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72-544: The primary antagonists were the American Tobacco Company (ATC) (owned by James B. Duke ), historically one of the largest U.S. industrial monopolies, and the Dark Tobacco District Planters' Protective Association of Kentucky and Tennessee (PPA). This association of planters formed on September 24, 1904, in protest of the monopoly ATC practice of paying deflated prices for their product and with

144-616: A competitive advantage over Duke's competitors; he was able to lower his prices further than others could. In the 1880s, while Duke was beginning to machine-roll all his cigarettes, he saw that growth rates in the cigarette industry were declining. His solution was to combine companies and found “one of the first great holding companies in American history.” Duke spent $ 800,000 on advertising in 1889 and lowered his prices, accepting net profits of less than $ 400,000, forcing his major competitors to lower their prices and, in 1890, join his consortium by

216-612: A deal completed in October 1996, when the plant had 311 employees, and kept 100 of them. ITG Brands announced November 1, 2018 that the plant would close in 2020. In 2004, the previously abandoned American Tobacco Campus (ATC) in Durham was reopened as a complex of offices, shops, and restaurants. The American Tobacco Campus had been the headquarters of the American Tobacco Company. Developed by Capitol Broadcasting and reopened as

288-448: A deal with its inventor to use his machines exclusively in manufacturing cigarettes in exchange for lower royalties. The lowered manufacturing costs realized allowed him to cut his retail prices so low that his competitors couldn't compete. By 1890, Duke was able to compel his major competitors to consolidate with him as the American Tobacco Company (ATC). By 1900, the ATC had a stranglehold on

360-505: A few days after Christmas, 1908. The other witness, Fred Holden, also committed suicide rather than testify. Otis Blick, a Night Rider, did testify in court, having little choice since his Night Rider mask was found hidden in a tree stump. He admitted that he was inducted into the Riders in Amous Stringer's barbershop. After being put through some "strange rites", he was taught the passwords of

432-542: A few people, including the fatal wounding of an elderly African American named John Scruggs and the fatal wounding of his young grandson in the same round of fire. Some African Americans were taken from their homes and held down to be whipped. Marshall County authorities were relentless in their investigation of this raid. Burnett Phelps was the first raider to be brought to trial. Black victims, refugees from Birmingham, were encouraged to sue in court for damages. By December 1908, two men who confessed to being lesser leaders in

504-497: A mission, they muffled their mounts' hooves with cloths, and rode silently, carrying torches and lanterns. As a result, they began referring to themselves as the Silent Brigade. By mid-1906, they numbered an estimated 10,000 members. They began beating and whipping non-compliant hillbillies, officials and Trust employees. They burned hillbillies' barns and destroyed their tobacco fields and plant beds by scraping, salting, or choking

576-466: A monopolization within the first and second sections of the Anti-Trust Act.” Dissolution proved complicated. The American Tobacco Company had combined many prior companies and processes. One department would manage a certain process for the entire organization, producing brands previously owned by other companies. “Plants had been assigned specific products without regard for previous ownership.” Over

648-621: A new Federal tax on tobacco, placed tobacco producers into an impossible situation. In 1904, Felix Ewing , a wealthy tobacco planter and owner of Glenraven Plantation near the Kentucky stateline in Adams, Tennessee , proposed a way for the Black Patch growers to regain control of their sale prices. Glenraven Plantation, developed like a company town, had its own church, stores and post office, and its residents were tenant farmers and sharecroppers. Because of

720-690: A position of notoriety within the Association. He took a lead when frustrated members wanted to take stronger action. "In October 1905 thirty-two members of the Robertson County Branch of the PPA met at the Stainback schoolhouse in the northern part of the county and adopted the "Resolutions of the committee of the Possum Hunters Organization. "The possum hunters outlined their grievances against

792-470: A posse of eleven men to pursue the Night Riders as they left town. Because the Night Riders failed to post a rear guard, members of the posse were able to mingle with them. Several miles outside of town the Night Riders split up, with most riding off in a different direction. The posse stayed with the smaller group and opened fire, killing one man and injuring another. As a result of the raid on Hopkinsville,

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864-576: A sort of monopoly over the tobacco industry, the Tobacco Trust's international expansion in conjunction with its consolidation of all types of tobacco “ultimately made the Trust so vulnerable to regulation and judicial dissolution”. The Sherman Antitrust Act was passed in 1890, and in 1907, the American Tobacco Company was indicted in violation of it. In 1908, when the Department of Justice filed suit against

936-440: A subsidiary. American Brands acquired a variety of non-tobacco businesses during the 1970s and 1980s and sold its tobacco operations to Brown & Williamson in 1994. American Brands subsequently renamed itself "Fortune Brands". James Buchanan Duke 's entrance into the cigarette industry came about in 1879 when he elected to enter a new business rather than face competition in the shredded pouched smoking tobacco business against

1008-558: A warning to the African-Americans of Birmingham to move on and not be hired for the tobacco fields of the "enemy" tobacco growers. Apparently, most white residents of the area had been sufficiently dissuaded from working in these competitor fields, but the black residents hadn't "gotten the message", as far as the Lyon County Night Riders were concerned. The intimidation shots fired into the rows of houses unfortunately struck

1080-423: Is the act of buying companies that perform services or produce goods on different parts of the supply chain. The American Tobacco Company began to expand to Great Britain, China, and Japan. The company also maintained an interest in producing other tobacco products in case trends within the cigarette market shifted. Duke wanted to be sure that he would be prepared with a multitude of tobacco styles. While Duke did gain

1152-583: The American Tobacco Historic District , phase 1 consisted of the Fowler, Crowe, Strickland, Reed, and Washington Buildings, and included the construction of two new parking garages and a waterfall feature through the center of the campus designed by Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart of Atlanta, Georgia and constructed by W. P. Law, Inc. based in Lexington, South Carolina . Phase 2, consisting of

1224-490: The Bull Durham brand, also from Durham, North Carolina . In 1882, two years after W. Duke, Sons & Company entered into the cigarette business, James Bonsack invented a cigarette-rolling machine. It produced over 133 cigarettes per minute, the equivalent of what a skilled hand roller could produce in one hour, and reduced the cost of rolling cigarettes by 50%. It cut each cigarette with precision, creating uniformity in

1296-515: The Lucky Strike and Pall Mall brands into BAT's portfolio as part of BAT's American arm, Brown & Williamson. B&W later merged with R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in 2004. American Tobacco left Durham in the late 1980s. Brown & Williamson took over the Reidsville, North Carolina operation in 1995 and closed it, costing 1000 people their jobs, but Commonwealth Brands took it over in

1368-615: The 1930s when they began to be somewhat moderated by the government. From the 1870s to the 1940s, cigarette companies often included collectible trading cards with their packages of cigarettes. Cigarette card sets document popular culture from the turn of the century, often depicting the period's actresses, costumes, and sports, as well as offering insights into mainstream humor and cultural norms. American Tobacco commercialised its cards through several brands, such as Recruit , Mecca , Fatima , Ramly , Turkey Red . Old Judge . Old Mill , among others Cobb, Kentucky Cobb

1440-445: The 72 defendants. In each case, the juries were only out five minutes. In April 1908, a Kentucky State Guard detachment commanded by Lieutenant Newton Jasper Wilburn led a series of raids against the Night Riders' leaders. Wilburn arrested several of the men and also provided protection to several key informers. He gained the help of former Night Riders, including Macon Champion, who implicated fifteen local farmers. The arrests broke

1512-695: The ATC reached the US Supreme Court, which ruled in United States v. American Tobacco Co. (1911) that the Duke trust, ATC, was a monopoly and was in violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890. ATC was ordered to dismantle. Gov. Augustus E. Willson commissioned Major Bassett as a Lt. Colonel in the Kentucky Militia. Bassett was called on several times to protect witnesses during the trials of

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1584-506: The American market and had made inroads into foreign markets, affecting the majority of the world's tobacco sales either directly or through foreign partnerships. Duke used this power to reduce his tobacco-buying price by eliminating the competitive bidding process. This brought many farmers to the brink of financial ruin or led to the complete loss of their farms, as they found it cost more to plant their crop than they earned on it. The ATC's collusive fixed-price purchasing policy, combined with

1656-865: The Duke-Durham branch of the American Tobacco Company. P. Lorillard retained the Lorillard properties in addition to S. Anargyos; the Luhrman and Wilburn Tobacco Company; plants in Philadelphia, Wilmington, Brooklyn, Baltimore, and Danville; and the Federal Cigar Company. At the same time as the antitrust action in 1911, the company's share in British American Tobacco (BAT) was sold. In 1994, BAT acquired its former parent, American Tobacco Company (though reorganized after antitrust proceedings). This brought

1728-598: The Lord & Thomas agency, and Edward Bernays , both of whom were hired by Hill. Lucky Strike soon accounted for 38 percent of U.S. cigarette sales. During the Great Depression the company remained successful and Hill's salary exceeded $ 2,000,000. He made a substantial investment in advertising and sponsored Your Hit Parade and the Jack Benny Show . He also sponsored Frank Sinatra , Ethel Smith and Lawrence Tibbett . In

1800-597: The Night RIders. "Silent Brigade" was spoken; replied with, "I see you have been there"; counter-replied with, "Yes, on bended knees." The Lyon County Night Riders attempted to intimidate the Marshall County Judge (Judge William Reed) and the Court at Benton, even so much as staging a ride through the town. But their tactic backfired, and led the authorities there to pursue the men even harder, seeking to bring to justice

1872-634: The Night Riders. Many of the Night Riders escaped prosecution while others were sued in civil courts. John C. Latham did not rebuild his warehouse, instead donating the site to the city of Hopkinsville to be used as a park. It was named Peace Park. Dr. Amoss faced trial in the Christian County Court, and in March 1911, he was acquitted of all charges. Nevertheless, he left the state, accompanying his physician son to New York City. He practiced medicine there until his death in 1915. THE OLD KNOTTY OAK On

1944-479: The Princeton raid spread rapidly. Residents of nearby Hopkinsville , the county seat of Christian County , worried that their town could be next. The police, a large contingent of armed citizens, and the state militia prepared to protect the town from the expected raid. On January 4, 1907, Hopkinsville Mayor Charles Meacham received a telephone warning that the Riders were coming. He set the defense plan in action, and

2016-484: The Steger & Dollar Warehouse (located about 5 blocks south at the corner of South Seminary and Depot Street) and set it on fire as well. Then with three long whistle blasts the men came together, then slowly and methodically rode out of town singing "The fires shine bright on my old Kentucky home" bringing the night of terror to an end. Both warehouses were completely destroyed, along with 75 tons of non-PPA tobacco. News of

2088-411: The Trust and the hillbillies and stated their intention to visit Trust tobacco buyers and hillbillies in groups of no fewer than five and no more than two thousand and use "peaceful" methods to convince buyers and non-poolers to adhere to the PPA." The idea caught on quickly and Possum Hunter groups began to spring up throughout the region. They paid visits to non-PPA members, delivering stern lectures on

2160-474: The Trust fought back by offering exceptionally higher prices for tobacco sold by non-members, the number of holdouts increased. PPA members referred to these hold-outs as "hillbillies". The PPA inadvertently created new tensions in the region, dividing men who had previously worked closely together if they had opposite ideas about joining the association. This situation worsened as PPA members turned to violence to "persuade" former friends to join. Conditions for

2232-447: The Trust until buyers paid their asking price. The group moved to form the new organization, the "Dark Tobacco District Planters' Protective Association of Kentucky and Tennessee,” referred to as the PPA. Officers were appointed, and a charter drawn up and approved. One article called upon each member to use his influence and strong endeavor with those tobacco planters who are not members of the Association to become members. This provision

Black Patch Tobacco Wars - Misplaced Pages Continue

2304-566: The Union, Its findings they would not revoke. But they'd like a 'polite invitation, Instead of a threat to the Oak. They've read long ago, in an old book, That in Union alone man may stand; That a house with its members divided, Is like the one build on the sand. then, here's to the D.T. 'Sociation, May its principles ever abide, Here's to order and law in Old Christian But contempt for

2376-467: The advisability of joining the cause. Gradually, however, their activities grew more violent. Amoss had been a cadet and drillmaster at Major Ferrell's Military School in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. He used this background to begin training his groups as paramilitary insurgents. They conducted nocturnal mounted raids, while wearing masks, hoods and robes, and riding in well-organized columns of twos. When on

2448-776: The cigarettes it rolled. Public stigma was attached to this machine-rolled uniformity, and Allen & Ginter rejected the machine almost immediately. The first Bonsack machine was installed in the Durham Duke tobacco plant on April 30, 1884. Duke set a deal with the Bonsack Machine Company when he installed his machine. Duke agreed to produce all cigarettes with his two rented Bonsack machines and in return, Bonsack reduced Duke's royalties from $ 0.30 per thousand cigarettes to $ 0.20 per thousand. Duke also hired one of Bonsack's mechanics, resulting in fewer breakdowns of his machines than his competitors’. This secret contract resulted in

2520-784: The cigarettes, plug tobacco, smoking tobacco, and snuff produced in the United States. With Duke's market control, American Tobacco grew its equity from $ 25,000,000 to $ 316,000,000. American Tobacco Company quickly became known as the “Tobacco Trust” upon its founding. Duke controlled the cigarette market, and his trust caught the attention of legislators in the United States, a country with historical aversion to monopolies . American Tobacco Company focused solely on making and selling cigarettes, leaving growing of tobacco and retail distribution to independent North Carolina farmers. Nonetheless, Duke aimed to eliminate inefficiencies and middlemen through vertical consolidation . Vertical consolidation

2592-448: The city limits, they received word the militia was waiting for them and turned back. Finally, in the early hours of December 7, 1907, the Silent Brigade struck Hopkinsville. They left their horses outside town, and about 250 masked men marched down 9th Street to Main, where they separated and carried out their orders with military precision. Several men guarded the routes into the city and other downtown streets, while others took control of

2664-579: The company, 65 companies and 29 individuals were named in the suit. The Supreme Court ordered the company to dissolve in 1911 on the same day that it ordered the Standard Oil Trust to dissolve. The ruling in United States v. American Tobacco Co. stated that the combination of the tobacco companies “in and of itself, as well as each and all of the elements composing it whether corporate or individual, whether considered collectively or separately [was] in restraint of trade and an attempt to monopolize, and

2736-418: The company, is a multi-use rail-trail that begins just south of the Durham complex and runs 22 miles (35 km) towards Chatham and Wake Counties. It follows the route of the railroad ( Norfolk Southern Railway (former) Durham Branch) that once served the factories, but was later abandoned when these facilities were shut down. In 1925 George Washington Hill 's father died and he became the new president of

2808-439: The company. A year later Lucky Strike accounted for one fifth of U.S. cigarette sales, and the brand was among the five best-selling US-consumed cigarettes. In 1927 Hill began directing his marketing efforts toward women, which was the first female targeted advertising of cigarettes at this time. The success of the advertising campaign, which used movie actors and singers to promote the brand, can be attributed to Albert Lasker of

2880-505: The course of eight months, a plan for the dissolution, meant to assure competition among the new companies, was negotiated. The trust needed to dissolve in such a way that no manufacturer had a monopoly on any type of tobacco product. Investors, holding millions of dollars of securities, also needed to be considered. A large question was how to distribute trademarks and brands between the resulting companies. The American Tobacco Company's assets were split off into: American Tobacco Company,

2952-446: The cultural change that occurred for women in the United States during the 1920s, made cigarette consumption increasingly prevalent. In fact, not only was the public open to the idea of women smoking cigarettes, but manufacturers boldly advertised and encouraged feminine usage of the cigarette through cigarette cards. The advertising budgets of important cigarette manufacturers such as the American Tobacco Company rapidly expanded until

Black Patch Tobacco Wars - Misplaced Pages Continue

3024-476: The decline in sale price of their product, they were defecting to find better-paying opportunities in the cotton industry. During the summer of 1904, Ewing discussed his idea throughout the region and on September 24, 1904, hosted a meeting in Guthrie, Kentucky , attended by some 5,000 locals. He presented a plan for every farmer in the area to join a protective association whose purpose was withholding their tobacco from

3096-418: The different units were alerted and took their positions, but the warning was a hoax, a test of the city's preparedness. As had been the case in Princeton, Night Riders regularly drifted in and out of town to keep an eye on what was going on, in order to properly plan the raid and be prepared to pull it off at the right time. For months the riders assembled, ready to strike. On one such night as they approached

3168-416: The early hours of the following Sunday, February 10, the Riders attacked in the county again. They raided the farm of A. H. Cardin, a former candidate for state governor. They burned his large warehouse, which contained tobacco that he had purchased for Buckner & Dunkerson of Louisville, as well as a barn containing tobacco grown on his own farm. On their way to Cardin's farm, the Night Riders passed through

3240-747: The existing R. J. Reynolds , Liggett & Myers , and Lorillard . The monopoly became an oligopoly . The main result of the dissolution of American Tobacco Trust and the creation of these companies was an increase in advertising and promotion in the industry as a form of competition. Liggett & Myers kept control of these plants: Liggett and Myers, St. Louis; Spaulding and Merrick, Chicago; Allen and Ginter, Richmond; smoking tobacco factory in Chicago; Nall and Williams, Louisville; John Bollman Company, San Francisco; Pinkerton Company, Toledo; W. R. Irby, New Orleans; two cigar factories in Baltimore and Philadelphia, and

3312-403: The golden age of radio, as well as early television, American Tobacco was known for advertisements featuring a fast-talking tobacco auctioneer named L. A. "Speed" Riggs . His rapid-fire and song-like patter would always end with the exclamation, "Sold, American!" Another famous tobacco auctioneer, F. E. Boone, was often heard in tandem with Riggs. These cigarette advertisements in conjunction with

3384-408: The governor ordered the Kentucky Militia on active duty. Major Bassett was given command of all military operations in the area. The militia would remain on duty from December 1907 until November 1908. No raids took place where the soldiers were stationed. In the early hours of January 3, 1908, while the soldiers were guarding Hopkinsville and other towns, the Night Riders hit Russellville, Kentucky ,

3456-498: The growers did not improve by 1905, causing dissension among the members who had expected an immediate turnaround. What had started as an idea for a peaceful resolution turned ugly. Ewing fell ill and became less of a regular presence. More radical members took power, promoting a harsher approach to handling the farmers' problems. Dr. David Amoss, a farmer and country doctor from Cobb, Kentucky who lived in Caldwell County rose to

3528-418: The injury) as he tried to save railcars from the fire. Dr. Amoss was accidentally wounded in the head by his own men and was taken away from town early to be treated. As had occurred in Princeton, when the raid concluded the men assembled, and sang "My Old Kentucky Home" while riding out. While the raid was taking place, Major Bassett, commander of the militia, slipped out a rear window in his house and raised

3600-617: The intent to control their own product and pricing by banding together. The initial idea of the PPA was to "pool" and withhold their tobacco until the ATC agreed to pay higher prices. When this plan was unsuccessful, many farmers resorted to violence and vigilante practices, organizing as the Silent Brigade or Night Riders . They committed numerous acts of violence and destroyed crops, machinery, livestock, and tobacco warehouses, even capturing whole towns. They raided Princeton , Hopkinsville , and Russellville, Kentucky , destroying tobacco warehouses. James Buchanan "Buck" Duke of North Carolina

3672-562: The jail in Russellville and demanded four black prisoners: Joseph Riley, and Virgil, Robert, and Thomas Jones. The frightened jailer complied. The four men were local sharecroppers, and friends with Rufus Browder. Browder was a sharecropper for a white landowner named James Cunningham. Cunningham and Browder had engaged in an altercation, and Cunningham hit Browder with a whip and shot him as the sharecropper had turned to walk away. Browder returned fire, killing Cunningham in self-defense. Browder

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3744-610: The killers of a black man and a black boy. One Dr. Emilius Champion of Lyon Co., a popular physician, was indicted by popular belief to have been the ringleader of the Lyon County Night Riders and would later serve a year in the Eddyville Kentucky State Penitentiary based on a convincing circumstantial case and eyewitness testimony. Two of the Black plaintiffs, L. A. Baker, and schoolteacher Nat Frizzell, were each awarded $ 25,000.00 in damages, payable by even shares from

3816-427: The lights off!", then shoot to shatter windows and door frames. The riders moved swiftly toward the J.G. Orr Tobacco Factory (located at the corner of North Seminary and West Shephardson Street), where they placed sticks of dynamite under piles of tobacco and doused the building with kerosene. They tossed a flaming torch into the warehouse, which quickly went up in flames and became a raging inferno. The raiders moved to

3888-429: The men who ride." American Tobacco Company 35°59′36.77″N 78°54′16.84″W  /  35.9935472°N 78.9046778°W  / 35.9935472; -78.9046778 The American Tobacco Company was a tobacco company founded in 1890 by J. B. Duke through a merger between a number of U.S. tobacco manufacturers including Allen and Ginter , Goodwin & Company , and Kinney Brothers . The company

3960-548: The name of the American Tobacco Company. The five constituent companies of American Tobacco: W. Duke & Sons, Allen & Ginter , W.S. Kimball & Company, Kinney Tobacco , and Goodwin & Company – produced 90% of the cigarettes made in 1890, the first year the American Tobacco Company was listed on the NYSE . Within two decades of its founding, the American Tobacco company absorbed about 250 companies and produced 80% of

4032-688: The old Knotty Oak in North Christian Way out on the Kirkmansville Road, There has lately been posted a notice, To all farmers, the bad and the good. Its just a "guilt" edged invitation Placed there by a Night Rider brave (?) "Better join the 'Sociation, If you plant beds and barns you would save." It was stylishly dressed up in canvas, And written by type-writer's hand, It was worded in terms so expressive, That any one might understand. The farmers were warned to come over, that they were in danger outside, All tobacco must be in

4104-468: The police and fire departments, L&N rail depot, and the telephone and telegraph offices, essentially cutting off communications. Others rode up and down the streets, shooting out windows whenever a light would be turned on. They held several people hostage in a makeshift corral on Main Street. Many businesses were vandalized, including the newspaper office. Lindsey Mitchell, a buyer for a local tobacco company,

4176-439: The police station, while others simultaneously seized the telegraph and telephone offices, and the fire station, and shut off the city water supply. Some 200 masked men arrived at night, riding down the main street of Princeton. Armed with rifles, shotguns, and pistols, they began firing, waking the townspeople. As lights came on, if anyone looked out or tried to venture outside, the riders would shout "stay in your houses!" and "keep

4248-566: The power of the Night Riders and effectively ended the Black Patch War. Lieutenant Wilburn was rewarded with a promotion to captain. Even though most men arrested were not convicted at trial, Capt. Wilburn's actions helped bring law and order to the region. By the summer of 1910, the Night Rider trouble had come to an end except for a few scattered minor episodes. The tobacco growers were now receiving higher prices for their crops. A challenge to

4320-401: The raid were persuaded to turn State's evidence and admit their crimes. However, Ed Fox, one of these men, had several younger brothers and in-laws in the Riders and was filled with remorse or fear for them. Deciding he would be better off dead, as he was about to shoot himself in the head, his wife discovered him and grabbed the pistol. He accidentally shot himself in the stomach, dying in agony

4392-659: The remaining buildings and expansion of the water feature at the north end of the site, was under construction as of late 2006. Many office spaces in the ATC are now used by Duke University . It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000 as the American Tobacco Company Manufacturing Plant. The nearby Watts and Yuille Warehouses were listed in 1984 and the Smith Warehouse in 1985. The American Tobacco Trail , named for

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4464-575: The road. To them he's the feed ground, the noon hour, and rest from the weary road. Old has held all the sale bills; He's proud of the nails in his side. But his head hangs in humiliation At the threat of the bad "Men who ride." However he's keeping the secret, but of course he would know just at sight The face of the man who disgraced him, by posting a threat in the night The people who live near Old Knotty, and quietly working their farms, but they've nothing to lose by marauders, No plant beds, tobacco or barns. They are not opposed to

4536-575: The seat of Logan County. Using similar tactics as previously, they took over the town and dynamited two factories, one belonging to the Luckett Wake Tobacco Company and the other to the American Snuff Company. Additional violence took place in the county from the spring on, with an increasing number of attacks on blacks as tensions and violence rose. On August 1, 1908, about one hundred masked men believed to be Night Riders entered

4608-661: The small community of Fredonia , in Caldwell County. They took over the town and held the inhabitants under guard while the raid took place on Cardin's farm near Mexico, Kentucky . On April 9, 1908, Lyon County Night Riders crossed the Tennessee on the Birmingham Ferry, and rode into the small African-American section of the Marshall County river town of Birmingham, KY. The Night Riders fired gunshots into every home there as

4680-445: The union, And the signature this "Men who ride." Now, Old Knotty has long been a landmark, Not noted for beauty 'tis true, But a study and silent old fellow And of secrets he's heard quite a few. Wiley words of the smooth politician, Merry laughter of children at play. Whispered wooing of lovers by moonlight, All of these he has heard in his day, The patient ox, the tired horses in summer How they long for his shade by

4752-419: The young plants with grass seed. Amoss ordered his men to burn or otherwise destroy the property of growers, and whip them and other persons who refused to cooperate with them in their fight against the Trust. According to local accounts, on December 1, 1906, small groups of Night Riders drifted during the day into Princeton, Kentucky , the seat of Caldwell County . At an appointed time some raided and occupied

4824-457: Was an ambitious businessman and planter who quickly learned that profit was maximized buying and selling tobacco, not producing it. In 1879, the W. Duke Sons and Company was established as a tobacco manufacturer and began producing cigarettes. Two years later, the commercial cigarette-rolling machine was invented by James Bonsack . Duke quickly rented two of these machines, allowing his company to produce 400 cigarettes per minute. In 1884, he struck

4896-450: Was arrested and taken to another town for protection. His friends and Masonic lodge brothers, Riley and the three Jones, were arrested for allegedly having expressed approval of Browder's actions, as well as discontent with their employers. The Night Riders are believed to have taken the four men from the jail and hanged them all from the same tree. They pinned a racist warning to the clothing of one man. On February 4, 1908, Crittenden County

4968-568: Was dragged from his home and beaten. The Night Riders took complete control of the city. The largest group first burned the Latham warehouse near the Rail Depot, then the Tandy and Fairleigh warehouse a few blocks away. The fires burned out of control, igniting several residences and the PPA warehouse. J.C. Felts, a brakeman working for the railroad, was shot in the back with 35 pellets of buckshot (but survived

5040-501: Was implemented in a way that resulted in years of unrest and violence. The PPA gained instant popularity throughout the region, among both farmers and businessmen. For those who were indifferent about the Association, a boycott of their businesses was generally enough to convince them to join. The number of members soared as farmers anticipated an immediate resolution to their problem, and included judges, prosecutors and law enforcement officials. However, some farmers refused to join. When

5112-589: Was one of the original 12 members of the Dow Jones Industrial Average in 1896. The American Tobacco Company dominated the industry by acquiring the Lucky Strike Company and over 200 other rival firms. Federal Antitrust action begun in 1907 broke the company into several major companies in 1911. The American Tobacco Company restructured itself in 1969, forming a holding company called American Brands, Inc. , which operated American Tobacco as

5184-411: Was raided for the first time. Night Riders took over the small village of Dycusburg, Kentucky , burning the tobacco warehouse and distillery of Bennett Brothers. During the raid they took W. B. Groves from his home and severely whipped him because he refused to join the Association. They also seized Henry Bennett, and after binding him to a tree, they whipped him with the branches of a thorn tree. During

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