Joe Vermilion
MSA SC 3520-13738
Lynched in Upper Marlboro, December 11, 1889
Biography:
Joseph Vermilion, the 27 year old African American son of John Vermilion Sr. was lynched December 3, 1889 for the crime of arson. Vermilion was accused of burning the barns and tenant house of Thomas Black and General Horn. It was believed that Vermilion was acting out of revenge for the unpunished burning of his father's home. According to The Sun, John Vermilion Sr. was forcibly taken from his home and tied to a tree on November 22, 1889. His attackers then removed the furniture from his home and burned the structure to the ground. They released John on his promise to leave the town immediately. The Vermilion family lived in the vicinity of Upper Marlboro since 1885 when James Hamilton gave them charitable lands to farm. However, the family was infamous for their lawlessness and several citizens feared them. Citizens claimed that their barns had been broken into and tobacco had been stolen. It was believed that the men who burned John Vermilion's home wanted the entire family to leave town.
After John Vermilion's home burned down a number of young men were arrested on November 23rd. The men were released by Justice Ryan. The release of those men triggered Joseph Vermilion's rampage. The tenant house that was burned in the fire was the home of Justice Ryan. Police began arresting members of the Vermilion family and holding them in prison to await trial. John Vermilion Jr. testified to his brother's guilt at the hearing. He reported to officials that on Saturday, November 23, 1889 Joseph came to his house and told him he would get revenge on those who would not give his father justice. He tried to persuade Joseph not to carry out his threat. He claimed that later that night Joseph returned to his home carrying a coal oil can. Joseph then announced to John Jr. he had created a little fire of his own. Joseph then disappeared and was not seen again until arrested along with four of his brothers and one brother-in-law. The police were holding John Jr., Edward, George, Lloyd and Joseph Vermilion along with Charles Bell in jail when the lynching occurred.
Joseph Vermilion pleaded not guilty to the charge of arson. He testified that he was out of the county during the incident. The Grand Jury dropped the charges against the rest of the Vermilion family, but they were held in jail due to peace warrants sworn against them by several citizens in the town. The family was being held in jail awaiting Joseph's sentencing on the night of the lynching. Around 2:30 in the morning on December 3, 1889 a mob of masked men came to the jail. The men came to the jail doors and posed as Constable Mitchell claiming to have a prisoner. When the jail keeper opened the door they ceased him using guns. The men went upstairs and broke the lock off Joseph's cell. They cut the shackles that bound Joseph to the floor. Joseph attempted to fight his assailants. Several of the lynchers were left bleeding from his attempts.
Several of Joseph's brothers saw the attackers approaching the jail from Main Street. They warned Joseph and called to Mr. Ridgeway not to open the door, but their pleas failed. The men took Joseph by the neck and hung him from a bridge crossing over the Patuxent River. Joseph Vermilion's body hung from the bridge with the shackles still attached to his feet. His body was taken down later that day after several citizens stopped to view it. A jury of inquest was called to review the lynching. They ruled that Joseph Vermilion had "met his death by lynching by parties unknown to the jury."(The Sun, 4 December 1889)
After the inquest Joseph's body was taken to the
county jail. After allowing time for visitors to view the body the men
placed him in a stained pine coffin. His body was then buried at
the jail's cemetery directly beneath Joseph's cell window. Several
citizen's were angered by the lynching, but no report was given on the
sentiments of the Vermilion family or the African American community.
The
Sun stated:
"The lynching of Upper Marlboro's of a prisoner in jail on a charge of barn burning is a most discreditable incident, and on which the thoughtful and law abiding people of Prince George's County will, no doubt, deplore and strongly discountenance...There is consequently not even the excuse ordinarily advanced in behalf of lynch law of a probability that adequate justice would fail to be meted out by the courts...Vermilion is said to have been a notorious lawbreaker, but the men who hung him have committed an act more flagrant than any of which he was accused" (The Sun, 4 December 1889).Link to Lynching Profile Questionnaire
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