Nikon D200
In 1898 Wilmington's African-American majority included members of a growing middle class who served in the municipal government, the city's civil service, and in state and federal government positions. On November 10, 1898, an armed mob of whites led by some of Wilmington's most prominent citizens removed from office the city's duly elected biracial government in what historians consider the only successful coup d'etat in the history of the United States.
Between 1894 and 1986, a Republican-Populist Coalition took control of the state government and several city governments, in part by appealing to African-American. Democrats initiated a counterattack in 1898, appealing to white voters' racial fears and portraying Wilmington, then the state's largest city, as an example of "Negro rule." The Democratic press depicted African-American males as a threat to "Southern woman-hood," a charge denied by Alexander Manly's Record, the state's only daily black newspaper. The day following the elections of November 8, a white mob gathered at the courthouse and adopted the "White Man's Declaration of Independence."
It demanded that the city return to an all white administration, that the Record cease publication, and that the Alex Manly be banished. White leaders presented the "Declaration" to prominent African-Americans, demanding a response within twelve hours. Mailed rather than hand-delivered, their reply arrived arrived too late.
On the morning of November 10, a mob of armed whites burned the Record to the ground then turned its fury and guns on the city's African-American population. At least ten blacks died in the violence, scores more according to African-American oral tradition. Hundreds of men, women, and children fled to surrounding swamps and forest in search for safety. Whites expelled from both black and white political and business leaders who were opposed to Democratic rule and white supremacy. The federal government ignored African-American appeals for protection, signaling Democrats throughout the South that it would no longer protect blacks from white violence.
Wilmington's 1898 racial violence was not accidental. It began as a successful statewide Democratic campaign to regain control of state government, disenfranchise African-Americans, and create a system of legal segregation which persisted into the second half of the 20th century.
This monument serves as a symbol of Wilmington's commitment to an inclusive society, a tribute to all who over the years have struggled to reverse the tragic consequences of the 1989 racial violence, and a memorial to these African-Americans killed in that violence. The preceding paragraphs are quoted from the inscription inscribed upon the two bronze tablets of the 1898 Wilmington Race Riot Memorial.
I had lived in Wilmington for several years before I actually knew this event had taken place in the very city I resided in at the time. We must continue learn from the misfortunes of our troubled history and continue to grow to accept all people for who they are.
Read more about the 1898 Wilmington Race Riot by click on the following links:
Ghosts of 1898 - Wilmington Race Riot by The News and Observer
1898 Wilmington Race Riot Commission
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