Samuel Snow, black WW2 soldier wrongly convicted of lynching, dies after overdue honorable discharge

July 28, 11:38 AMSeattle History ExaminerBenjamin Lukoff

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Samuel Snow, 1944

It may come as a surprise to you, but yes, there have been numerous lynchings in Washington. The last one took place on August 14, 1944 at Seattle's Fort Lawton, most of which is now Discovery Park (and part of which is involved in a development controversy). Twenty-eight black soldiers were convicted of involvement in the riot, which resulted in the death of Italian POW Guglielmo Olivotto. As the Seattle P-I reports, "Wanting a quick end to the largest court-martial of World War II, Army prosecutor Leon Jaworski... didn't disclose evidence that likely would have cleared Snow and the others." Late last year, their convictions were finally overturned.

Early yesterday morning, Samuel Snow, one of the four soldiers who had petitioned the Army for a reversal, died at Virginia Mason in Seattle, hours after finally receiving his honorable discharge, attending a dinner at the Northwest African American Museum, and receiving a formal apology at Discovery Park from Ronald James, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Manpower and Reserve Affairs.