Murder of Henry Marrow

Henry Dortress Marrow, Junior (January 7, 1947 - May 12, 1970), called Dickie by his friends and family, was 23 when he was murdered in Oxford, North Carolina on May 11, 1970, the victim of a violent hate crime. Henry Marrow's three killers were all found not guilty. This verdict spurred rioting by blacks in the county and influenced events across the country.

Biography

"Dickie" Marrow was born to Henry D. Marrow, Sr. and Ivey Hunt Marrow on January 7, 1947. His parents separated early on, and when Henry, Sr. died in a violent quarrel, Ivey could not provide for her son alone. While his mother was working in New Jersey, Henry lived with his mother's parents in Oxford during his childhood, eventually moving in with the Chavis family during his adolescence while he attended Mary Potter High School. After his graduation, Henry attended Kittrell College for about a year.

At the age of 19, Henry Marrow, Jr. joined the military and was stationed in Fort Bragg in the same state; however, Henry did not like Army life and snuck home often, making a three-hour trip, sometimes to see one Willie Mae Sidney. Henry was subsequently discharged and moved back to Oxford, taking employment at Umstead Hospital in Butner, NC and marrying Ms. Sidney.

Willie Mae Marrow gave birth to two girls, Tammy and Tasha, and was carrying a third daughter when her husband was killed.

Aftermath

The Marrow murder prompted the first major stirrings of the American Civil Rights Movement in Granville County. On the day of Marrow's funeral, mourners marched from the gravesite to the Confederate monument in downtown Oxford, where leaders spoke about the significance of the murder. A similar march was held the next day.

As upsetting as the murder to the black community was the fact that the white establishment quickly rallied to support Robert and Larry Teel, who were charged with the murder. A legal defense fund was established, and the Ku Klux Klan stepped up its activities in the area.

In reaction to these events, a group of black Vietnam veterans launched a campaign of arson against the white business community. The burning of several warehouses and shops was worth an estimated $1 million in damages.

At the murder trial, following a jury selection process which produced an all white jury, the defense team first attempted to portray the murder as self defense, then on the last day of the trial, produced as a witness Roger Oakley, who claimed that he had fired the fatal shot, but accidentally (several witnesses had identified Larry Teel as the shooter). The jury returned a verdict of not guilty on all counts, a result which the prosecutor declared "absolutely the worst miscarriage of justice I have ever seen."

After the trial, Benjamin Chavis, a local civil rights organizer, started a boycott of white-owned businesses in the area.^[1] This boycott was eventually successful in bringing about racial integration in Oxford. By late autumn of 1970, the white community was forced to agree to the integration of the town.

References

1. ^ "Hero or racist? Hometown split on NAACP's Chavis". The Atlanta Journal and The Atlanta Constitution. August 19, 1994. 

• Tyson, Timothy. Blood Done Sign My Name. New York: Crown Publishers, 2004.

External links

• Findagrave page for Henry Marrow
• Image and map of Marrow gravesite in Oxford, NC