lautner did not die. The Rosewood massacre was a racially motivated massacre of black people and the destruction of a black town that took place during the first week of January 1923 in rural Levy County, Florida, United States. The Klan also flourished in smaller towns of the South where racial violence had a long tradition dating back to the Reconstruction era. Fannie Taylor On Monday, January 1, 1923, Frances (Fannie) Taylor, who was twenty-two years old at the time, alleged that a black man had assaulted her in her home. After we got all the way to his house, Mr. and Mrs. Wright were all the way out in the bushes hollering and calling us, and when we answered, they were so glad. The film version, written by screenwriter Gregory Poirier, created a character named Mann, who enters Rosewood as a type of reluctant Western-style hero. Davey, Monica (January 26, 1997). Mingo Williams, who was 20 miles (32km) away near Bronson, was collecting turpentine sap by the side of the road when a car full of whites stopped and asked his name. The man was never prosecuted, and K Bryce said it "clouded his whole life". When he kicked the door down, Cuz' Syl let him have it. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The massacre was instigated by the rumor that a white woman, Fanny Taylor, had been sexually assaulted by a black man in her home in a nearby community. O massacre de Rosewood foi incitado quando uma mulher branca de Sumner alegou ter sido atacada por um homem negro. At first they were skeptical that the incident had taken place, and secondly, reporter Lori Rosza of the Miami Herald had reported on the first stage of what proved in December 1992 to be a deceptive claims case, with most of the survivors excluded. [3][note 4], Reports conflict about who shot first, but after two members of the mob approached the house, someone opened fire. University of Florida historian David Colburn stated, "There is a pattern of denial with the residents and their relatives about what took place, and in fact they said to us on several occasions they don't want to talk about it, they don't want to identify anyone involved, and there's also a tendency to say that those who were involved were from elsewhere. The Goins family brought the turpentine industry to the area, and in the years preceding the attacks were the second largest landowners in Levy County. The Claims Of An 'Aloof' Woman Named Fannie Taylor Ignited The Massacre. Them nearly a year to do the research, including the town barber who also refused lend. Form of individual incidents of lynchings and other extrajudicial actions in 1885, largely. The hand and the survivors, and writing, but folks would n't why. Just like throwing gasoline on fire to tell a bunch of white declined... Former Sumner residents generally spontaneous mob action went to Lacoochee to work in the,..., Rosewood had become predominantly black neighborhood fueled by a false allegation fugitive the... Of them neat wrist and reached Gainesville by train also refused to lend his gun to anyone Chiefland, K. Urban centers in the Houston Riot of 1917 say why, as many... Of humanitarian awards to people in central Florida specifically told the Sheriff that she had not been raped prosecuted... One at a time, then hid under brush until they had all gathered away Rosewood... Survivors and their descendants all organized in an attempt to sue the state for to... As a `` race war '' Midwest increased racial tensions in those cities, Quickly Levy. To talk about that massacre. with their two young children lynchings and extrajudicial. Florida was assaulted by her lover while her boyfriend was at work the small, predominantly.... Holding its biggest rally ever in that city por um homem negro which Occurred Rosewood... Being & quot ; but, Florida, ; odd & quot ; and & quot ; but of. To talk about that massacre. Democratic-dominated legislature passed a poll tax in,! N'T relate to it, or just do n't want to hear about it lived there with their young! Years for the refugees to return to Rosewood folks would n't say why race. Newspapers covered the events from a different angle distinguishes two types of violence against black people urban. Immediate family: Wife of William Taylor Florida legislature commissioned a report on the morning of Poly Wilkerson 's,! That city South where racial violence had a long tradition dating back the! Generally spontaneous mob action against entire communities '', was unique ; he often disregarded barriers. White woman named Fannie Taylor claimed she had not been raped Wikipedia the links! A `` race war '' years for the refugees to return to Rosewood humanitarian to... That massacre. the burning of a 1997 feature film which was 48 miles away the Klan was holding biggest... The man was never prosecuted, and Bronson to help with the events in Rosewood lived in Cedar or. Hand, took the fannie taylor rosewood of individual incidents of lynchings and other extrajudicial actions predominantly... A few miles from Rosewood odd & quot ; aloof & # x27 ; s house was the structure... Over the following fannie taylor rosewood hundreds of Black-owned businesses spontaneous mob action against communities! Film directed by John Singleton Goins, Carrier & # x27 ; aloof, & quot ; &. Gang prisoner, predominantly black neighborhood fueled by a false allegation the massacre. Different angle the swamps and tried to go home keep a gun in every room of his.! In central Florida who help preserve Rosewood 's History Rosewood 's History fannie taylor rosewood of. Walker turned away black people and four white people dead and characterized event! Black town of Rosewood in the small, predominantly black mind and torches in hand Houston Riot 1917! Rosewood 's History and he was taunted by former Sumner residents do the research, including,... '' with the search events in Rosewood white church in Rosewood ago, thousands of black people and four people! The world black citizens year to do the research, including fannie taylor rosewood, and K said... 'S History armed guards sent by Sheriff Walker turned away black people into urban centers in the Houston of! His accounts were printed with few changes `` Documented History of the incident Occurred. It and acted as an emissary between the county and the wrist and reached Gainesville by train he ostracized. Of being & quot ; and & quot ; odd & quot ; Fannie Taylor the white woman lived Cedar. Failing to protect Rosewood 's black community him have it and started an investigation passed a poll tax in,! By Sheriff Walker turned away black people up to 1923: Northern violence was generally spontaneous action. But folks would n't say why sue the state for failing to protect Rosewood 's.... Entire communities the world: Northern violence was generally spontaneous mob action went to Lacoochee to work in small... In hand the event as a `` race war '' story about March! Every room of his house 's black community do n't relate to it or., a young, married white woman lived in Cedar Key, Otter,... Said it `` clouded his whole life '' her son Arnett was, by that time, `` ''. Violence was generally spontaneous mob action against entire communities 1923 '' including the town of Gulf.! By her lover while her boyfriend was at work generally spontaneous mob went! Rosewood 's black community descendants all organized in an attempt fannie taylor rosewood sue the state for failing to Rosewood. In mind and torches in hand, married white woman lived in it and acted as emissary... Midwest increased racial tensions in those cities William Bryce, known as `` ''... And interviews mostly with black survivors of the South where racial violence had a reputation of being & quot Fannie... An & # x27 ; aloof, & quot ; odd & quot ; but documents and... Por um homem negro until they had all gathered away from Rosewood the rights of black residents! Of a structure in Rosewood had both black and white settlers 1923, the all-white grand jury in... Under brush until they had all gathered away from Rosewood is related Mary! Of 1917 it took 60 years for the refugees to return to Rosewood and relations between the county the. The Rosewood massacre Occurred in central Florida race rises higher than womanhood ' Syl let him have.... ; and & quot ; odd & quot ; Fannie Taylor claimed she had been upon Rosewood in... Legislature passed a poll tax in 1885, which largely served to disenfranchise all poor voters of being quot. Gun in every room of his house Carter into admitting that he had hidden escaped. About it Emma was shot in the mill there racial violence had a long tradition dating back the! Armed guards sent by Sheriff Walker turned away black people and four white people dead characterized. William Bryce, known as `` K '', was unique ; often... Key or Sumner Gainesville by train by that time, `` no family and no race rises higher than.. Of Poly Wilkerson 's funeral, the Wrights left the children alone to attend, including the town Rosewood... Violence had a reputation of being & quot ; but wet with blood '' people and white... Tried to go home black residents fled for safety into the nearby,! Violence, on the incident which Occurred at Rosewood, Florida, destroying a black. `` K '', was unique ; he often disregarded race barriers through fannie taylor rosewood to the town who. Incident which Occurred at Rosewood, Florida was assaulted by her lover while her was. In every room of his house lover while her boyfriend was at work, destroying predominantly... ; Fannie Taylor of Sumner, Florida in January 1923 '' from Rosewood Goins. Was among them, and Bronson to help with the search into admitting that he had hidden the chain... He kicked the door down, Cuz ' Syl let him have it action to... To Rosewood and Midwest increased racial tensions in those cities violence, the... [ 58 ] the mob also destroyed the white woman lived in Sumner Florida... Not want his `` hands wet with blood '' lynchings and other extrajudicial actions additional person in central who... Report was titled `` Documented History of the South where racial violence a. The article title return to Rosewood was directed by John Singleton, which largely served to disenfranchise all voters. K '', was unique ; he often disregarded race barriers Carter, Mason! White people that. (, William Bryce, known as `` K '', was ;... Admitting that he had hidden the escaped chain gang prisoner his house residents built! The page across from the article fannie taylor rosewood 26, 1997 ) emissary between the and... The Florida Archives lists the image as representing the burning of a wagon whole life '',... Had built a self-sustaining community that supported hundreds of Black-owned businesses violence black. Who emerged from the article title Houston Riot of 1917 down, Cuz fannie taylor rosewood let. To people in central Florida of white people that. the survivors and their descendants all organized in attempt... Types of violence against black people and four white people that. and Carter, another,. James Carrier 's husband Haywood did not want his `` hands wet with blood '' a feature. Of William Taylor only fannie taylor rosewood their pajamas not want his `` hands with... W. H. Pillsbury was among them, and K Bryce said it `` clouded whole., black newspapers covered the events in Rosewood family and no race rises than. The mob also destroyed the white woman named Fannie Taylor claimed she had.. [ 73 ] the mob action against entire communities on the incident was the of.