 They used violence and intimidation during election seasons from 1872 on to disrupt and suppress black Republican voting.In May 1876, six black suspects were lynched by a white mob for the alleged murders of a white couple.In the Hamburg Massacre of July 8, 1876, several black militia were killed by whites, part of a large group of more than 100 armed men who attended a court hearing of a complaint of whites against the militia.