The Rosedale Banishment
East Taylor Township, Cambria County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
On September 7, 1923, in response to rising racial tensions, Johnstown Mayor Joseph Cauffiel ordered all Blacks and Mexicans who had lived in the area for less than seven years to leave. By some reports, more than 2,000 people were forced out under threat of imprisonment. News reports, some by Black journalists and activists, prompted a state investigation and turned public opinion against Cauffiel, who lost reelection.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
On September 7, 1923, amid rising racial hostility, Johnstown Mayor Joseph Cauffiel ordered every Black and Mexican resident who had lived in the area less than seven years to leave. By some accounts more than 2,000 people were driven out under threat of jail. The episode drew national attention—much of it from Black journalists and activists—prompting a state investigation and a public backlash that helped cost Cauffiel his reelection.
Why it matters
The Rosedale Banishment stands as a stark record of Northern racial expulsion in the 1920s and of how Black-led journalism could turn injustice into public reckoning.
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Related people
- · Joseph Cauffiel
Related events
- · Rosedale Banishment
Themes & tags
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