Wilmington's Lie: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy

by David Zucchino

The state’s school textbooks, presided over by white supremacists, ensured that the enduring myths of 1898 were passed down to each new generation of white pupils. A 1933 textbook placed the blame for the killings on elected black officials: “There were many Negro officeholders in the eastern part of the state, some of whom were poorly fitted for their tasks. This naturally aroused ill feeling between the races.” The textbook described Charles Aycock, whose speeches incited white supremacists at rallies in 1898 and 1900, as “one of the best friends that colored people had.” One passage suggested that black citizens were deprived of the vote for their own good: “Though Aycock was in favor of an amendment to take the vote away from illiterate Negroes, he had no ill feeling toward their race.” A 1940 public school textbook blamed black citizens for the misfortunes that befell them: “The mass of negroes became poor citizens. To keep their vote, the Carpetbaggers and Scalawags allowed them to do very much as they pleased. The worst crimes were not punished. The white people of the South were no longer safe.” The 1940 textbook went on to describe how the Ku Klux Klan and, later, the Red Shirts, addressed the problem: To put an end to this terrible condition white people all over the South joined together in a sort of club which they named the Ku Klux Klan. Members of the Ku Klux Klan, dressed as ghosts, scared lawless men into acting decently. On moonlit nights these men could b...