

The true story of Willie & Johnson
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Newspaper accounts of Will Allen’s death told a limited story. They often sensationalized the death and overemphasized race.
Raleigh Morning Times, September 5, 1905
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Chatham Record (Pittsboro, NC) Sept. 7, 1905
Wilmington’s Weekly Star, a white newspaper founded and edited by a white supremacist and confederate, also covered the incident. It played a large role in spreading propaganda which was especially apparent in its coverage of the 1898 Wilmington Massacre less than a decade prior. Read more about the Wilmington Massacre.
View this short article in context to see what other kinds of news stories the paper reported.
The Weekly Star (Wilmington) on Sept 8, 1905.
A few newspapers reported that Johnson Merritt was not charged for Will Allen’s death in a short notice like this one in the Statesville Record and Landmark:
Statesville Record and Landmark, Sept.8, 1905