← Back To Stories
Hidden American History • Wilmington, North Carolina
The City America Was Taught To Forget
In 1898, an elected American government was violently overthrown. Then the story itself was rewritten.
Listen To This Story
Wilmington 1898
Ready to listen
Hidden History ●
Democracy ●
Power ●
Race ●
Memory ●
UnLearn • ReEducate • Evolve ●
Hidden History ●
Democracy ●
Power ●
Race ●
Memory ●
UnLearn • ReEducate • Evolve ●
Before
The Coup
The Coup
Wilmington represented an America many people were never taught existed.
In the late 1800s, Wilmington, North Carolina had a large Black population and a growing Black middle class.
Black residents owned businesses, practiced trades, published newspapers and participated in local government.
A political coalition of Black Republicans and white Populists had challenged the old political establishment.
Black political power was becoming visible.
For some white political leaders, that was not viewed as progress. It was viewed as a threat.
Black residents owned businesses, practiced trades, published newspapers and participated in local government.
A political coalition of Black Republicans and white Populists had challenged the old political establishment.
Black political power was becoming visible.
For some white political leaders, that was not viewed as progress. It was viewed as a threat.
The Question History Forces Us To Ask
What happens when people gain power others believe they should never have?
Chapter One
The Voice
The Voice
A Black newspaper gave Wilmington something powerful: its own voice.
Alexander Manly was editor of The Daily Record, a Black-owned newspaper in Wilmington.
At a time when racist stereotypes filled many white newspapers, The Daily Record gave Black Wilmington the ability to speak for itself.
It reported on Black life, politics and community issues.
That made the newspaper more than a business. It made it a source of influence.
At a time when racist stereotypes filled many white newspapers, The Daily Record gave Black Wilmington the ability to speak for itself.
It reported on Black life, politics and community issues.
That made the newspaper more than a business. It made it a source of influence.
Chapter Two
The Campaign
The Campaign
Before the violence came the propaganda.
During the 1898 election season, white Democratic leaders launched an openly white-supremacist campaign.
Newspapers circulated racist imagery and frightening claims about Black political participation.
Armed groups intimidated voters.
The message was deliberate: convince white citizens that Black political power was something to fear.
The story of Wilmington shows that political violence does not always begin with weapons. Sometimes it begins with controlling what people believe.
Newspapers circulated racist imagery and frightening claims about Black political participation.
Armed groups intimidated voters.
The message was deliberate: convince white citizens that Black political power was something to fear.
The story of Wilmington shows that political violence does not always begin with weapons. Sometimes it begins with controlling what people believe.
How A Government Disappeared.
BEFORE 1898
A Multiracial Government
Black residents held political influence and participated in Wilmington's civic life.
NOV. 8, 1898
Election Day
Intimidation and white-supremacist campaigning helped Democrats gain political control.
NOV. 10, 1898
Violence Begins
An armed white mob destroyed The Daily Record and violence spread through Black Wilmington.
AFTERWARD
Government Removed
Elected officials were forced out and a new government was installed.
Chapter Three
The Coup
The Coup
The attackers did not simply destroy property. They took the government.
On November 10, 1898, an armed white mob gathered in Wilmington.
The Daily Record was burned. Black residents were attacked. Families fled the city.
Then armed men confronted local officials. Elected leaders were forced to resign or leave Wilmington.
A new government was installed.
An American city government had been removed through force.
The event is now widely described by historians as a coup d'état.
The Daily Record was burned. Black residents were attacked. Families fled the city.
Then armed men confronted local officials. Elected leaders were forced to resign or leave Wilmington.
A new government was installed.
An American city government had been removed through force.
The event is now widely described by historians as a coup d'état.
What Was Lost
Political Power
Black political participation in Wilmington was violently dismantled.
What Was Destroyed
Community
Black families, businesses and community networks were forced to rebuild elsewhere.
What Came Next
Jim Crow
The political environment that followed helped strengthen Black disenfranchisement across North Carolina.
Chapter Four
The Erasure
The Erasure
Then came another kind of power: deciding how the story would be remembered.
For generations, what happened in Wilmington was often described as a “race riot.”
That language could make the event sound like two groups simply began fighting one another.
But that description hides something essential.
The violence was connected to an organized political campaign. An elected government was removed. Black political influence was intentionally destroyed.
When the language changes, the meaning of history can change with it.
And when a story disappears from classrooms, generations can grow up without understanding the systems that shaped the country they inherited.
That language could make the event sound like two groups simply began fighting one another.
But that description hides something essential.
The violence was connected to an organized political campaign. An elected government was removed. Black political influence was intentionally destroyed.
When the language changes, the meaning of history can change with it.
And when a story disappears from classrooms, generations can grow up without understanding the systems that shaped the country they inherited.
Why Wilmington Matters
This story changes the way we understand American progress.
Wilmington shows that Black Americans were not simply waiting for progress after slavery.
They were voting. Building businesses. Publishing newspapers. Forming political alliances. Participating in government. Creating communities.
And sometimes when those communities gained power, that progress was deliberately attacked.
They were voting. Building businesses. Publishing newspapers. Forming political alliances. Participating in government. Creating communities.
And sometimes when those communities gained power, that progress was deliberately attacked.
Instead of only asking,
“Why didn't Black communities progress faster?”
history forces us to ask:
“What happened when they did?”
“Why didn't Black communities progress faster?”
history forces us to ask:
“What happened when they did?”
Natural Selections
UnLearn. ReEducate. Evolve.
Sometimes what disappears from the history book is the very thing that explains the world we inherited.
Keep asking what was left out.
