Ruthless attack on Greenville man outraged community: History
As a passenger train rolled into Staunton on the night of Saturday, Nov. 22, 1919, one of its passengers — Joseph W. Fitzgerald — got off at the station to stretch his legs. His destination wasn’t far; he was headed to his home in Greenville and expected nothing but a quiet journey between Staunton and the Augusta County village.
What he got, however, was something so brutal that it outraged the entire Augusta County and Staunton communities.
Fitzgerald heard a familiar voice and turned to see James Campbell of Greenville, a well known stockman. Fitzgerald and Campbell had a past; Fitzgerald had unsuccessfully sued him for $3,000 in unpaid services the previous month. But Campbell seemed to not hold a grudge, and amiably offered to take Fitzgerald the rest of the way to Greenville in his automobile.
In accepting the ride, Fitzgerald made one of the worst mistakes of his life.
On Cold Springs Road near Greenville, Campbell suddenly pulled off the road into a lonely, sheltered spot. There, in the headlights of the auto, stood seven men. None of them were masked.
They rushed the car and dragged Fitzgerald from it. Despite his struggles, he was stripped of his clothing and then mercilessly kicked and beaten. But the worst was yet to come.
The men had a quantity of hot tar on hand, but were short on feathers.
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“Here is a striking indication of the temper of the mob,” reported the News Leader. “It is said that being hard put to it for feathers, they caught two ducks, and without having the mercy in their hearts to kill the fowls, cruelly picked them alive and turned them loose to die of cold and exposure. They were found next morning so nearly dead that they could barely flap their wings.”
The mob then they went to work on Fitzgerald, covering him with tar and then sprinkling the feathers over him. He was told that if he didn’t sell his property and leave Greenville in three weeks, his house would be “burned over his head.”
None of the men made any attempt to conceal their identities. Fitzgerald knew them all.
No newspaper of the day reported how Fitzgerald made his way home; it may have been within walking distance. The papers did note, however, that on Monday, Nov. 24, Fitzgerald came to Staunton and reported the incident to the police. He was quickly united with Commonwealth’s Attorney Hugh H. Kerr, who took down the names of Fitzgerald’s assailants.
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In additon to Campbell, the mob consisted of Aubrey Campbell, E.G. Vines, M.M. Shields, M.E. Shields, Eugene McLeer, Houston Larew and Clay P. McClure, all of whom lived near Greenville.
“The names given as ring leaders and some of the others are those of men not only prominent in their community, but well-known in both city and county,” wrote the News Leader. “If the facts alleged be found true and the presentments be established, the public will be amazed that such a crime could happen here at the hands of such prominent men.”
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On the day Fitzgerald reported the assault, a frightening “coincidence” occurred that had all the earmarks of a warning. A fire of unknown origin destroyed the home of Fitzgerald’s parents, who were tenants on a Greenville-area farm.
“The aged couple, both of whom are crippled, lost practically all personal effects and furniture,” wrote the Leader.
While Fitzgerald went to Charlottesville for medical treatment, Kerr proceeded with his investigation, employing a detective who remained in the Greenville area collecting evidence. Fitzgerald’s story held up to scrutiny, and the wheels of justice began to grind.
The eight men were indicted on Dec. 15 by a special grand jury on the charges of malicious assault and unlawful assault. To a man they pled “guilty” and threw themselves on the mercy of the court without condition. Each man faced a possible fine from one cent to $500, and imprisonment from five to 10 years. Their fate lay in the hands of Judge Henry W. Holt.
Instead of sending the men to the state penitentiary, Holt fined each of them $500, which went to Fitzgerald. It doesn’t sound like a lot, but $500 in 1919 equals nearly $7,500 today.
Fitzgerald, however, didn’t let the matter go. He sued Campbell and several others in the mob for another two years, until the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals finally ended the matter with a decision against him.