31 May 1917. The New York Times

Non-fiction

Project 1917 is a series of events that took place a hundred years ago as described by those involved. It is composed only of diaries, letters, memoirs, newspapers and other documents

The New York Times

Two hundred negroes from Harlem's colored colony near 135th Street and Lenox Avenue, fought yesterday with reserves from the West 135th Street Police Station to prevent the arrest of a negro who had attacked a policeman with a razor in attempting to resist arrest.

Two policemen and three negroes were seriously injured, while at least thirty of the negroes, who escaped arrest, when the policemen made a mass attack, were wounded by the sticks of the police.

James Mohan, a policeman who was off duty, was passing the saloon when he heard cries for help coming from within. He had his three-year-old son with him but entered the place and put the child in a corner before he sought to find the source of the trouble. He found a negro who gave his name as Walter Clark of 71 West 137th Street, protesting to the owner of the place about the price of the liquor, and threatening the to kill employes of the saloon. When the policeman told the negro to give up his weapon Clark suddenly replied that his gang would not permit the whole police force to take his razor from him. He seized Mohan and sought to throw him to the floor, drawing a razor at the same time. The negro cut Mohan on the face and neck and almost severed the fingers of his right hand. Edward Ronde of 241 West 45th Street, owner of the place, took up Mohan’s child, who begin to cry, and ran with the child to the 135th Street station.

When reserves from the station arrived in an automobile they found that more than two hundred negroes had followed Mohan and Clark to the end of the block and were trying to take the policeman’s prisoner from him. Negroes were coming to the fight from all directions, while policemen on nearly posts rushed up at the sound of the whistle.

Beginning in a saloon at Lenox Avenue and 137 Street, the fight was waged back and forth in the block between Seventh and Lenox Avenues with varying success as negroes and policemen arrived to join the fight.

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