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Solved case · 1922
The short answer
Charles Atkins, a 15-year-old African-American boy, was tortured and lynched by a mob of about 2,000 people in Davisboro, Georgia, on May 18, 1922, after being accused of killing rural mail carrier Elizabeth "Billy" Kitchens.
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Suggest coverage for Lynching of Charles AtkinsThe case file
On May 18, 1922, Elizabeth "Billy" Kitchens, a 24-year-old rural mail carrier, was killed while driving her car about 4 miles from Davisboro, Washington County, Georgia. Someone forced their way into her vehicle, placed a shotgun against her head, and fired, killing her instantly. Her body was then dragged approximately 50 yards away. A local farmer, Sid Lewis, found her body roughly 30 minutes after the shooting and reported it to Sheriff English in Sandersville, Georgia.
A mob of approximately 2,000 people subsequently found Charles Atkins, a 15-year-old African-American boy, in Kitchens's car. Around 6:00 PM on May 18, 1922, the mob tortured Atkins with fire until he confessed to killing Kitchens for her automobile. Atkins then implicated another boy, John Henry Tarver. The mob hanged Atkins, and his body, already burned, was reportedly shot more than 200 times.
Following the lynching, hundreds of cars swarmed the county searching for Tarver and another Black individual, George Clark, who had reportedly been seen with Tarver. A grand jury later indicted several people for complicity in Kitchens's murder: J. B. Miller, John Henry Tarver, and three of Charlie Atkins's family members — his father Gainer Atkins, his stepmother Ella Atkins, and his mother Sim Atkins. Gainer Atkins was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. He was granted a retrial by the Supreme Court of Georgia in 1923.
According to the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, this lynching was recorded as the 25th of 61 lynchings documented in the United States during 1922.
5 dated entries · 1922–1926
Elizabeth "Billy" Kitchens, a rural mail carrier, is shot and killed near Davisboro, Washington County, Georgia.
A mob of approximately 2,000 people finds Charles Atkins in Kitchens's car; around 6:00 PM he is tortured with fire until he confesses, then hanged and his body shot over 200 times.
Contemporaneous newspaper coverage of the lynching is published, including in the New York Times.
The Supreme Court of Georgia grants Gainer Atkins, who had been convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison, a retrial.
The lynching is referenced in United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary hearings on anti-lynching legislation, which recorded it as the 25th of 61 lynchings in 1922.
7 named in this file
Victims first. Every legal label is set from public records and court outcomes, not from the prose.
15-year-old African-American boy tortured and lynched by a mob on May 18, 1922, after being accused in the killing of Elizabeth Kitchens.[3]
24-year-old rural mail carrier shot and killed near Davisboro, Georgia, on May 18, 1922.[3]
Father of Charles Atkins; indicted for complicity in the murder of Elizabeth Kitchens, convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison, later granted a retrial by the Supreme Court of Georgia in 1923.[3]
Stepmother of Charles Atkins; indicted by a grand jury for complicity in the murder of Elizabeth Kitchens.[3]
Indicted by a grand jury for complicity in the murder of Elizabeth Kitchens.[3]
Boy implicated by Charles Atkins during his forced confession; later indicted by a grand jury for complicity in the murder of Elizabeth Kitchens.[3]
Mother of Charles Atkins; indicted by a grand jury for complicity in the murder of Elizabeth Kitchens.[3]
From the record
3 cited
Coverage is not a source: every fact in this file rests on the records below.
Official / agencychroniclingamerica.loc.govAccessed Jul 7, 2026
PressThe New York TimesAccessed Jul 7, 2026
EncyclopedicWikipediaAccessed Jul 7, 2026
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