Henry D. Marrow Junior, called Dickie by his friends and family, was 23 when he was murdered in Oxford, North Carolina on March 11th, 1970, the victim of a violent "hate crime". Henry Marrow's three killers were all deemed "not guilty". This verdict spurred a black rebellion in the county and influenced events across the country.

Biography

Henry Marrow was born to Henry D. Marrow Senior and Ivey Hunt Marrow around 1947. His parents were split up early on and when Marrow Senior died in a violent quarrel, Ivey was left to provide for her son. Marrow Junior lived with his mother's parents in Oxford for his childhood while she was working in New Jersey. Henry eventually moved in with the Chavis family during his adolescence while he attended Mary Potter High School. After graduation, Henry attended Kittrell College for about a year but soon returned to the Chavis house. Marrow Junior was good friends with Jiummy and William Chavis, all three of them being aproximatly the same age.

At the age of 19, Henry D. Marrow Junior joined the military and was stationed in Fort Bragg of the same state. However, Henry did not like army life much and snuck home often, a three hour trip, sometimes to see one Willie Mae Sidney. Henry was subsequently decommissioned, living back in Oxford, employed at Umstead Hospital in Butner and married to Ms. Sidney.

Willie Mae Marrow proceded to give birth to two girls Tammy and Tasha and was carrying a third child when her husband was killed. Mr. Marrow was 5'9", and 140 lbs. at the time of his death.

The Murder

Though the details of the story remain uncertain, Marrow seems to have been shopping at a local general store owned by the Teels when he made a passing remark to a white woman. Some say Marrow's words were flirtatous and to the woman's husband, Larry Teel, 18 at the time, they seemed so.

Larry confronted Marrow, who denied the remark was to his wife. Larry assaulted Henry with a wooden plank, for a while before Marrow managed to throw gravel at him and pull a knife out of his pocket. Meanwhile Robert Teel and his stepson Roger Oakley grabbed their guns and they soon rushed to the scene with a 12-gauge shotgun and a combo .410-gauge shotgun and .22 caliber rifle.

Seeing himself outnumbered, Henry fled, running for the highway, and the three pursuers gave chase. Robert emptied his shotgun and knocked Marrow down. The men involved reached him and pummeled Henry with the butts of their rifles, the plank, their fists and feet. The butt of the shotgun fractured Marrow's skull and broke in the process. According to the witnesses, Robert said, "Shoot the son of a bitch," and one of his sons pulled the trigger of the combo rifle and put a bullet in Henry's head.

Sources

• Tyson, Timothy. Blood Done Sign My Name. New York: Crown Publishers, 2004.
• http://indyweek.com/durham/2004-05-26/bookshelf.html