Louis Till
Encyclopedia
Louis Till was an American soldier and the father of Emmett Louis Till
, whose murder in 1955 at the age of fourteen galvanized the African-American civil rights movement. Louis Till was executed by the U.S. Army
in 1945 after being found guilty of murder and rape. The circumstances of his death were little known even to his family until they were revealed after the trial of his son's murderers ten years later, which affected subsequent discourse on the death of Emmett Till.
, Missouri
. He married Mamie Carthan
in Argo, Illinois
in 1940, and she gave birth to their son, Emmett
on July 25, 1941. They separated in 1942, after he attacked her violently and she defended herself by throwing boiling water on him. Eventually Mamie obtained a restraining order
against him; after violating this repeatedly, a judge forced him to choose between enlistment in the U.S. Army or facing jail time. Choosing the former, he joined the Army in 1943.
In 1945, Till was court-martial
ed on charges of the murder of an Italian woman and the rape of two others in Civitavecchia
. After a lengthy investigation he was convicted, and was executed by hanging
near Pisa
on July 2. He is buried in Grave 73, Row 4 of Plot E in Oise-Aisne American Cemetery. A fellow prisoner of the poet Ezra Pound
, who had been imprisoned for his fascist radio broadcasts in support of the Axis powers, Till is mentioned in lines 171-173 of Canto 74 of Pound's Pisan Cantos:
The full circumstances of Till's death were unknown at the time to his widow. Mamie Till would later say that she was only told her husband's death was due to "willful misconduct", and noted that bureaucracy had frustrated her attempts to learn anything more. The details of Louis Till's execution only fully emerged ten years later, after the murder of his son and subsequent trial.
Emmett Till, then fourteen, was kidnapped and murdered on August 28, 1955 in Mississippi
, after reportedly flirting with a white woman. The two men charged with the murder, the woman's husband and his half-brother, were acquitted of the crime in September of that year. After the trial, which received much attention from the national media, Mississippi senators James Eastland
and John C. Stennis
uncovered details about Louis Till's crimes and execution and released them to reporters. The Southern media immediately leaped upon the story: various editorials claimed that the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP) and the Northern media had covered up or lied about the truth of Emmett Till's father. Many of these editorials specifically attacked a short editorial that had appeared in Life
magazine, which presented Louis Till as having died fighting for his country in France. This article was in fact the only published piece that ever lionized the elder Till, and Life quickly retracted the error. For white Southerners, however, the impression was left that the erroneous Life article was representative of the Northern media in general. Other editorials went so far as to associate Emmett Till's actions with his father's crimes. These editorials essentially portrayed Emmett as a burgeoning rapist after the fashion of his father, thereby making his murder justified.
Emmett Till
Emmett Louis "Bobo" Till was an African-American boy who was murdered in Mississippi at the age of 14 after reportedly flirting with a white woman. Till was from Chicago, Illinois visiting his relatives in the Mississippi Delta region when he spoke to 21-year-old Carolyn Bryant, the married...
, whose murder in 1955 at the age of fourteen galvanized the African-American civil rights movement. Louis Till was executed by the U.S. Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
in 1945 after being found guilty of murder and rape. The circumstances of his death were little known even to his family until they were revealed after the trial of his son's murderers ten years later, which affected subsequent discourse on the death of Emmett Till.
Life
Louis Till grew up an orphan in New MadridNew Madrid, Missouri
New Madrid is a city in New Madrid County, Missouri, 42 miles south by west of Cairo, Illinois, on the Mississippi River. New Madrid was founded in 1788 by American frontiersmen. In 1900, 1,489 people lived in New Madrid, Missouri; in 1910, the population was 1,882. The population was 3,334 at...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
. He married Mamie Carthan
Mamie Till
Mamie Elizabeth Carthan Till Bradley Mobley was the mother of Emmett Till, whose murder mobilized the civil rights movement....
in Argo, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
in 1940, and she gave birth to their son, Emmett
Emmett Till
Emmett Louis "Bobo" Till was an African-American boy who was murdered in Mississippi at the age of 14 after reportedly flirting with a white woman. Till was from Chicago, Illinois visiting his relatives in the Mississippi Delta region when he spoke to 21-year-old Carolyn Bryant, the married...
on July 25, 1941. They separated in 1942, after he attacked her violently and she defended herself by throwing boiling water on him. Eventually Mamie obtained a restraining order
Restraining order
A restraining order or order of protection is a form of legal injunction that requires a party to do, or to refrain from doing, certain acts. A party that refuses to comply with an order faces criminal or civil penalties and may have to pay damages or accept sanctions...
against him; after violating this repeatedly, a judge forced him to choose between enlistment in the U.S. Army or facing jail time. Choosing the former, he joined the Army in 1943.
In 1945, Till was court-martial
Court-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
ed on charges of the murder of an Italian woman and the rape of two others in Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia is a town and comune of the province of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located 80 kilometers west-north-west of Rome, across the Mignone river. The harbor is formed by two piers and a breakwater, on which is a lighthouse...
. After a lengthy investigation he was convicted, and was executed by hanging
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
near Pisa
Pisa
Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...
on July 2. He is buried in Grave 73, Row 4 of Plot E in Oise-Aisne American Cemetery. A fellow prisoner of the poet Ezra Pound
Ezra Pound
Ezra Weston Loomis Pound was an American expatriate poet and critic and a major figure in the early modernist movement in poetry...
, who had been imprisoned for his fascist radio broadcasts in support of the Axis powers, Till is mentioned in lines 171-173 of Canto 74 of Pound's Pisan Cantos:
- Till was hung yesterday
- for murder and rape with trimmings
The full circumstances of Till's death were unknown at the time to his widow. Mamie Till would later say that she was only told her husband's death was due to "willful misconduct", and noted that bureaucracy had frustrated her attempts to learn anything more. The details of Louis Till's execution only fully emerged ten years later, after the murder of his son and subsequent trial.
Emmett Till, then fourteen, was kidnapped and murdered on August 28, 1955 in Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, after reportedly flirting with a white woman. The two men charged with the murder, the woman's husband and his half-brother, were acquitted of the crime in September of that year. After the trial, which received much attention from the national media, Mississippi senators James Eastland
James Eastland
James Oliver Eastland was an American politician from Mississippi who briefly served in the United States Senate as a Democrat in 1941; and again from 1943 until his resignation December 27, 1978. From 1947 to 1978, he served alongside John Stennis, also a Democrat...
and John C. Stennis
John C. Stennis
John Cornelius Stennis was a U.S. Senator from the state of Mississippi. He was a Democrat who served in the Senate for over 41 years, becoming its most senior member by his retirement.- Early life :...
uncovered details about Louis Till's crimes and execution and released them to reporters. The Southern media immediately leaped upon the story: various editorials claimed that the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, usually abbreviated as NAACP, is an African-American civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909. Its mission is "to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to...
(NAACP) and the Northern media had covered up or lied about the truth of Emmett Till's father. Many of these editorials specifically attacked a short editorial that had appeared in Life
Life (magazine)
Life generally refers to three American magazines:*A humor and general interest magazine published from 1883 to 1936. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 solely so that he could acquire the rights to its name....
magazine, which presented Louis Till as having died fighting for his country in France. This article was in fact the only published piece that ever lionized the elder Till, and Life quickly retracted the error. For white Southerners, however, the impression was left that the erroneous Life article was representative of the Northern media in general. Other editorials went so far as to associate Emmett Till's actions with his father's crimes. These editorials essentially portrayed Emmett as a burgeoning rapist after the fashion of his father, thereby making his murder justified.