Lynchings were rituals of collective violence that served as highly effective tools to reinforce the institution and philosophy of white racial superiority.

Lynch mobs intended to instill fear in all African Americans, to enforce submission and racial subordination, and to “emphasize the limits of Black freedom.”

- Equal Justice Initiative

In Smith County, at least ten racial terror lynchings took place from 1857 to 1928. Maybe more.

These are their stories.

We Remember Tyler is collecting those stories to begin a discussion about these events and the broader legacy of racial terror in Tyler & Smith Co. These lynchings are only a handful of those that took place during this period - including a reported total of at least 335 in Texas and over 4,084 nationwide.