Atlanta enters the account through the case of Leo Frank, whose prosecution and lynching connect the city to a history of antisemitism and mob violence. The city is named as the setting of the pencil factory he managed and of the events surrounding his conviction and death.

Setting and the Frank Case

Leo Frank managed an Atlanta pencil factory. On April 26, 1913, Mary Phagan, a thirteen-year-old employee, was murdered, and Frank was found guilty of the crime. The account describes the conviction as dubious and says antisemitism is believed to have played an important part in it.

Aftermath and Significance

While imprisoned, Frank was assaulted with a knife. In August 1915, local citizens forcibly removed him from jail and lynched him. The account’s association of Atlanta with the case therefore extends beyond the trial: it also encompasses the collective violence that took Frank from the custody of the jail and killed him. The stated role of antisemitism in the dubious conviction makes the case a stark instance of how prejudice and local violence intersected.