President Biden designated a new national monument on Friday, August 16, 2024. With key leaders alongside him, he signed a proclamation in the Oval Office, establishing the Springfield 1908 Race Riot National Monument in Springfield, Illinois. The Springfield Race Riot occurred on August 14-16,1908.
“Our history is not just about the past, it’s about our present and our future. The Springfield 1908 Race Riot National Monument will help us remember an unspeakable attack on the Black community and honor the Americans who came together in its aftermath to help deliver on the promise of civil rights,” President Biden said.
According to a White House press release, “The Springfield 1908 Race Riot National Monument will protect 1.57 acres of federal land in Springfield, Illinois, and will be managed by the Department of the Interior’s National Park Service. Through the historical objects protected at this site, the monument will tell the story of the violent mob that attacked the Black community in Springfield and lynched two Black men.”
Horrific events in Springfield began to unfold when two Black men – 17-year-old Joe James and 36-year-old George Richardson –were being held in the Sangamon County Jail in Springfield based on two separate assault claims of rape and murder by white accusers. One accuser later recanted.
A crowd gathered around the jail and demanded that James and Richardson be released and lynched. The men were moved to a jail about 60 miles away in hopes that the situation would be diffused.
Beginning on August 14, 1908, a white mob targeted Black homes, businesses, and families, resulting in the destruction of neighborhoods and loss of life, according to Will Shafroth, president and CEO of the National Park Foundation.
Two other Black men, Scott Burton and William Donnegan, were lynched by the mob.
“The racial violence led to the founding of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to address issues of racial injustice and inequality. More than a century later, the newly protected land will preserve archeological remains of homes burned during the 1908 Springfield Race Riot,” Shafroth said.
Brenda Mallory, the twelfth Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality, told The Baltimore Times that her office was involved before the designation of the new national monument.
“My office assists the President, working with the agencies in the designation of monuments under the Antiquities Act. We actually help the agencies as they’re developing their recommendations to make sure that they produce the information that’s necessary for the President,” Mallory said.
President Theodore Roosevelt first used the Antiquities Act in 1906 to designate Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming. Thereafter, 18 presidents have used this authority to protect natural and historic features in America, according to The White House.
Mallory explained additional details about The Springfield 1908 Race Riot National Monument:
She said, “Under the Antiquities Act, it is focused on landmark areas, [and] objects of historic and scientific significance. During the construction of a transportation project in Springfield, they unearthed the remains of the charred buildings that are associated with this Riot back in 1908. What we’re protecting is the area in which those five charred buildings are located. Right now, it’s in the middle of a construction site. The plan, I think, is working with the community, the National Park Service, and I think others who are interested in seeing something that… reflects the history will be, will be developed.”
Mallory further noted that those artifacts will now be protected forever. The designation of the new national monument is significant for an additional reason.
“I think we are in a moment where there are forces that are trying to erase history and deny history has occurred, and so the Biden-Harris administration has been committed from the very beginning to making sure that the country is sort of telling the full story of our history. And this Springfield 1908 Race Riot was one of those events that was well-known at the time, that kind of galvanized the creation of the NAACP, and that people really noted that because of its proximity to President Lincoln’s Home, that there was some symbolism associated with that particular riot occurring when it did.”
Construction is ongoing at the site. A management plan will be created. It will involve input from community members, individuals tied to philanthropy, and others.
“They can plan out what would be the right way to commemorate and to lift up the values that I think were reflected in this,” Mallory added.
Learn more about The Springfield 1908 Race Riot National Monument via https://www.nps.gov/spra/index.htm.