Lynching in Texas

This website represents an ongoing effort to document the recorded lynchings that occurred in Texas between 1882 and 1942. At present, our database includes more than 600 lynchings that were cataloged by the Chicago Tribune, Tuskegee Institute, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. 

Definition of Lynching

In December 1940, officials from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Association of Southern Women for the Prevention of Lynching (ASWPL) met at Tuskegee Institute to discuss lynching. Together, they established the following definition of the crime.

1. There must be legal evidence that a person was killed.
2. That person must have met death illegally.
3. A group of 3 or more persons must have participated in the killing.
4. The group must have acted under the pretext of service to justice, race or tradition.

This definition of lynching remains in use today and forms the basis of our consideration of racial violence in Texas.