Researchers seek relatives of 1896 Black lynching victim
by Bessida White –
A Black man named Thomas Washington was lynched in Essex County in March 1896 for the alleged attempted assault of a young white girl. The body was found hanging from a tree in southern Essex, between Cedar Fork and Center Cross, a few miles north of Middlesex County. A coroner’s inquisition found the cause of death to be hanging at the hands of unknown parties.
