The Story Behind This Evil Place In Mississippi Will Make Your Blood Turn Cold
By Daniella DiRienzo|Published August 15, 2017
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Daniella DiRienzo
Author
Though Daniella was born in New York and has lived in a couple of other states, Mississippi has been her home for more than 30 years. After graduating from the University of Southern Mississippi, Daniella began to hone her writing skills through various internships. In the years since, she’s had the privilege of having her articles appear in several publications, such as the Mississippi-based Parents & Kids Magazine. She’s also had the honor of interviewing actress Sela Ward for The Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience.
Of all the historic sites in Mississippi, Bryant’s Grocery is perhaps the most infamous. During the summer of 1955, a series of events unfolded, which led to the small town grocery store becoming synonymous with one of the most horrific murders in the nation’s history. Even though it’s been decades since the shocking crime took place, the site’s evil history remains.
Located in the small town of Money, MS, Bryant’s Grocery has been abandoned for decades and is in a severe state of disrepair. Though it’s hard to imagine by the looks of it now, the building once housed a successful grocery store.
The store’s success came to a halt in 1955, after the store owners, the Bryants, were involved in the murder of Emmett Till, an African-American teenager from Chicago. While the 14 year-old was visiting family in Money, he stopped by the store.
The store’s owner Carolyn Bryant was working behind the counter on that day in August 1955, and she later claimed that Emmett "grabbed her, made lewd advances, and then wolf whistled at her" as he walked out. (In later interviews, Carolyn Bryant admitted that the allegations she made against Emmett were lies.)
Roy Bryant, Carolyn’s husband, was out of town at the time of the incident. However, when he returned home a few days later, his wife told him of her run-in with Emmett. Enraged, he and his brother-in-law, J.W. Milam, went to the home of Emmett’s uncle, Mose Wright, and demanded to see the teen. Despite pleas from Mose, the men took Emmett. Sadly, this was the last time he was seen alive.
Several days later, authorities recovered the corpse of Emmett Till, but he was so disfigured from being beaten that his uncle was only able to identify him by an initial ring he was wearing. Though authorities wanted to quickly and quietly bury the body, Till’s mother, Mamie Bradley, had another plan.
The mourning mother refused to let her son die in vain, and instead, chose to have an open casket so the world could see what happened to her son. Countless publications, including Jet and Time, documented the bold move.
Less than two weeks after Emmett's funeral, his accused murderers went to trial in Sumner, MS. Despite overwhelming evidence, a positive identification of the murderers, and a confession to kidnapping, Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam were found not guilty. The jury’s reasoning was that "the state had failed to prove the identity of the body."
People all across the country were outraged by the verdict, especially since the men weren’t indicted with the lesser charge of kidnapping – something they openly admitted to. The utter brutality of the murder brought to light the issues associated with segregation in the South.
Just as Emmett’s mother hoped, her son didn’t die inconspicuously. His murder is credited with inspiring Rosa Parks to not give up her seat on that bus and ultimately galvanizing the Civil Rights Movement.
Watch the video below for more on Emmett Till and how his horrific murder forever changed the country.
The first marker of the Mississippi Freedom Trail now sits outside of Bryant’s Grocery. Click here for more information.
