Victim ID: VA1910112901
Victim Name: Mack Neal
Race: Black
Sex: Male
Age: Unknown
Job: Unknown
Method of Death: Riddled with bullets
Accusation: Killing a black woman and wounding another black woman, a black man, and two black boys
Date: 1910-11-29
City: Waverly
Mob Composition: 15 armed men


Summary: A posse of about 15 men shot Mack Neal, a black man, in a cabin near Waverly, Sussex County. Neal was accused of murdering a black woman, and wounding four other black people.

On November 28th, 1910, Mack Neal allegedly shot and killed Annie Johnson, a black woman, at her home in Sussex County. Neal also shot and wounded Annie’s sister, Hester, and a man named Paul Brown, who were also in the house. The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that the suspicion of jealousy may have played a factor in Neal’s killing of Annie Johnson. Once Neal fled the scene, he also ambushed two black boys, shooting and wounding both of them. It is unclear what caused Mack Neal’s fury. On November 29th, Mack Neal was discovered by another black man, who informed a posse of men of his whereabouts. The Free Lance reported that Neal was found hiding three miles from Waverly, in the cabin of Dick Johnson, another black man, where a posse of 15 men shot and mortally wounded him. Neal was brought to the Waverly jail, where he died from the gunshot wounds the day after, November 30th, 1910 (Virginian-Pilot).


News Coverage: Daily Star, Free Lance, Ledger-Star, Richmond Times-Dispatch, Roanoke Times, Virginian-Pilot

Article Link (from Free Lance published on 1910-12-01)
Article Link (from Richmond Times-Dispatch published on 1910-11-30)