Lynching of Burl Smith

September 21, 1917

By Lynching in Texas Staff

City: Middle Town of Goose Creek (Baytown, Texas)

County: Harris County

Race or Ethnicity of Victim: Black

Gender of Victim: Male

Age of Victim: Twenty-seven

Alleged Crime: Attempted Rape

Manner of Death: Hanged

Note: The ash tree from which Burl Smith was hanged no longer exists. 

Source of Information: NAACP 30 Years of Lynching

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Lynching in Texas Staff, “Lynching of Burl Smith,” Lynching In Texas, accessed April 20, 2024, https://lynchingintexas.org/items/show/481.

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  • Eyewitness Garrett Herring's account of the location and lynching of Burl Smith. (Track 2). Herring viewed the lynching from Isadore Wiesenthal's Drug Store where he worked. The store went through several owners and later became Leggett's Drug Store, a well known landmark in Baytown. The description and location of the store starts 3 minutes into Track 2. The lynching is described 15 minutes into Track 2. Thanks to Charles E. "Chuck" Chandler for supplying this information.
Published on Feb 19, 2018. Last updated on Jul 3, 2021.