James Clark was an African-American man who was lynched in
Eau Gallie, Florida
Eau Gallie () is a section of the city of Melbourne, Florida, located on the city's northern side. It was an independent city in Brevard County from 1860 until 1969.
That year residents of Eau Gallie and Melbourne voted to merge their governmen ...
by ten white men in 1926.
History
On July 11, 1926, James Clark, a chauffeur for a traveling salesman, was accused of rape by a white girl. He was arrested, but the chief of police turned him over to a mob. A noose was placed around his neck, he was dragged over a tree limb, and shot with a shotgun. The street near the site of the lynching, around Parkway Drive and U.S. 1 in what is now
Melbourne, Florida
Melbourne is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located southeast of Orlando. As of th2020 Decennial Census there was a population of 84,678. The municipality is the second-largest in the county by both size and population. ...
was named Lynching Tree Drive until 1980, when the black community petitioned the Melbourne City Council to change the name, which was then changed to Legendary Lane.
No attempt was made to determine who murdered Clark without the benefit of a trial. This is the last known lynching in
Brevard County
Brevard County ( ) is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 606,612, making it the 10th-most populated county in Florida. The official county seat is located in ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, James
1926 deaths
Lynching deaths in Florida
Brevard County, Florida
1920s crimes in Florida
1926 murders in the United States
1926 in Florida
African-American history between emancipation and the civil rights movement
White American riots in the United States
Racially motivated violence against African Americans
History of racism in Florida
July 1926 events
African-American history of Florida
People murdered in Florida
Male murder victims
Prisoners murdered in custody
Anti-black racism in the United States
Deaths from fire in the United States
Murdered African-American people