User:Eddie891/Edgar Caldwell

Edward Charles Caldwell

Biography
Edgar Charles Caldwell was born in Greenville, South Carolina, on May 18, 1892. He served for two or three years in the United States Army's 24th Infantry Regiment during the Philippine–American War, but by 1912 had left the military and was living in Atlanta, Georgia.

Caldwell re-enlisted [was drafted?] upon US entry into World War I in 1917 and was assigned to the 157th Depot Brigade as an non-commissioned officer. By late 1918, he was a sergeant, and stationed in Anniston, Alabama, at Camp McClellan with the Depot brigade.

Shooting
Caldwell received recreational leave and left Camp McClellan in early December 1918 [on the 13th or 15th], shortly after the war's end. While on a streetcar into the town, a dispute broke out between him and the streetcar's conductor, Cecil Linton [also spelled Linten], who was white. Caldwell was accused of not paying his fair and had sat in the 'white only' section of the segregated streetcar. According to some secondary sources, Linton also resented Caldwell's wearing of a military uniform.

Caldwell maintained that he had paid his fare, and the argument quickly became violent as Linton and the streetcar's motorman, Kelsie Morrison, forcibly sought to remove Caldwell from the car. The fighters soon left the streetcar, and Caldwell was eventually knocked to the ground. While he was on the ground, Morrison began kicking him in the stomach. Eventually, Caldwell drew a gun and shot Linton and Morrison. Linton eventually died, and Morrison was hit in the neck but survived. Caldwell fled the scene but was eventually apprehended, arrested, and brought to Camp McClellan.