On September 19, 1902, a stampede occurred at the Shiloh Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, resulting in the deaths of 115 people. At the time of the crush, 3,000 people were gathered to hear Booker T. Washington address the National Convention of Negro Baptists. The stampede occurred after the end of Washington's speech, when someone yelled "There's a fight!". The word "fight" was mistaken for "fire", causing the congregation to head for the exit en masse. Many people died after they got stuck between the brick walls of a stairwell that led to the street. Most of the dead were women. Physicians said in many cases they fainted and died from suffocation.