Photos from the 1919 Race Riot
Content warning: the gallery below contains some images depicting acts of violence during the 1919 race riot.
A large crowd of people assembled at the 29th Street beach after Eugene Williams was stoned by a group of white men, Chicago, Illinois, July 27, 1919. (Chicago History Museum, ICHi-30315) Crowd in front of a storefront with the sign Bank Real Estate during the race riots in Chicago, Illinois, 1919. (Jun Fujita/Chicago History Museum, ICHi-065481) Rioters with bricks and stones in pursuit of an African-American man during the riots in 1919. (Jun Fujita/Chicago History Museum, ICHi-65493) A horde of young boys run to the corner where a young black man was being beaten during Chicago’s race riots of 1919. White youngsters drove out African-American residents by stoning their homes during the race riots. (Jun Fujita/Chicago Tribune historical photo, ICHi-31915) White men stoning an African American man during the 1919 Chicago Race Riots, Chicago, Illinois. (Jun Fujita/Chicago History Museum, ICHi-022430) Policeman examining victim of the race riots in Chicago, Illinois, 1919. (Jun Fujita/Chicago History Museum, ICHi-065494) The Color Line Has Reached the North, Chicago Tribune, July 28, 1919. Cartoon on front page by John T. McCutcheon. The state militia was mobilized in Chicago at the height of the 1919 race riot. (Chicago Tribune historical photo) Row of armed National Guard sitting in front of a storefront during the race riots in Chicago, Illinois, 1919. Armed National Guard and African American men standing on a sidewalk during the race riots in Chicago, Illinois, 1919. (Jun Fujita/Chicago History Museum) During the 1919 riot, African American veterans defended their communities from attacks by whites, while the state militia was called in to quell violence. (Chicago Tribune historical photo) Two armed National Guards lying in the grass between a building and a sidewalk during the race riots in Chicago, Illinois, 1919. (Jun Fujita/Chicago History Museum) Crowd of men and armed National Guard in front of the Ogden Cafe during the race riots in Chicago, Illinois, 1919. (Jun Fujita/Chicago History Museum) People gathered in the yard and street in front of destroyed three-story house owned by African Americans during 1919 race riots, Chicago, Illinois. Armed National Guard standing outside apartments during the race riots in Chicago, Illinois, 1919. Crowd around a house which has been vandalized and looted during the race riots in Chicago, Illinois, 1919. Some of the crowd is posing inside broken windows, others are standing on the lawn.
Many of the surviving photographs from the 1919 Race Riot were taken by Japanese photographer and poet Junnosuke “Jun” Fujita. His negatives were donated to and digitized by the Chicago History Museum. More of Jun Fujita’s work can be found on the Instagram account @fujitabehindthecamera . You can read about his life as a photojournalist in Chicago here .