1901-03-08
Moore County, NC

Alleged offense: Rape
Race: White
Gender: Male
Age: 24
Legal intervention (in alleged offense): Yes
Legal intervention (following lynching): Yes
Mob size: 50-100
Mob members: Dr. M.E. Street; A.J. Jones; G.D. Andrews; W.B. Harding; and others
Alleged victim: Mrs. Brewer
Household Status: Married
Occupation: Farm laborer

James Silas Martindale, a white man, allegedly raped a white school teacher, named as a Mrs. Brewer, in January of 1901. Martindale was arrested shortly after the alleged rape and taken to the county jail in Carthage. Martindale was then taken to Raleigh for safekeeping (in other words, protection from lynching), but brought back to Carthage in late February or early March. On the night of March 8th, a mob broke into the jail and hanged Martindale on a “principal street” in downtown Carthage. While nine men were indicted, no one was found guilty of the Martindale lynching.

Documentation

Death certificate: None available

Census:

1900 Census Martindale

News coverage:

For Safe Keeping

Silas Martindale Lynched

A Shocking Crime

Silas Martindale Has Been Lynched

Arrested As Lynchers

Last Winter

Location

Town: Carthage, North Carolina
Latitude/Longitude: 35.344695, -79.418014
Rationale: While an exact location could not be determined, a marker was placed near downtown Carthage, where Martindale was reported to have been hanged on a tree near a “principal street.”

Additional Resources:

Researcher’s Note: