We've included this post on oldwestbaltimore.com because Philip J. Merrill, our CEO & Founder, spent the first years of his life in #HistoricSandtown (one of the neighborhoods that comprises #OldWestBaltimore) and because the #MartinsvilleSeven was covered by the #BaltimoreAfroAmericanNewspaper, which had roots in #OldWestBaltimore.
August 31, 2021- Virginia Governor #RalphNortham posthumously pardoned the #MartinsvilleSeven
On February 2, 1951 (70 years ago) #BookerTMillner was electrocuted for the alleged rape of a white woman in #MartinsvilleVirginia. Millner was one of 7 Black men known collectively as the #MartinsvilleSeven who were executed after Ruby Floyd accused them of rape in 1949. At the time, it was the state's largest execution for a single crime.
This is an excellent example of how important primary source material can be to the historical narrative. To learn more about this significant artifact, continue to follow nannyjack.com, the #ArtifactualJourneyPodcast, and An Artifactual Journey with Philip J. Merrill of Nanny Jack & Co.
https://www.npr.org/2021/08/31/1032859243/virginia-history-pardons-execution-civil-rights-martinsville-seven
https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/31/us/martinsville-seven-7-young-black-men-pardon/index.html
#NegroHistoryDetective 🕵🏽♂️
Courtesy of Nanny Jack & Co Archives