Includes bibliographical references (p. [163]-169) and index.
Summary
An African American steelworker, Zachariah Walker, was burned to death by a mob outside Coatesville, PA, on August 13, 1911. He was accused of killing Edgar Rice, a white security guard and a former borough policeman. Nationwide outrage led to the NAACP's national anti-ynching campaign and inspired Pennsylvania's 1923 anti-lynching law.
Chapter 1- Tells of the events at the time of the lynching; Chapter 2- Talks about the community reaction to the murder, the investigation, and the Grand Jury indictment of 15 men and boys; Chapters 3 & 4- Discusses the 8 months of trials that failed to convict any of those charged; Chapter 5- Discusses the lynching and it's relationship to demographic and social changes taking place in Coatesville and the nation.