*This is the second part of a three part series on a lynching that occurred outside of the deep south in 1931. If you missed part 1, here it is.
Lynching: A lawless concert or action among a number of members of the community, to supply the want of criminal justice or to anticipate its delays, or to inflict a penalty demanded by public opinion, though in defiance of the laws.
The above photo is the first I encountered as I was learning the history of the lynching of a Black man in Maryville, Missouri. There are over 30 people pictured, watching the school house burn with a man tied to the roof. There were reports of over 2,00 gathered to watch. Here is the second part of the Raymond Gunn story—the lynching.
From Northwest Missouri State University resources on the case: After Gunn’s arrest, anger and talk of a lynching began immediately after he was taken into custody — crowds began to assemble in Maryville.
Velma Colter's mother was quoted as saying she could not bear a trial and would not testify. Her oldest son, Floyd Colter, had been killed in France during WWI. The comments enraged some in the community and spurred them to start planning the lynching.
Raymond Gunn was transferred for safety reasons to the Buchanan County, Missouri jail, about 45 miles south in St. Joe, Missouri. But, crowds started forming there as well, and the sheriff ordered a truck mounted with a gun to be backed to the door of the jail. The gunner appeared to aim the gun at the crowd, though he said he was just oiling it, which caused the crowd to disperse.
Gunn was transferred a second time to Kansas City, Missouri. On December 26, at 3:30 a.m., Gunn returned to Maryville for arraignment, and was then taken immediately taken back to Kansas City.
Gunn's court date was set for January 12.
The Nodaway County prosecuting attorney insisted Gunn would get a fair trial and appealed to Missouri's governor, Henry Caulfield, to deploy the National Guard to prevent an anticipated lynching.
As I read headlines from across the country on the lynching, this one by the New York Times stood out: Maryville (Mo.) Mob Chains Teacher's Slayer on Roof and Fire Razes the Building. TROOPS REMAIN INACTIVE Captain Blames the Sheriff, but He Denies Knowing That They Were Mobilized.
Wait…what? There were troops in the area? Where were they? Who sent them? Why didn’t they stop the lynching?
Governor Caulfield assembled 60 guardsmen and they were ordered to stand by north of the courthouse. However, by law, the National Guard could only be deployed at the request of the sheriff which was never made.
*Sheriff Harvey England later claimed he did not call up the Guardsmen because he did not want them to be injured by the mob, but he also stated that he didn’t know the troops were mobilized, contradicting himself.
By the time Raymond Gunn was to return to Nodaway County on January 12, 1931, a large crowd occupied the Maryville square, between the jail block to the northeast and the Nodaway County, Missouri courthouse. Sheriff England was transporting Gunn by police car, and curiously drove directly into the mob gathered.
When the Sheriff opened the door, he was pulled aside and Gunn was dragged out of the car. Witnesses later said the mob leader told the sheriff, "Either you move out of the way or die with this man, either way he's going to die today."
Gunn was marched down Main Street through the Maryville streets. After an hour and a half, Gunn and the gathered crowd reached at the Garrett schoolhouse.
Gunn's ears and nose were bleeding from being beaten along the way. He was also missing his shirt and he had no shoes.
The schoolhouse was emptied and all the furniture placed outside—which leads one to believe the lynching was planned at least hours in advance. The mob was estimated to have grown to between 2,000 and 4,000. Gunn was taken inside the schoolhouse, where he is reported to have confessed his guilt a second time, almost certainly under duress.
Gunn was taken to the roof and tied (some reports say he was chained) to a ridge pole. Gunn and the building were then doused with gasoline. The mob leader, identified only as the "man in a red coat", threw a lighted piece of paper into the building. Gunn screamed but once and appeared lifeless in 11 minutes.
Trigger Warning: The following description is gruesome.
A reporter for the St. Joseph Gazette gave the following description:
“He twisted and revealed a huge blister ballooning on his left upper arm. Pieces of his skin blew away to the wind as the blistering heat became more intense and soon his torso was splotched with white patches of exposed flesh. His hair burned like a torch for moment then his head sagged. His body writhed. It took the appearance of a mummy.”
The building's roof collapsed within 16 minutes. Fragments of the schoolhouse were taken by the crowd as souvenirs. There are folks who have claimed that some of these “souvenirs” still remain in lock boxes in a local bank.
This horrifying scene was witnessed by thousands of men, women, and children who did nothing to placate the mob or try to save Raymond Gunn from the lynching.
From the Equal Justice Institute: At the peak of racial terror lynchings in this country, it was not uncommon for lynch mobs to seize their victims from jails, prisons, courtrooms, or out of the hands of guards like in this case. Though they were armed and charged with protecting the men and women in their custody, police and other officials almost never used force to resist white lynch mobs intent on killing Black people. In some cases, police officials were even found to be complicit or active participants in lynchings.
Jess