Wytheville in Wythe County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
The Lynching of Raymond Byrd
Photographed By Bradley Owen, October 28, 2022
1. The Lynching of Raymond Byrd Marker
On the night of August 15, 1926, a mob of rowdy Wythe County citizens forced their way into the Wythe County jail that stood on this site until 1928. Overpowering the county jailer, the mob breached the cell in which a black man, Raymond Arthur Byrd, was incarcerated. The mob pulled Byrd from his cell into the hallway, where he was brutally beaten and shot. Next, they tied his lifeless body behind a waiting automobile and dragged it approximately six-hundred yards. It was then put inside the automobile and taken a distance west of town to be hung from a tree and mutilated. The brutality of the lynching of Raymond Byrd resulted in public pressure on Virginia officials to pass legislation that would outlaw lynching on a statewide basis. On March 14, 1928, Virginia Governor Harry F. Byrd Sr. signed into law the strictest anti-lynching measure in the nation, the first to make lynching a state crime.
Erected 2020 by John Johnson in collaboration with the Town of Wytheville.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Notable Events. A significant historical date for this entry is March 14, 1928.
Location. 36° 56.985′ N, 81° 5.139′ W. Marker is in Wytheville, Virginia, in Wythe County. Marker is on West Monroe Street east
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Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. LOVE (a few steps from this marker); Home Site of Christopher (Stophel) Simmerman (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Haller-Gibboney Rock House (about 500 feet away); Welcome to the Thomas J. Boyd Museum (about 500 feet away); Boone Trail Highway Memorial (about 800 feet away); Wytheville (about 800 feet away); Edith Bolling Wilson (about 800 feet away); In Honor of Thos. J. Boyd (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Wytheville.
Photographed By Bradley Owen, October 28, 2022
2. The Lynching of Raymond Byrd Marker
View is looking northeast.
Credits. This page was last revised on October 31, 2022. It was originally submitted on October 28, 2022, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia. This page has been viewed 272 times since then and 49 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 28, 2022, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
