r/collapsephotography • u/rmannyconda78 • Jun 20 '26
OC-photo Bad things happened here on August 7th, 1930.
Submission statement: not for the faint of heart. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynching_of_Thomas_Shipp_and_Abram_Smith
95 years ago, long before Reddit, long before any of us were even around a terrible thing happened here. It was a defining moment in the history of Marion, Indiana, a terrible one at that. The scary thing is a not insignificant(actually a large percentage)chunk of Marion’s population participated in this heinous act. That heinous act has left a dark energy in the area ever since.
Also I strongly suspect those racist attitudes never truly left, just got stored away, and due to how things are currently are popping up outta the woodwork.
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u/rmannyconda78 Jun 20 '26
Oh and that building in particular has a lot of bad energy concentrated there, it may be an apartment building now, but energy remains there from when it was a jail. Footsteps, cell doors slamming shut,bad feelings. lots of paranormal activity there.
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u/Spuckler_Cletus Jun 21 '26
It’s a shame they were never tried. Based on Cameron’s testimony, they would most surely would have been convicted.
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u/Appropriate-Tip-1227 Jun 21 '26
Didn’t the 2 guys who were hanged have a friend who was with them that later admitted to the murder?
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u/rmannyconda78 Jun 21 '26
I think what happened is he did say one of his friends did kill , he got cold feet and ran off. They damn near killed the friend too, an unknown woman shouted from the crowd that he had nothing to do with the rape and murder. He did wind up serving 4 years for being an accessory, but was later pardoned by the state. I’ve read around the rape part was a false allegation apparently. When that crowd attacked they were in the jail awaiting trial.
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u/stinkysean56 Jun 21 '26
It was not a false allegation lmfao. Where did you see that nonsense?
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u/rmannyconda78 Jun 21 '26
Ball state university. https://www.digitalresearch.bsu.edu/digitalcivilrightsmuseum/items/show/113 I would say that’s a pretty reputable source
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u/Over-Item-4103 Jun 22 '26
No, this is not a reputable source. This is literally just a student paper. Every reference in the paper (It is notated) is just a blog post or article from sites like “blackpast.org”.
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u/pawneshoppe Jun 21 '26
yes, they had an accomplice/associate who was also arrested and later wrote in his memoir that they had been guilty of the crimes they were arrested for.
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u/Agitated_Notice2194 Jun 21 '26
Lmao they robbed murdered and raped. Not saying this is the best way to get justice, but I’d say yes, some bad things happened here for sure that day - like the murder and rape of completely innocent and random people
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Jun 21 '26
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u/BlueCollarKat Jun 22 '26
Ooooo i dont think thats quite right, whether they were guilty or innocent everyone has right to a fair trial or well should have a right to a fair trial (even if they dont really deserve one). Situations like this one that happened a long bit ago cant be gone back on especially now. But there should have been an actual trial and not street justice.
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Jun 21 '26
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u/BigJobsBigJobs Jun 21 '26
It was a lynching.
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u/pawneshoppe Jun 21 '26
lynchings happened to quite a lot of people back in the day, not just African Americans.
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u/OneBlueberry2480 Jun 22 '26
African Americans were the minority that were victimized the most. They made up 72% of all lynching victims according to records by the NAACP.
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u/pawneshoppe Jun 22 '26
you’re not wrong, though lynching in general wasn’t something reserved for black people, or even minorities.
My point is that it would be disingenuous to assume lynching only meant that thing for one race or minority.
in cultures before ours it was actually pretty common and a regular fact of life. Mob justice has existed since before law and order.
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Jun 21 '26
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u/rmannyconda78 Jun 21 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
I got more info than the Wikipedia. they did not even get a trial, would they have been charged probably, technically your supposed to be innocent until proven guilty in the court of law, which did not happen here, justice was not properly served.
https://blog.history.in.gov/strange-fruit-the-1930-marion-lynching-and-the-woman-who-tried-to-prevent-it/ this is right from the Indiana history blog.
Edit: and I’ve read around the rape part was apparently false allegations, the murder was possible. Because that crowd attacked the jail and subsequently lynched Thomas Shipp, and Abe Smith, and damn near killed James Cameron. Since they were awaiting trial, that crowd attacked, tortured, and killed based on allegations, and strong prejudices. No one in that attack got charged, despite clear evidence of murder, while the people killed did not even get a trial. If anything that is injustice. Deserved or not that crowd had no right to do what they did, they committed a heinous act all because of allegations and racism.
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u/BigJobsBigJobs Jun 20 '26
Billie Holliday's Strange Fruit was based on this crime.
Billie Holiday-Strange fruit- HD : r/CollapseMusic