Hinds-Statewide County MsArchives News.....The Affair at Clinton September 1875 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/ms/msfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Pattie Snowball http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00017.html#0004072 October 10, 2007, 5:15 pm Hinds County Gazette September 1875 The Affair at Clinton I deem it proper to make a statement over my own signature as to what came under my personal observation at Clinton, and I shall do so as briefly as possible. It was a Republican meeting, but notice had been circulated that free discussion would be allowed. The place for the meeting were the grounds of the former residence of Col. Wm. Smith and U.W. Moffett, Esq. about one mile from Clinton. There were on the grounds, at 1 o'clock, in the vicinity of the stand, possibly about 1,000 colored and 100 white men. The terms for a discussion were finally agreed upon at the stand, and so liberal were the Republicans, that I and others supposed the meeting would be entirely peaceful and pleasant. It was agreed that Judge A.R. Johnston, (Dem. and Con.,) should open and speak for one hour; that Capt. Fisher, (Repub.,) should reply in an hour and a quarter, and that Judge Johnston should then rejoin in 15 minutes, when all public speaking should cease. Judge Johnston spoke his hour without interruption. Capt. Fisher followed. When he had proceeded quite pleasantly for about 15 minutes, a rush was made from the outskirts towards a valley perhaps some 130 yards from the stand, on the Raymond side. I immediately, and without an acquaintance with me, went forward from where I had been standing, until I had a full and unobstructed view of what was going on in the valley, possibly 100 yards distant from me. About six or eight white men, (among whom I distinctly recognized G.F.F. Thompson, Esq,) were facing possibly 100 to 150 colored men, who, judging from their actions, were greatly enraged and threatening. I could not hear a word amid the confusion. Not a shot had then been fired on the grounds. In a few seconds the crowd of blacks around the six or eight whites had increased to possibly 500, and it became a dense surging throng, many blacks passing me, pistol in hand, rushing for the throng. It appeared to me that the blacks were endeavoring to rush upon the whites, and the whites were keeping them off with their hands. No whites went down the hill only the blacks. I could see that the little white band was being surrounded, and I felt that their case was hopeless. Suddenly, however, they faced from me and moved off, when the mass of negroes instantly followed them. A drum then commenced beating about half way from where I was standing and the scene of the difficulty. A half minute, perhaps, after the first tap of the drum, a pistol fired, and almost instantly perhaps a hundred shots were fired, but from which side the first shot came, or which side continued it, I could not see or determine, as there was a rush forward as well as backwards by the blacks. As soon as the firing commenced, I deliberately walked back, toward the Clinton road. When I had proceeded perhaps 50 yards, the firing entirely subsided. Here I met Capt. Lake of the Jackson Times. We exchanged a few words. The firing in a few minutes again commenced, as it appeared to me, all over the field, within an area perhaps of 100 to 200 acres. I instantly apprehended the situation. The firing could not be from the whites, as the few white on the field could not and would not oppose from 1,000 to 2,000 blacks, every one of whom appeared to be armed, whereas the whites, excepting the six or eight young men, were without arms. I again moved slowly towards the Clinton road, surrounded at every hand by blacks not a white man in sight. Rapid firing was going on back of me, and it was coming up unpleasantly near. Off to my right hand, in the distance, I noticed a white man on a horse, endeavoring to escape while he was followed by a negro horseman, the latter firing on him. When 100 or 200 yards, possibly, from the Clinton road, Saml. D. Harper came up behind me and called my attention to six or eight white men to our right, who were moving in the same direction that I was, and suggested the he and I join them, As I was surrounded by negroes, and as I believed the negroes were shooting the whites wherever found, I assented. I noticed Capt. B.S. White and Martin Sivley as of this company, but as I commenced moving toward them, a company of negroes came up in the rear, possibly from 10 to 20, all in line, and with pistols presented. The man on the extreme left of the company was directly behind me, while their right extended beyond the little body which I was about to join. The ladder of the colored party the man behind me cried out to his company, There are the fellows that done the shooting! I instantly faced the man who had spoken, and waiving my hand at him, remarked, I have done no shooting! continuing to walk directly forward, and not toward the party that I had been approaching. The little party of whites stopped, but I walked on. Between this place and the corn-field on the opposite side of the Clinton road, Sively was butchered, White was left for dead, and Dr. Dupree and Sam Harper had their pistols taken from them. Before the butchery, Sivley and White had both delivered their pistols (all unloaded) to the negroes, on their positive demands. To reach the road I had to jump into a wash, and just as I did so a negro brought his gun down on me. I do not know that he fired, as firing was then going on briskly all around me. Reaching the dirt road, I proceeded down that to the railroad crossing, where I saw Judge Alderson of Jackson. Brisk firing was then going on, and it seemed to be in front as well as in the rear, and here a pistol was drawn on me, but, a couple of negro women passing interfered. I here turned to the left and took the railroad track, abandoning the dirt road, on which there then appeared to be much firing in my front. When near the depot, I met five white men on foot each with what appeared to be a good gun, all running for the battle field. When beyond the depot a few steps, I met several whites on horseback going rapidly to the field, all well armed, and here Dr. Dupree and W. Calvin Wells passed me in a buggy, they having come by the dirt road and having been fired upon. Having reached the town safely, I was soon in the hands of friends. The massacre took place between 3 and 4 o'clock. At 5 o'clock, when between Clinton and Raymond, about 1 mile form Clinton, the same colored man who had cried out on the field, these are the fellows who done the shooting! came to the road-side from the woods with two other negroes. The road was covered with negroes. Nothing was said. There were two gentlemen with me. Whether the colored men were looking for someone, or endeavoring to get away, I cannot say. It is proper for me to say that I had no arms on my person at any time during the day. Geo. W. Harper. Raymond, Sept. 5, 1875 The Killed and WoundedWe make up the following list of the killed and wounded whites at the Clinton massacre of the 4th of September: G.F.F. Thompson, of Raymond, pursued and killed a mile from the place of meeting. Martin Sivley, of Raymond, pursued and butchered near the Clinton road, Charles Chilton, killed at his own gate, near the ground where the meeting was held. Capt. B.S. White, of Raymond, pursued, beat and left for dead on the Clinton road, while endeavoring to get away from his pursuers. W.T. Aisquith, of Raymond, slight wounds from pistol balls. Ramsey Wharton,jr., of Raymond, slight wound in head. Wm Todd, of Clinton, wounded severely. Waddy Rice, of Clinton, wounded in the hand. John Neal, of Clinton, very severely wounded. F.C. Robertson, of Raymond, knocked down. Jesse Wharton, of Raymond, knocked down. Robt. Kirkpatrick, of Raymond, knocked down. W.C. Wells, of Raymond, slightly wounded. Willie White, of Raymond, knocked down. John Roberts and Frank Florin, (young boys) both of Raymond, were captured, while endeavoring to escape, and taken to the woods by a party of negroes, and bought their liberation with money. Dr. Bracey, Dr. Miller and W.B. Sivley, all of Raymond, brought off bullet- holes through their clothing. Additional Comments: George W. Harper Editor of the Hinds County Gazette (Also known as the Clinton Riot) This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/msfiles/ File size: 8.9 Kb