1906: The Atlanta Race Massacre | National Center for Civil and Human Rights Education Portal

Step Into the History of 1906

Witness the legacy of 1906 through our award‑winning AR experience and documentary. Visit our museum and learn what led up to the events of 1906 in our new exhibition, Broken Promises: The Legacy of the Reconstruction Era.

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1906 Atlanta - Augmented Reality App

An augmented reality piece that tells the true story of the terrible events of September 1906 in Atlanta.
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(re)Defining History: Uncovering the 1906 Atlanta Race Massacre
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Broken Promises: The Legacy of the Reconstruction Era

Broken Promises asks a difficult question: What happens when a nation breaks its promises? This immersive gallery explores an often-overlooked chapter in American history—the Reconstruction Era—when the hope of freedom after the Civil War gave way to violence, voter suppression, and systemic injustice.

Teach Students More with Ready-to-Use Lesson Plans

The following lesson plans focus on the facts, impact, aftermath, and memorialization of the events of 1906.

Lesson Plan

What Happened in 1906? Examining Atlanta’s Turbulent and Resilient Past

In this lesson, students will be introduced to the series of events that occurred over four days in Atlanta, Georgia in 1906 that came to be known as the Atlanta Race Massacre.
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Setting the Stage: What Caused the Atlanta Race Massacre?
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Interacting with Personal Stories and Firsthand Narratives

This lesson engages students with personal stories and firsthand narratives to foster empathy and a deeper understanding of the historical events of the 1906 Atlanta Race Massacre through primary sources.
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A Commitment to Memory: Remembering the People and Events of 1906

This lesson allows students to explore why it is important to commemorate historical events and creatively develop ways to memorialize the 1906 Atlanta Race Massacre.

Explores the Sources Connected to the Events and Aftermath

Already have a lesson on 1906 that you want to enhance with additional primary and secondary sources? Start here.

Primary Source

Meeting of Citizens to Suppress Crime,” The Atlanta Constitution, September 1, 1906
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“Reasons Why Hoke Smith Should Not Be Elected,” The Atlanta Constitution, August 5, 1906
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Front Cover, Le Petit Journal, “Les Lynchages Aux États-Unis: Massacre dè negres á Atlanta (Georgie),” October 7, 1906
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Front Page, The Atlanta Georgian, Morning Edition, September 22, 1906
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Front Page, The Atlanta Constitution, “Peace in Atlanta till Night Brought Blood in Suburbs”
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Front Page, The Atlanta Constitution, “Atlanta is Swept by Raging Mob due to Assaults on White Women: 16 Negroes Reported to be Dead”
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“Georgia State Militia halted on Marietta Street near Peachtree Street in the aftermath of a race riot in Atlanta, Georgia,” Photograph
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Advertising Section of The Voice of the Negro from August, 1906
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Du Bois and the 1906 Race Riot
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The 1906 Atlanta Race Massacre Victims
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“Won Over Combined Forces of Political 'Ins' and Hirelings of Public Corporations,” The Atlanta Journal, August 26, 1906
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The Atlanta Georgian, Morning Edition, September 22, 1906
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Georgia National Guard Orders and Report Regarding the Atlanta Race Riot, 1906

Go Beyond 1906

Explore the resources below to make connections with other eras and events.

Primary Source

"Race War in Wilmington"

Article from a Rochester, New York newspaper about the events in Wilmington, November 11, 1898.
Lesson Plan

Voices of Change: Washington, Du Bois, and the Fight for Black American Progress

Explore the ideological debates between Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois then lead students in a debate of their own.
Secondary Source

Wilmington Massacre and Coup d’état of 1898 Story Map

Interactive story map with timeline and historical info about the events at Wilmington. Source: Dr. Jan Davidson, Cape Fear Museum of History and Science.
Primary Source

W.E.B. Du Bois and the Niagara Movement Founders
Lesson Plan

The Political Flip: Voter Changes in Georgia and Beyond

This lesson takes students on a journey to understand why many Black Americans flipped from loyal Republican voters during Reconstruction to hopeful Democrat voters during the Civil Rights Era of the 1960s.