Timeline of events Mass racial violence in the United States

1 timeline of events

1.1 nativist period 1700s–1860
1.2 civil war period 1861–1865
1.3 post–civil war , reconstruction period: 1865–1889
1.4 jim crow period: 1890–1914
1.5 war , inter-war period: 1914–1945
1.6 civil rights movement: 1955–1973

1.6.1 1963
1.6.2 1964
1.6.3 1965
1.6.4 1966
1.6.5 1967
1.6.6 1968
1.6.7 1969
1.6.8 1970
1.6.9 1971
1.6.10 1972
1.6.11 1973


1.7 post-civil rights era: 1974–1988

1.7.1 1977
1.7.2 1978
1.7.3 1980


1.8 since 1988

timeline of events
nativist period 1700s–1860

for information riots worldwide, see list of riots.


1763: pontiac s war
1829: cincinnati riot of 1829 (cincinnati, ohio)


rioting against african americans results in thousands leaving canada.


1829: charlestown anti-catholic riots (charlestown, massachusetts)
1831: slave rebellion of slaves , free blacks (southampton county, virginia)
1834: massachusetts convent burning
1835: washington dc snow riot
1835: 5 points riot (new york city)
1841: cincinnati riot of 1841 (cincinnati, ohio)
1844: philadelphia nativist riots (may 6–8/july 5–8)
1851: hoboken anti-german riot
1855: bloody monday (louisville, ky anti-german riots)

civil war period 1861–1865

1863: detroit race riot
1863: new york city draft riot

post–civil war , reconstruction period: 1865–1889

1866: new orleans riot (new orleans, louisiana)
1866: memphis riots of 1866 (memphis, tennessee)
1868: pulaski riot (pulaski, tennessee)
1868: opelousas massacre (opelousas, louisiana)
1868: camilla, georgia
1868: ward island riot


irish , german-american indigent immigrants, temporarily interned @ wards island commissioners of emigration, begin rioting following altercation between 2 residents, resulting in thirty men wounded , around sixty arrested.


1870: eutaw, alabama
1870: laurens, south carolina
1870: kirk-holden war: alamance county, north carolina


federal troops, led col. kirk , requested nc governor holden, sent extinguish racial violence. holden impeached because of offensive.


1870: new york city orange riot
1871: meridian race riot of 1871, mississippi
1871: second new york city orange riot
1871: los angeles anti-chinese riot
1871: scranton coal riot


violence occurs between striking members of miners union in scranton, pennsylvania when welsh miners attack irish , german-american miners chose leave union , accept terms offered local mining companies.


1873: colfax, louisiana
1874: vicksburg, mississippi
1874: new orleans, louisiana
1874: coushatta massacre, coushatta, louisiana
1875: yazoo city, mississippi
1875: clinton, mississippi
1876: statewide violence in south carolina
1876: hamburg, south carolina
1876: ellenton, south carolina
1885: rock springs, wyoming
1885: tacoma, washington
1886: pittsburgh riot
1886: seattle, washington
1887: denver riot of 1887
1887: hells canyon massacre


in 1 of largest civil disturbances in city s history, fighting between swedish, hungarian , polish immigrants resulted in shooting death of 1 man , several others injured before broken police.


1887: thibodaux massacre, thibodaux, louisiana—strike of 10,000 sugar-cane workers opposed whites, rioted , killed estimated 50 african americans

jim crow period: 1890–1914



1891: new orleans anti-italian riot


a lynch mob storms local jail , hangs 11 italians following acquittal of several sicilian immigrants alleged involved in murder of new orleans police chief david hennessy.


1891: 1st omaha race riot


10,000 white people storm local courthouse beat , lynch joe coe, alleged have raped white girl.


1894: buffalo, new york riot of 1894


two groups of irish , italian-americans arrested police after fighting following barroom brawl. after mob dispersed police, 5 italians arrested while 2 others sent local hospital.


1894: bituminous coal miners strike


much of violence in national strike not racial. in iowa, employees of consolidation coal company (iowa) refused join strike, armed confrontation between strikers , strike breakers took on racial overtones because majority of consolidation s employees african american. national guard mobilized avert open warfare.


1895: 1895 new orleans dockworkers riot
1898: wilmington race riot


a group of democrats sought remove african-americans political scene, , went launching campaign of accusing african-american men of sexually assaulting white women. 5 hundred white men attacked , burned alex manly s office, newspaper editor suggested african-american men , white women had consensual relationships. fourteen african-americans killed.


1898: lake city, south carolina
1898: greenwood county, south carolina
1899: newburg, new york riot


angered hiring of african-american workers, group of 80-100 arab laborers attack african americans near freeman & hammond brick yard, numerous men injured on both sides.


1900: new orleans, louisiana: robert charles riots
1900: new york city
1902: new york city


anti-semitic riots initiated irish factory workers , city policemen against thousands of jews attending jacob joseph s funeral


1906: little rock, arkansas


started after white police officer in argenta (north little rock) killed black musician, , black killed; racial tensions rose exchange of gunfire, resulting in half block of buildings burned down; whites rioted , blacks fled city.


1906: atlanta riots, georgia


in september after 2 newspapers printed stories african-american men assaulting white women anti-african-american violence broke out. 10,000 white men , boys took street, resulting in deaths of 25 100 african-americans, along hundreds injured.


1906: wahalak & scooba, mississippi
1907: bellingham riots, washington
1908: springfield, illinois
1909: greek town riot


a successful greek immigrant community in south omaha, nebraska burnt ground ethnic whites , residents forced leave town.


1910: nationwide riots following heavyweight championship fight between jack johnson , jim jeffries in reno, nevada on july 4
1910 slocum, texas massacre, between 8 , 2 hundred black residents around slocum, texas killed hundreds of armed white men. eleven white men arrested, none went trial.

war , inter-war period: 1914–1945


1917: east st. louis, illinois


on july 1st, african-american man rumored have killed white man. violence against african-american continued week, resulting in estimations of 40 200 dead african-americans. in addition, 6,000 african-americans lost homes during riots fled east st. louis.


1917: chester, pennsylvania
1917: philadelphia, pennsylvania
1917: houston, texas


red summer of 1919


tension in summer of 1919 stemmed white soldiers returning world war , finding jobs had been taken african americans had migrated north.

1919: washington, d.c.
1919: chicago, illinois
1919: omaha, nebraska
1919: charleston, south carolina
1919: longview, texas
1919: knoxville, tennessee
1919: elaine, arkansas




1920: ocoee, florida
1920: west frankfort, illinois
1921: tulsa, oklahoma


between may 31st , june 1st, young white woman accused african american man of grabbing arm in elevator. man dick rowland arrested , police launched investigation. mob of armed white men gathered outside tulsa county courthouse, gunfire ensued. during violence, 1,250 homes destroyed , 6,000 african-americans imprisoned after oklahoma national guard called in. state of oklahoma reports twenty-six african-americans died along 10 whites.


1923: rosewood, florida (area outgrowth of cedar key, florida)
1927: little rock, arkansas


lynching of john carter, suspect in murder, followed rioting 5,000 whites in city, destroyed black business area


1927 poughkeepsie, new york


a wave of civil unrest, violence, , vandalism local white mobs against blacks, greek, jewish, chinese , puerto rican targets in community.


1930: watsonville, california
1935: harlem, manhattan, new york
1943: detroit, michigain


in late june fistfight broke out between african-american man , white man @ amusement park named belle isle. violence escalated there , led 3 days of intense fighting, in 6,000 united states army troops brought in. resulted in twenty-five african-americans dying, along 9 white deaths , total of 7 hundred injured persons.


1943: harlem, manhattan, new york
1943: los angeles, california
1944: guam

civil rights movement: 1955–1973
1963

birmingham riot of 1963; birmingham, alabama - may
cambridge riot of 1963; cambridge, maryland - june

1964

rochester 1964 race riot; rochester, new york – july
new york city 1964 riot; new york city – july
philadelphia 1964 race riot; philadelphia – august
jersey city 1964 race riot, august 2–4, jersey city, new jersey
paterson 1964 race riot, august 11–13, paterson, new jersey
elizabeth 1964 race riot, august 11–13, elizabeth, new jersey
chicago 1964 race riot, dixmoor riot, august 16–17, chicago

1965

watts riots; los angeles, california – august


this predominately african-american neighborhood exploded violence august 11th august 17th after arrest of 21-year old marquette frye, black motorist arrested white highway patrolman. during arrest crowd had gathered , fight broke out between crowd , police, escalating point in rocks , concrete thrown @ police. 30,000 people recorded participating in riots , fights police, left thirty 4 people dead, 1,000 injured , 4,000 arrested.

1966

hough riots; cleveland, ohio – july
hunter s point riot; san francisco
division street riots; chicago, illinois – june

1967

1967 newark riots; newark, new jersey – july
1967 plainfield riots; plainfield, new jersey – july
12th street riot; detroit, michigan – july
1967 new york city riot; harlem, new york city - july
cambridge riot of 1967; cambridge, maryland - july
1967 rochester riot; rochester, new york - july
1967 pontiac riot; pontiac, michigan - july
1967 toledo riot; toledo, ohio - july
1967 flint riot; flint, michigan - july
1967 grand rapids riot; grand rapids, michigan - july
1967 houston riot; houston, texas - july
1967 englewood riot; englewood, new jersey - july
1967 tucson riot; tucson, arizona - july
1967 milwaukee riot; milwaukee, wisconsin – july
minneapolis north side riots; minneapolis-saint paul, minnesota – august
1967 albina riot portland, oregon - august 30

1968

orangeburg massacre; orangeburg, south carolina – february
king assassination riots: 125 cities in april , may, in response murder of martin luther king, jr. including:

baltimore riot of 1968; baltimore maryland
1968 washington, d.c. riots; washington, d.c.
1968 new york city riot; new york city
west side riots; chicago
1968 detroit riot; detroit, michigan
louisville riots of 1968; louisville, kentucky
hill district mlk riots; pittsburgh, pa
summit, illinois, race riot @ argo high school, september 1968


miami, florida riots
1968 democratic national convention

1969

1969 york race riot; york, pennsylvania – july
1969 hartford riots, september 1–4, hartford, connecticut

1970

augusta riot; augusta, georgia – may
jackson state killings; jackson, mississippi – may
asbury park riot; asbury park, new jersey – july
chicano moratorium, anti vietnam war protest turned riot in east los angeles – august

1971

east la riots, january 31, east los angeles, california
bridgeport riots, may 20–21, bridgeport, connecticut
chattanooga riot, may 21–24, chattanooga, tennessee
albuquerque riots, june 13–14, albuquerque, new mexico
oxnard riots, july 19, oxnard, california
riverside riots, august 8–9, riverside, california
camden riots, august 19–22, camden, new jersey

1972

escambia high school riots; pensacola, florida
blackstone park riots, july 16–18, boston, massachusetts

1973

santos rodriguez riot, dallas, texas july 28, 1973

post-civil rights era: 1974–1988

boston busing crisis

1977

new york city blackout riot

1978

moody park riots; houston, texas

1980

miami riot 1980 – following acquittal of 4 miami-dade police officers in death of arthur mcduffie. mcduffie, african-american, died injuries sustained @ hands of 4 white officers trying arrest him after high-speed chase.


since 1988

1991: crown heights riot – may – between west indian immigrants , area s large hasidic jewish community, on accidental killing of guyanese immigrant child orthodox jewish motorist. in wake, several jews injured; 1 orthodox jewish man, yankel rosenbaum, killed; , non-jewish man, allegedly mistaken rioters jew, killed group of african-american men.
1991: overtown, miami – in heavily black section against cuban americans, earlier riots there in 1982 , 1984.
1992: 1992 los angeles riots – april 29 may 5 – series of riots, lootings, arsons , civil disturbance occurred in los angeles county, california in 1992, following acquittal of police officers on trial regarding assault of rodney king.
1995: st. petersburg, florida riot of 1996, caused protests against racial profiling , police brutality.
2001: 2001 cincinnati riots – april – in african-american section of over-the-rhine.
2009: oakland, ca – riots following bart police shooting of oscar grant.
2012 anaheim, california riot—followed shooting of 2 hispanic males
2014: ferguson, mo riots – riots following shooting of michael brown
2015: 2015 baltimore riots – riots following death of freddie gray
2015: ferguson unrest – riots following anniversary of shooting of michael brown
2016: 2016 milwaukee riots – riots following fatal shooting of 23 year old sylville smith.
2016: charlotte riot, september 20–21, riots started in response shooting of keith lamont scott police




^ riot on ward s island.; terrific battle between german , irish emigrants , new york times, 06 march 1868
^ coal riot. horrible treatment of laborers miners. – condition of wounded – war of races – welsh vs. irish , germans, new york times, 11 may 1871
^ race riot in denver.; 1 man killed , number of heads broken. new york times. 12 apr 1887
^ race riot in buffalo.; italians , irish fight hour , half in street. new york times. 19 mar. 1894
^ thomas j. hudson, iowa chapter viii, events jackson cummins, province , states, vol. v, western historical association, 1904; page 170
^ national guard – iowa s splendid militia, midland monthly, vol. ii, no. 5 nov. 1894; page 419.
^ service @ muchakinock , evans, in mahaska county, during coal miners strike, report of adjutant-general governor of state of iowa biennial period ending nov. 30, 1895, conway, des moines, 1895; page 18
^ race riots in u.s . www.infoplease.com. retrieved 2017-04-17. 
^ race riots in newburg.; negroes employed in brick yards provoke other laborers -- lively battle between factions, new york times. 29 jul. 1899
^ argenta race riot , encyclopedia of arkansas history , culture (accessed april 28, 2011).
^ whites in race war kill blacks blindly . new york times. 26 december 1906. 
^ larsen, l. & cotrell, b. (1997). gate city: history of omaha. university of nebraska press. p 163.
^ july 29, 1910: slocum massacre in texas - zinn education project . zinnedproject.org. retrieved 2 september 2017. 
^ brian d. greer, john carter (lynching of) , encyclopedia of arkansas history , culture, 2013
^ albina riot, 1967 . oregon history project. retrieved 2016-10-11.