Today is Day 23 of Write With Me on YouTube. During these sessions, I’ve been picking back up on my research into the story of Peter Crosby and the Vicksburg Massacre of 1874.
Last time, I shared the Statement of Facts from the congressional investigation.
🔎 Vicksburg Massacre: What Congress Found — and Tried to Bury
First, I want to start by saying thank you to everyone who joined me for From Discord to Harmony: Charting America’s Path to Unity.
After that, I dove into the individual testimonies. I started with the Mayor of Vicksburg, Mayor Richard O’Leary,
followed by Horace Miller and Dr. Shannon.
Having already read the summary, I knew they were a lot of omissions. A skewed (lying) version of what happened. At first, I laughed. Then I got annoyed—really annoyed—because the lies piled up so fast it was hard to keep going.
Meanwhile, life was happening: panic about being out of work in the industry, trying new things, learning new skills, asking myself, what does life look like now? When the dust in my mind finally settled, I returned to Peter’s story. And I thought—why not make this research public, as I’m discovering it?
That’s how Write With Me at 5am was born. Content is king in this new world, but more than that—it forces me to stay accountable. Moving through the testimonies live and sharing discoveries in real time has been golden, especially seeing people’s reactions.
Why Testimonies Matter
The testimonies are long—hundreds of pages—but they’re the key to getting inside the heads of the people who lived it. That’s where the truth (and the lies) show themselves.
On Day 1 of Write With Me, I decided to skip ahead to the testimony of a Black witness. I was getting nothing but deceit from the white testimonies, and I wanted to hear directly from someone on the other side.
That’s when I met Andrew Owen.
Andrew Owen: A Missing Link
Andrew Owen’s testimony connected so many dots I’d been missing.
If you’ve read my bio of Peter Crosby on Enslaved.org,
Peter Crosby's Bio
First and foremost, I must apologize for not posting in quite some time. As life does, life… sometimes gets in the way. Family illnesses, work, and being conflicted about what to post for my paid subscribers. I kept tripping myself up with deeper dives to offer the paid subscribers and that would delay things for me because I would overthink things. Is …
you know I already had the broad strokes. A mob of 600 forced Crosby to resign as Sheriff. He rode horseback to someone’s home before taking the train to Jackson to see Governor Ames. But I never knew whose house he went to.
It was Andrew Owen’s.
Peter rode twelve miles on horseback to Andrew’s home. He’d already sent Tom Broadwaters ahead to warn Andrew he was coming. Crosby arrived with Judge Brown, who confirmed that Crosby’s bond was legal—even though the Tax-Payers’ League and other White Liners insisted otherwise. That bond issue was the excuse they used to drive him out of office.
From there, Crosby went to Jackson. Governor Ames told him to gather supporters to help him reclaim his office. Crosby put out a handbill in the newspaper, calling on white and Black Republicans to stand with him. That notice spread—read in churches, on the street—and terrified the white community.
Even though they had illegally forced him out, they convinced themselves the Black population was coming to destroy them.
What Really Happened
The Black men who answered Crosby’s call came to Vicksburg mostly unarmed, carrying a white flag. Some testimonies even said they expected a joyful day of speeches and celebration. Instead, they were ambushed by armed white men on horseback.
The violence spread. Other testimonies describe white men riding out to the homes of Black families and killing men there.
In Owen’s account, when the firing started, he only saw three men killed in front of him. But as I’ve read further, I’ve lost count of how many were murdered that week. It wasn’t just Monday, December 7, 1874—the killings went on for days.
I know I can’t write full storylines for every victim in my novel series. But I want to honor as many as I can.
“A Heap of Times, Twenty-Five or Thirty Guns”
Andrew had been shot during that time but in the moment, he was uncertain.
One of the most haunting exchanges in Owen’s testimony:
The chairman asked how he could not know what hurt him until some time after.
Owen replied: “A heap of times, twenty-five or thirty guns firing at a man—in the excitement he would not know whether he was hit or shot.”
That single line captures the chaos and terror of the moment.
What’s Next
In my next Substack on the Vicksburg Massacre, I’ll go over the testimony of John D. Beaird, chairman of the Tax-Payers’ League. His words are laced with voter intimidation tactics—echoes of things we still see today.
Until then, join me live:
📺 Write With Me — every morning at 5am PT on YouTube and while you’re there, subscribe to my YouTube channel so you’re notified when I upload FULL INTERVIEWS of From Discord to Harmony: Charting America’s Path to Unity.
📱 Discussion Hour — around 9am PT on TikTok during this 30-day challenge.
Hope to see you there!
In the meantime, please like, comment
and share!
Warmly,
Danita