This list has been prepared by Professor Michael J. Pfeifer, Faculty Member, American Social History, The Evergreen State College, Olympia, Washington 98505, tel: (360) 867-6009, e-mail: pfeiferm@evergreen.edu,
home page: http://academic.evergreen.edu/p/pfeiferm/home.htmThis list is approximately complete within the dates given. Near lynchings occurred in Iowa before and after the dates given. Please cite this website if you use information from it.
In this list of verified victims of near lynching (referred to in at least one reliable primary source that I have identified, and if possible two or more independent primary sources; citations for sources are available on request), I define a "near lynching" as an incident where persons gathered in mobs, made threats to lynch, and possibly even used physical force to obtain a victim, but ultimately did not murder the individual(s) they sought, whether because of lack of organization or leadership in the lynch mob, effective pre-emptive action by legal authorities, or some other factor. Some of those the mobs sought were later lynched; some were pursued by mobs on multiple occasions.
Incidents are listed by date, name given for victim, town or city, county, alleged offense, race or ethnicity, and type of mob (from W. Fitzhugh Brundage's classification scheme in Lynching in the New South: Georgia and Virginia, 1880-1930 (Urbana, Ill.: University of Illinois Press, 1993), 17-48, 291-292. I adapt Brundage's taxonomy with these general guidelines: mass mobs evoked broad participation and approval, were spontaneous and possessed little if any formal organization, and were highly ritualized in practice. Posses were groups of men, sometimes authorized by the sheriff, who searched for fleeing suspects. But these often large crowds occasionally killed the persons they were seeking to apprehend. Posses could legally kill if suspects were armed or resisted arrest. I have categorized collective killings perpetrated by search parties as lynchings only if victims were unarmed or did not attempt to avoid arrest after being located. Two additional categories of mobs drew far less popular support. Private lynchings constituted secretive, small-scale but collective enactments of vengeance, often by relatives and friends of someone allegedly harmed by the mob's victim. Terrorist mobs were long-lasting, well-organized groups that perpetrated extralegal violence, often for economic goals.
Key sources for near lynchings in Iowa are Paul Walton Black, "Lynchings in Iowa," Iowa Journal of History and Politics 10 (1912), 151-254; and Paul Walton Black, "Attempted Lynchings in Iowa," Annals of Iowa 11 (1914), 260-85.
March, 1878, Henry Weese, Ft. Madison, Lee County, Murder, White, Mass
June 10, 1878, William Hicks, Benton County, Theft, White, Private
June 10, 1878, Jones, Benton County, Theft, White, Private
July, 1878, Unidentified Man, Grand Junction, Greene County, Attempted Rape, White, Unknown
July 2, 1879, Henry Abel, Washington County, Murder, White, Posse
July 3, 1879, William Pickering, Louisa County, Murder, White, Mass
October 1, 1880, Jerome West, Anamosa, Jones County, Murder, White, Mass
April 14, 1882, John Weise, Polk City, Polk County, Murder, White, Mass
April 14, 1882, John Gwinn, Polk City, Polk County, Murder, White, Mass
April 14, 1882, Charles Errickson, Polk City, Polk County, Murder, White, Mass
May 22, 1882, H. C. Cohee, Washington County, Horse Theft, White, Mass
June 6, 1883, William Barber, Waverly, Bremer County, Murder, White, Unknown
June 6, 1883, Isaac Barber, Waverly, Bremer County, Murder, White, Unknown
July, 1883, William Hardy, Shelby County, Murder, White, Mass
August 2, 1887, James Reynolds, Leon, Decatur County, Rape, White, Unknown
June 30, 1891, Frank Pierce, Des Moines, Polk County, Murder, White, Mass
July 2, 1891, Albert Parniztke, Birmingham, Van Buren County, Murder and Attempted Rape, White, Posse
October 16, 1893, Edward Walton, Ottumwa, Wapello County, Murder, White, Mass
January 19, 1894, Leon Lozier, Council Bluffs, Pottawatamie County, Rape, White, Mass
May, 1894, John Hamil, Des Moines, Polk County, Murder, White, Mass
May, 1894, John Krout, Des Moines, Polk County, Murder, White, Mass
May, 1894, George Weems, Des Moines, Polk County, Murder, White, Mass
May 31, 1894, "A Tramp," Underwood, Pottawatamie County, Rape, White, Mass
March 6, 1895, Charles Crawford, Dallas County, Robbery, White, Private
April 4, 1896, R. E. Martin, Ottumwa, Wapello County, Rape, White, Mass
August 28, 1896, Wilbur Smith, Ottumwa, Wapello County, Rape, White, Mass
August 28, 1896, Charles Harris, Ottumwa, Wapello County, Rape, White, Mass
August 28, 1896, Ralph Duncan, Ottumwa, Wapello County, Rape, White, Mass
February 9, 1898, A. D. Storms, Burlington, Des Moines County, Murder, White, Mass
November, 1900, Alva Brooker, Albia, Monroe County, Rape, Black, Unknown
November 24, 1900, Alva Brooker, Albia, Monroe County, Rape, Black, Mass
December 19, 1900, Charles Arnett, Webster County, Theft, White, Mass
September 1, 1901, Seymour Washington, Polk County, Rape, Black, Mass
February, 1902, Edward Davidson, Eddyville, Wapello County, Rape, White, Unknown
March 28, 1903, Frank Brown, Muscatine, Muscatine County, Attempted Murder, Black, Mass
December 21, 1903, W. L. Horn, Appanoose County, Murder, White, Posse
December 28, 1903, Burk, Council Bluffs, Pottawatamie County, Sexual Assault and Robbery, Black, Mass
December 28, 1903, Zimmerman, Council Bluffs, Pottawatamie County, Sexual Assault and Robbery, Black, Mass
April 18, 1904, Harry Thompson, Sioux City, Woodbury County, Attempted Murder, White, Private
November 10, 1904, James Price, Boone County, Murder, Black, Posse
September 27, 1905, Frank Brothers, Polk County, Assault, White, Mass
July 16, 1906, Robert Hyde, Des Moines, Polk County, Pushed White Woman Off Sidewalk, Black, Mass
July 16, 1906, Chas. Martin, Des Moines, Polk County, Pushed White Woman Off Sidewalk, Black, Mass
January 22, 1907, Thomas Grimes, New London, Henry County, Murder, Black, Mass
August 30, 1907, Walker, Columbus Junction, Louisa County, Attempted Murder, Black, Mass
August 30, 1907, Johnson, Columbus Junction, Louisa County, Attempted Murder, Black, Mass
August 30, 1907, Unidentified Man, Louisa County, Attempted Murder, Black, Mass
January 25, 1908, Ray Edwards, Ottumwa, Wapello County, Rape, Black, Mass
February 21, 1909, John Junkin, Ottumwa, Wapello County, Murder, Black, Mass
February, 1909, John Junkin, Burlington, Des Moines County, Murder, Black, Mass
March 12, 1909, John Junkin, Ottumwa, Wapello County, Murder, Black, Mass
June 1, 1909, John Junkin, Centerville, Appanoose County, Murder, Black, Mass