Rope used to lynch Matthew Williams: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A section of rope (a) tethered to a handwritten note that is in two pieces (bc).The note, written by Paul Henderson, is composed of graphite on tan paper, in a faint hand at the top is [Lyncher's Rope]. The main text of the note starts [Rope "souvenir" which was used by Salisbury, Md. mob to hang Matthew Williams, 23-year-old citizen]. Secured to the bottom of the note with two pieces of twine, the rope has been soaked in oil and appears brown in color. The note has been folded in multiple places and worn at the folds. It has been repaired with tape at the top fold and the bottom portion, holds the rope, has come completely detached.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: December 1931
• Created by: Unidentified
• Subject of: Matthew Williams, 1908 -1931
• Owned by: Paul Henderson, American, 1899 - 1988
• Type: weapons
• Medium: rope and oil with lead on paper
• Dimensions: H x W: 12 x 9 in. (30.5 x 22.9 cm)
• Place depicted: Salisbury, Wicomico County, Maryland, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Hate crimes
• Topic: Local and regional
• Topic: Lynching
• Topic: Race discrimination
• Topic: U.S. History, 1919-1933
• Topic: Violence
• Object number: 2013.50abc
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of The Estate of Paul S. Henderson
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: Public Domain Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.