In 1874 Republican voters elected a black sheriff in the city of Vicksburg and dominated other elections. White had been organizing to throw out Republicans and, on December 6, 1874, forced the newly elected sheriff Peter Crosby to leave his office. Freedmen tried to support him, coming in from the rural areas on December 7, but he advised them to return home peacefully. Armed white militia attacked the freedmen that day and in the following days, in what became known as the Vicksburg Massacre. White Democrats are estimated to have killed 300 blacks in the area. The massacre was carried by newspapers from New York to California. The "New York Times" also carried reporting on the congressional investigation into these events, beginning in January 1875.