Martinsville Seven

The Martinsville Seven were a group of young Black men convicted of raping a White woman in Martinsville, Virginia. Frank Hairston, Booker Milner, Joe Henry Hampton, Howard Hairston, James Luther Hairston, John Taylor, and Francis DeSales Grayson were executed in February 1951 for the rape of 32-year-old Ruby Stroud Floyd. This was the first time the State of Virginia had executed so many men for a single rape incident, and the fact that all seven of the men were Black served as a reminder of the harsh treatment of Blacks who violated southern racial codes. This entry describes the crime committed by the Martinsville Seven as well as the subsequent trial and execution of the men.

Ruby Stroud Floyd was walking through the predominantly Black neighborhood of east Martinsville on January 8, 1949, in order to collect a debt that she was owed. Because Mrs. Floyd was unfamiliar with the area, she asked four young Black men—Frank Hairston, Booker Milner, Joe Henry Hampton, and Howard Hairston—for directions to the house that she was trying to locate. Milner directed her to the second house on the right, and Hampton commented that she “looked good enough to hug.” The other men ignored Hampton's comment, assuming that he was joking, as the group had been drinking heavily that day. A few moments later, Mrs. Floyd walked past the men again, and Hampton approached her and put his arm around her. Mrs. Floyd began running, but Hampton and the other men pursued her into a wooded area and forced her to the ground. The four men took turns holding her down while the others raped and beat her. Eventually, Mrs. Floyd managed to escape the men and tried to get help from a woman who was walking down the street, but the men dragged her back into the woods. Around 6:00 p.m., James Luther Hairston, John Taylor, and Francis DeSales Grayson came upon the group and took turns raping Mrs. Floyd. After the assault, which lasted about 2 hours, the men left Mrs. Floyd alone in the wooded area. Mrs. Floyd left the scene and went to the nearby house of Jesse and Mary Wade for help. The police were called immediately, and by late Monday morning all seven men who had participated in the attack on Mrs. Floyd were in custody and had signed written confessions.

The case went to the Henry County Grand Jury in early April 1949, and all seven men were indicted on rape charges on April 11. According to Virginia law, the penalty for rape was death. Although Blacks who raped Whites at that time typically paid for their crimes with their lives, Judge Kennon Whittle insisted that the case would be tried in such a way that it would not disrupt the harmonious relationship between Blacks and Whites in the community. The defense had requested a change of venue for the trials, but the request was denied; Hampton, the first of the seven, was tried on April 21, 1949. Later that day, an ail-White jury found Hampton guilty of rape. Over the next few days, the other six men were also tried and convicted for the rape of Mrs. Floyd. No Black man or woman sat on any of the juries for the seven men.

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