The Lynching of Joseph McCoy, April 23, 1897
On the evening of April 22, 1897, 19-year-old Alexandrian Joseph McCoy was arrested without a warrant, dragged from his cell by a mob, and brutally lynched at the southeast corner of Cameron and Lee Streets. The full account of this hate crime was methodically researched in 2020 by the 13-member Research Committee of the Alexandria Community Remembrance Project.
In Memoriam
In Memoriam pages commemorate Joseph McCoy on the anniversary of his lynching.
Joseph H. McCoy
April 23, 1897
Lynched on a lamppost at Lee and Cameron Streets
Lynchings in Alexandria
Between 1877 and 1950, 99 Virginians, including at least 11 in Northern Virginia, were lynched. The lynchings were among 6.500 reported nationwide during the same period. Lynching was not a federal offense until March 29, 2022.
In Alexandria, there is documentation of the lynching of two individuals, Joseph McCoy and Benjamin Thomas. See below for narratives of the lynchings. The City of Alexandria wishes to thank the members of the Research Committee for their more than 3,000 hours of work on the narratives.
The City of Alexandria is committed to the accurate dissemination of its history. The lynchings are recognized as a terrible chapter in Alexandria’s past. To fight injustice and keep the memory of Alexandria’s lynching victims alive, you are invited to participate in the Alexandria Community Remembrance Project.
Give to the McCoy & Thomas Memorial Scholarships
ACRP has established two scholarships to recognize and remember this City’s known lynching victims: Joseph McCoy (1897) and Benjamin Thomas (1899). We have partnered with the Scholarship Fund of Alexandria to provide a $3000 scholarship to two Alexandria City High School students in 2024. Make a donation to memorialize McCoy and Thomas for the future generations.
In the News
2026
Confronting a Lynching on Cameron Street
Evening of Remembrance Honors Joseph McCoy and Calls the Community to Truth, Accountability, and Continued Reflection.
Mary Wadland, The Zebra, May 2026.
2024
'Hanged by a Mob.' City marks 127th anniversary of McCoy lynching
Jeanne Theismann, Alexandria Gazette Packet, April 24, 2024.
We appreciate the Alexandria Gazette's report on the McCoy Remembrance events, but would like to clarify that Annie Lacy, was eight not nine years-old, when it was alleged Joseph McCoy assaulted her; and at the Remembrance Ceremony on April 23, 2024, Kim Young spoke on behalf of Rev. Franklin of Roberts Memorial United Methodist Church.
Stepping up by stepping into the past
Out of the Attic, Alexandria Times, April 18, 2024.
2023
The lynching of Joseph McCoy
Out of the Attic, Alexandria Times, April 20, 2023.
2022
Joseph McCoy, Alexandria Community Remembrance Project
Alexandria Times, April 21, 2022
Commemorating the lynching of Joseph McCoy.
Alexandria Times, April 21, 2022.
This year's McCoy remembrance
Editorial by Audrey P. Davis, Director, Alexandria Black History Museum, Alexandria Times, May 12, 2022, pp. 19-20.
Lynching of McCoy Condoned By Alexandrians
Tiffany Pache, Out of the Attic, The Alexandria Times, April 21, 2022.
125th Anniversary of Lynching of Joseph McCoy Alexandria Gazette Packet, April 21, 2022.
2021
Joseph McCoy: Lynched in Alexandria, April 23, 1897
Op-Ed by Audrey P. Davis, Director, Alexandria Black History Museum
Alexandria Gazette, April 22, 2021, page 6.
Commemorative Broadside
Alexandria Times, April 22, 2021, page 28.
2020
The Anniversary of the Lynching of Joseph McCoy
Opinion piece by Audrey Davis, Director, Alexandria Black History Museum
Published in the Alexandria Gazette Packet, April 23-29, 2020, page 6.
Joseph McCoy was lynched by a mob in 1897. At a virtual remembrance, officials vowed not to forget.
Retropolis, by Michael E. Ruane. The Washington Post, April 24, 2020, page B4.