Joe Pullum

Joe Pullum was born around 1883 in the racially segregated Southern United States, likely in Mississippi, during the height of the Jim Crow era. He was an African-American sharecropper in the Mississippi Delta region, working under a system that heavily favored white landowners and often kept Black tenant farmers in cycles of debt and poverty. Pullum lived and worked near Drew, Mississippi, an area with a long-standing history of racial tension and violence against African-Americans, particularly during the economically and socially strained post–World War I period.

Little is recorded about Pullum’s personal life, but like many Black sharecroppers of the time, he likely lived under constant threat of economic exploitation and racial violence. The process of "settling up" — the annual accounting between landlords and tenants after the harvest — was a frequent flashpoint for conflict, especially in December, when disputes over unpaid wages or inflated debts often occurred. In this environment, tensions could escalate quickly and fatally. Pullum’s conflict with his landlord was one of many such disputes, but unlike most, his response would leave a lasting impression on both the local Black community and national observers.

On December 14, 1923, Joe Pullum was involved in a deadly altercation with his landlord, W. T. Saunders, reportedly over a financial dispute related to unpaid wages or an unfair debt assessment. Sources differ on who initiated the violence, but the outcome is consistent: Pullum shot and killed Saunders, allegedly with a .38-caliber revolver, after Saunders confronted him over a $50 debt during the settlement period.

After the shooting, Pullum retrieved additional firearms — including a shotgun — and fled into the nearby swamps east of the plantation, taking with him an estimated 75 rounds of ammunition. A large posse, estimated between 100 and 1,000 white citizens, quickly formed to track him down. Members of the group included local law enforcement and civilians, some equipped with automatic rifles and a Browning machine gun transported from Clarksdale, Mississippi.

Throughout the day and into the night of December 14, Pullum successfully evaded capture and engaged in multiple armed confrontations with members of the posse. He entrenched himself in a drainage ditch or hollow tree in Powers Bayou and used his knowledge of the terrain and sharpshooting skills to ambush his pursuers. Reports from contemporary newspapers and oral histories indicate he shot numerous posse members. While exact figures vary, two white men — R. L. Methevin and William J. Hess — were confirmed dead at the scene. Several others, including J. L. “Bud” Doggett and A. L. Manning, sustained serious gunshot wounds. Manning later died from his injuries on December 16, 1923.

The standoff continued into the early morning hours of December 15. Unable to dislodge Pullum from his hiding place through gunfire alone, members of the posse resorted to using gasoline. They reportedly poured several gallons into the ditch and set it on fire. As Pullum attempted to flee the flames, he was struck multiple times by gunfire from the machine gun. Severely wounded but still alive, he was captured by the mob, tied to a vehicle, and dragged back into the town of Drew.

Pullum's body was desecrated — his ear was severed and reportedly preserved in alcohol, later displayed in a storefront window in Drew. This brutal post-mortem display served as a warning to other Black residents in the region. Some accounts, particularly those preserved by local African-American oral histories and later researchers, claim that Pullum killed up to 13 men and wounded 26, though white press sources of the time generally reported lower figures — typically two or three killed and fewer than a dozen wounded.

The violent aftermath had immediate repercussions for the local Black community. Curfews were more stringently enforced in Drew and nearby towns, and in one 1924 incident, a sheriff was reported to have killed multiple Black residents for violating nighttime curfew rules. Many African-Americans fled the region, seeking safety and opportunity in the North, part of the ongoing Great Migration.

Despite his death, Joe Pullum became a symbol of armed resistance against lynching and racial violence. The Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), led by Marcus Garvey, hailed him as a hero. Their newspaper proclaimed he "should have a monument," positioning him as a martyr and an example of self-defense in the face of racial terror. Civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer, who was eight years old at the time of the incident, later recalled Pullum’s actions and the widespread impact they had on the Black community’s collective memory in Mississippi.