Lynching of Will Thrasher

Will Thrasher was lynched by a large mob of white men on February 2, 1922, for an alleged assault on a white school teacher.^[1]

Lynching of Will Thrasher

Part of Jim Crow Era
News coverage of the Lynching of Will Thrasher
Date	February 2, 1922
Location	Crystal Springs, Copiah County, Mississippi
Participants	A white mob of 250 men Will Thrasher
Deaths	1

Alleged assault

Miss Myrtle Bailey was a white school teacher at the Fairplay school in Crystal Springs, Mississippi. Around noon on February 1, 1922, she was leaving the school when a black man emerged from the woods and tried to embrace her. She screamed and when a nearby farmer came near the man ran off. For the rest of the day and into the early morning of February 2, 1922, black men were brought before Ms. Bailey for her to identify. A black man was found in the house of Harvey Bass and at 1:00 AM on February 2, 1922, he was brought before Myrtle Bailey, who identified him as the man who allegedly assaulted her.^[2]

Lynching

In Copiah County, 4 miles (6.4 km) east of Crystal Springs, the body of Will Thrasher was found hanging from a hemp rope tied to a tree. His body was bullet-ridden and on his foot was a pencil-written note, "Positively identified."^[2] A white mob of 250 unmasked men were said to have taken part in the lynching.^[2]