Lynching of Matthew Williams

Williams and his older sister, Olivia, were then sent to live with their maternal grandmother, Mary Handy, in Salisbury, Maryland.

He then took a job at the Elliot Box and Crate Factory and was known for keeping to himself and earning an impressive amount of money for a black laborer at the time.

Professor and civil rights lawyer Sherrilyn Ifill wrote in her book, On the Courthouse Lawn, that Matthew Williams was reported to have $56 in savings at the time of his death.

[3] However, the 1970s biography of Dorchester County waterman Joseph L. Sutton recounts a different story, stating that others claimed the culprit was his son, James Elliot.

[3] The book includes significant discussion of the lynching of Matthew Williams and the responses of residents and institutions in Salisbury, Maryland.

[5]/ In conducting her research, Ifill gained substantial insight into not only the history of lynchings but also their enduring impact on communities on the Eastern Shore.