The Ferguson Brothers Lynchings on Long Island, True Crime

Name: The Ferguson Brothers Lynchings on Long Island, True Crime
Author: Christopher Verga

On February 5th, 1946, the Ferguson brothers were concluding a night out celebrating Charles Ferguson's reenlistment in the Army...

Charles, wearing his military uniform, walked with his brothers Alphonso, Joseph, and Richard towards the Freeport Bus Terminal to go home. A provisional Freeport police officer named Joseph Romeika stopped the brothers over a disorderly conduct complaint. Words were exchanged, and Officer Romeika killed Charles, Alphonso and shot Joseph within minutes of the initial stop. Following the unarmed shooting, Romeikia was acquitted despite changing stories of eyewitnesses.

Discover how the shooting became a catalyst for civil rights efforts and immortalized in a Woody Guthrie protest song.

Christopher Verga

Christopher Verga is an instructor in Long Island history and the foundations of American history at Suffolk Community College and contributes to the online local news sites Greater Babylon, Greater Bay Shore, Greater Patchogue and Fire Island News. His published works include the Civil Rights Movement on Long Island (Arcadia Publishing, Images of America), Bay Shore (Arcadia Publishing, Images of America), Saving Fire Island from Robert Moses (The History Press), World War II Long Island: The Homefront in Nassau and Suffolk (The History Press) and Cold War Long Island (The History Press). Christopher has a doctorate in education from St. John's University.