Henry Simmons - June 7, 1923

Henry Simmons was taken from a boarding house shortly after 2:00am in West Palm Beach.

Henry Simmons' body was found hanging from a tree at the intersection of North County Road and Barton Ave. in the Town of Palm Beach.

Henry Simmons' body is buried in Hawthorne, FL.

Samuel Nelson - September 26, 1926

Samuel Nelson was reportedly taken from the Delray Beach Jail. The jail location in 1926 was at the corner of Aitken and Lowry, one block east of the FEC railway line. The current configuration of the site where the old Delray Town Hall, which included the jail, was located. It's on the west side of 5th Ave. SE. The location has been identified specifically 14 SE 5th Ave. There is no business currently associated with the address 14 SE 5th Ave.

Samuel Nelson's "bullet-riddled body was found on the bank of a canal west of Military Trail." Through research, this is believed to be the E-3 canal in the vicinity of Atlantic Ave. and Sims Rd, just west of Military Trail.

Historical Markers Planned

When complete, the historical markers will tell the story of the racial terrorism lynchings of Henry Simmons and Samuel Nelson. The images below are examples of historical marker projects held previously at locations outside Palm Beach County.

Example of historic marker community remembrance project installed in Tuscaloosa, Alabama working with EJI.

For more information: https://eji.org/projects/community-remembrance-project/