| Eutaw riot | |
|---|---|
| Part of Reconstruction Era | |
| Location | Eutaw, Alabama, U.S. |
| Date | October 25, 1870 |
| Target | Black civilians and Republicans |
Attack type | Riot |
| Deaths | 2-4 |
| Injured | 54 |
| Perpetrators | Ku Klux Klan and supporters |
| Motive | Voter intimidation |
The Eutaw riot was an episode of white racial violence in Eutaw, Alabama, the county seat of Greene County, on October 25, 1870,[1][2] during the Reconstruction Era in the United States. It was related to an extended period of campaign violence before the fall gubernatorial election, as white Democrats in the state used racial terrorism to suppress black Republican voting. White Klan members attacked a Republican rally of 2,000 black citizens in the courthouse square, killing as many as four and wounding 54.
Black Republicans feared for their safety, staying away from the polls or voting Democratic. The Democratic Party won the 1870 gubernatorial election, as similar intimidation was conducted against blacks in other heavily majority Republican counties.