| Part of Red Summer | |
 National news coverage of the New London riot of 1919 | |
| Date | Late May and June 1919 |
|---|---|
| Location | New London, Connecticut |
| Participants | United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, United States Coast Guard |
The New London riots of 1919 were a series of racial riots between white and black Navy sailors and Marines stationed in New London and Groton, Connecticut.
White and black sailors and marines occupied separate living quarters at the Naval submarine base in Groton, Connecticut in 1919. Racial tensions were high in the Groton and New London area from May to June, and there were several confrontations between the two groups. Black sailors reported that white sailors attacked them, and white Marines accused the black sailors of waiting for them after dark when they crossed Long Cove Bridge. [1] The police arrested two white "Blue Jackets", and white sailors attacked the Hotel Bristol on Bank Street where the black sailors spent most of their free time, throwing a group of blacks out of the hotel on the street and beating them. The police and fire brigades were called but could not stop the rioting. The Marine Corps were eventually called, and they regained control. [1]
On May 30, 1919, about 20 sailors and soldiers were arrested by police officers, marines, and firemen. The Greeneville Daily Sun reported that the trouble began when "negro sailors" entered the Coast Guard Academy in New London and attacked white sailors. [2] On June 29, 1919, another riot erupted which required the Marines to restore order. [3] Author Jan Voogd argues that this riot came to national attention because a fire hydrant was damaged by the marine vehicles. This caused a dispute between the submarine base and city authorities over who would pay for the damage, and so created a paper trail. [3] Voogd posits that there may have been other race riots that went "uncounted, unobserved, and unacknowledged." [3]
These confrontations were among numerous incidents of civil unrest that began in the so-called Red Summer of 1919. The Summer consisted of attacks on black communities in more than three dozen cities and counties. In most cases, white mobs attacked black neighborhoods. In some cases, black community groups resisted the attacks, especially in Chicago and Washington, D.C. Most deaths occurred in rural areas during events such as the Elaine Race Riot in Arkansas, where an estimated 100 to 240 black people and 5 white people were killed. Also occurring in 1919 were the Chicago Race Riot and Washington, D.C. race riot which killed 38 and 39 people respectively, both having many more non-fatal injuries and extensive property damage. [4]
Notes
References
New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the outlet of the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut. The city is part of the Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region.
Red Summer was a period in mid-1919 during which white supremacist terrorism and racial riots occurred in more than three dozen cities across the United States, and in one rural county in Arkansas. The term "Red Summer" was coined by civil rights activist and author James Weldon Johnson, who had been employed as a field secretary by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1916. In 1919, he organized peaceful protests against the racial violence.
The Chicago race riot of 1919 was a violent racial conflict between white Americans and black Americans that began on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois, on July 27 and ended on August 3, 1919. During the riot, 38 people died. Over the week, injuries attributed to the episodic confrontations stood at 537, two-thirds black and one-third white; and between 1,000 and 2,000 residents, most of them black, lost their homes. Due to its sustained violence and widespread economic impact, it is considered the worst of the scores of riots and civil disturbances across the United States during the "Red Summer" of 1919, so named because of its racial and labor violence. It was also one of the worst riots in the history of Illinois.
Jim McMillan was lynched in Bibb County, Alabama on June 18, 1919.
The Washington race riot of 1919 was civil unrest in Washington, D.C. from July 19, 1919, to July 24, 1919. Starting July 19, white men, many in the armed forces, responded to the rumored arrest of a black man for the rape of a white woman with four days of mob violence against black individuals and businesses. They rioted, randomly beat black people on the street, and pulled others off streetcars for attacks. When police refused to intervene, the black population fought back. The city closed saloons and theaters to discourage assemblies. Meanwhile, the four white-owned local papers, including the Washington Post, fanned the violence with incendiary headlines and calling in at least one instance for mobilization of a "clean-up" operation.
The Charleston riot of 1919 took place on the night of Saturday, May 10, between members of the US Navy and the local black population. They attacked black individuals, businesses, and homes killing six and injuring dozens.
The Annapolis riot of 1919 took place on June 27, 1919, between midnight and 1 AM, in Annapolis, Maryland. A mob of African-American bluejackets from the U.S. Navy fought local Annapolis African-Americans.
The Baltimore riots of 1919 were a series of riots connected to the Red Summer of 1919. As more and more African-Americans moved from the south to the industrial north they started to move into predominantly white neighborhoods. This change in the racial demographics of urban areas increased racial tension that occasionally boiled over into civil unrest.
The 1919 Norfolk race riot occurred on July 21, 1919, when a homecoming celebration for African American veterans of World War I was attacked in Norfolk, Virginia. At least two people were killed and six people were shot. City officials called in Marines and Navy personnel to restore order.
The Dublin, Georgia riot of 1919 were a series of violent racial riots between white and black residents of Dublin, Georgia.
The 1919 Coatesville call to arms was when the black community of Coatesville, Pennsylvania formed a large armed group to prevent a rumoured lynching. Only later when the armed group had surrounded the jail to prevent the lynching did they learn that there was no suspect and no white lynch mob.
The Syracuse riot of 1919 was a violent racial attack that occurred when the management of the Globe Malleable Iron Works pitted striking white unionized workers against black strikebreakers in Syracuse, New York on July 31, 1919.
The Darby 1919 lynching attempt was the attempted lynching of Samuel Gorman in Darby, Pennsylvania on July 23, 1919. Samuel Gorman, a 17-year-old black boy was sent to jail for the alleged murder of William E. Taylor.
Corbin, Kentucky race riot of 1919 was a race riot in 1919 in which a white mob forced nearly all the town's 200 black residents onto a freight train out of town, and a sundown town policy until the late 20th century.
There were a number of race riots in Philadelphia during the 1919 Red Summer.
The Wilmington, Delaware race riot of 1919 was a violent racial riot between white and black residents of Wilmington, Delaware on November 13, 1919.
The New York race riots of 1919 developed with increasing racial tension and violent incidents in New York City. These riots were a part of the Red Summer, a series of violent terrorist attacks on black communities in many cities in the United States during the summer and early autumn of 1919. The New York race riots were caused by social tensions such as competition for jobs, politics, and racial tension. Many historians and scholars view these riots as the culmination of racial tensions which had been rising due to the migration of African Americans from the rural South to northern cities. Tensions developed partly due to the competition for jobs, which was worsened by the presence of African Americans workers who could replace striking White workers.
The Laurens County, Georgia race riot was an attack on the black community by white mobs in August 1919. In the Haynes' report, as summarized in the New York Times, it is called the Ocmulgee, Georgia race riot.
Paul Jones was lynched on November 2, 1919, after being accused of attacking a fifty-year-old white woman in Macon, Georgia.
The 1966 Dayton race riot was a period of civil unrest in Dayton, Ohio, United States. The riot occurred on September 1 and lasted about 24 hours, ending after the Ohio National Guard had been mobilized. It was the largest race riot in Dayton's history and one of several to occur during the 1960s.