Summerfield Teacher Found Dead In Pond

BY SUSAN T. HERRING, Editor, The Guardian-Journal

            Principal D'Arcy Stevens said it was like a morgue at Summerfield High School  Monday morning. He had received the news Saturday evening, that the upper torso of Danny Waits had been discovered in the pond near his property. Waits, who turned 57 in August, had not been seen since he left school Thursday, October 27. Stevens said it was unusual for Waits not to show up at school without calling. He was usually one of the first to arrive. He would sit around and visit with Stevens and another teacher, Greg Scriber.

            Stevens tried to call Waits' home, but got no answer. When he failed to show up for school again on Monday, October 31, he called his home again. This time, his wife Londa answered. He asked her, "Did you know Danny was not at school?" She seemed surprised to learn Danny was not at school. She worked nights and did not always see him. Stevens urged her to call police.

            According to Claiborne Parish Sheriff Ken Bailey, Mrs. Waits reported her husband missing on Tuesday, November 1. She said Danny had left home Friday to meet a friend in Warren, Arkansas, then go from there to Hot Springs, however, he never arrived in Warren. Waits was reported missing to the National Crime Information Center. Authorities searched through the week in Louisiana, Arkansas and across the country for any sign of the blond haired, blue-eyed teacher and his white 2000 Toyota Tundra extended cab truck.

            On Saturday, November 5, Londa Waits' daughter called the Sheriff's Office, advising detectives that family members had located Danny's truck approximately 350 yards north of the Waits' home, in a heavily wooded area not visible from the house. As detectives searched the woods in the area, Londa's sister found the detectives and reported she heard a gunshot inside the house. She feared Londa may have shot herself. Mrs. Waits' body was found in the bathroom with what appeared to be a fatal, self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. The coroner was notified.

            In the meantime, two detectives walked to the pond located about 75 yards behind the house, where they discovered the unrecognizable upper torso of an individual they believed to be Danny Waits. His remains and Mrs. Waits' body were both sent to Little Rock for autopsies. Authorities began draining the pond in hopes of finding more evidence.

            Chief Detective Chuck Talley said Sgt. Darrell Mills with the Louisiana State Police and the LSP Crime Lab were assisting in the investigation. Kerry Foster with the Shreveport Fire Department spent all day Sunday with their cadaver dogs searching the area around Waits' house, which is located on Nicholson Road in the Southeast corner of Claiborne Parish, approximately 4-5 miles from the Bienville Parish line.

            After receiving the call Saturday, Stevens and school counselor Vicki Harris began preparing how they would address the tragedy to students at school on Monday. At an assembly of students in grades 6-12, Stevens told students, "Mr. Waits has been tragically murdered. We don't know why"....but there is an ongoing investigation.

            According to Principal Bill Kennedy, a similar assembly was held at Haynesville High where Waits had taught for 10 or 11 years. He said the news was devastating to the student body, but especially to teachers, who had developed close friendships with Waits over the years. Former Principal Steve Craig said he was good friends with Danny. He said, “There are probably a thousand people that would tell you the same thing. Danny was good friends with everybody, especially his students. He loved his students.”

            Waits gave Craig a load of firewood once, even split it for him to show off his new splitter. They drove around him around his place. He was very proud of his home and his land, and loved his Tundra truck. It was the first brand new truck he had ever owned. Craig said, “We will miss him. Those folks that didn’t know him really missed some kind of ‘character’. He marched to his own drummer.”

            Although Waits had only been teaching since August at Summerfield, Stevens said students loved him. He was a dynamic, outgoing teacher—very entertaining. He said, "You could hear him down the hall, getting their attention. By the end of the day, he would be covered with chalk dust." He told students—many who were crying—that Mr. Waits would want them to go on with their classes.

            Counselor Vicki Harris told students, "Summerfield High School has suffered a great loss." Mr. Danny Waits walked through the doors of this school in August, and into each of our hearts. "This morning the sun came up, the buses ran; we are at school," she said. "Things are normal, but they are not normal. We are having mixed feelings and emotions. We want answers."

            Answers is what the Claiborne Parish Sheriff's Office continues to look for. As detectives wait for results of the autopsies and the water to drain from the pond, they try to make some sense of how such a tragic event could occur in this small rural parish.

            Pastors and counselors were on hand at schools all day Monday to comfort students and teachers who are grieving over the loss of such a dynamic teachers. Harris told students it was okay to cry. Tears do not make the pain worse, but held us to heal. She said, "Please know that grief is normal and healthy. It is an attempt to put things back into focus after they have been turned out of focus.”

RICKEY BEARDEN, organizer of the St. Jude Lake Claiborne Car & Bike Show for the 4th consecutive year, along with committee members, presented $16,602.96 last week to Bertoe Downs, ALSAC & St. Jude Representative (front, right). Committee members are (front, l.-r.) Judy Lofton, Joy Frye, Barbara Taylor, (Downs), (2nd row) Dennis Butcher, Bea Grimes, Ann Burton, Sharon Bearden, Dale Tully, (3rd row) A.A. Bearden, Tommy Sanders, Reggie Jackson, Rickey Bearden, and Ben Booth. Schools raised $3,000 and still counting. The Car & Bike Show has raised $48,331.96 in memory of the Bearden's grandchildren, Christian and Joseph Manzanares, who died tragically in a mobile home fire in August 2001. 

Reconciliation Service Brings Unity

BY SUSAN T. HERRING, Editor, The Guardian-Journal

            Approximately 300 Claiborne Parish residents, pastors, and choir members from all walks of life crowded into the sanctuary of First United Methodist Church last Thursday to join in a service of reconciliation. II Corinthians 5:19 says, "For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation."

            Sheriff Ken Bailey introduced guest speakers, Bossier Parish Sheriff Larry Deen and his wife, Bobbie. "All freedom comes at a very high cost. We salute these brave soldiers and their ultimate gift, so we can gather at this place tonight and worship the Lord Jesus Christ without fear of reprisal," said Larry Deen. "The love of God, country, and our fellow man is the rich heritage handed down from our forefathers."

            Freedom is about reconciliation. The greatest part of reconciliation is to forgive. Love, forgiveness, and freedom....love with forgiveness brings freedom. He said, "We must forgive."

            With God and His love in our hearts through acceptance of Jesus, we are able to fulfill what our forefathers came to this great land to achieve. With all differences set aside—sex, economic status, education, skin color, etc., we can truly be "one nation under God."

            Deen's wife, Bobbie, said, "Unforgiveness is a major tool in the hand of the devil. Forgiveness is a major tool in the hand of God." She said unforgiveness will affect you emotionally, spiritually, and physically. "If you will yield your will to God's word, then your heart will follow."

            Those who participated in the worship service were Reverends Jeff Willis, Willie Young Sr., David Heard, Henry Stone, Bettie Archie, Pat Bates, Larry Maxwell, John Markley, Jimmy Simeon, George Hall, Ray Jiles, John McClelland, and Brent Shoalmire; choirs of First Ebenezer Baptist Church and First United Methodist-Homer; choir directors Kerry Sims and Mike Calhoun; accompanist Christopher Jackson and Mary Barrington; drummer Marvin McClain; Joey White, Cathey Weaver, and John McDaniel.

THIS DRY CREEK BED located along Glass Creek near Grigsby Road in Claiborne Parish was discovered last month during one of the field studies conducted by coordinating agencies. According to the DEIS prepared by URS, Glass Creek is a spring-fed perennial stream system—one that flows continuously year round.

Still Awaiting Decision On I-69 Alignment

BY SUSAN T. HERRING, Editor, The Guardian-Journal

            Scott Hoffeld with the URS Corporation said they were getting closer to a decision on the preferred alignment for I-69 through Claiborne and Webster parishes., and expected to be ready to meet with the cooperating agencies (U.S Fish & Wildlife, Environmental Protection Agency, and Corps of Engineers) by Christmas. It had been expected that a decision on the preferred alignment would be made in the summer of 2005, however, according to Hoffeld, there are problems in both alternatives under consideration which have made the decision difficult.

            In summary, Alternative 4 and its options have greater impact to wetlands but less impact crossing of Bayou Dorcheat in recreational areas. Alternative 5 has fewer wetlands impacted but greater impact at both optional crossings of Dorcheat where there is much greater recreational use. Hoffeld said, "In a nutshell, this is the most important issue.

            Most of the delay has been due to scheduling with various agencies, in addition to a request by some agencies to refine the description and provide more detailed information on wetland areas in alignments.

            Keith Cascio, Scenic Rivers Coordinator with Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries, said he has made several trips to the alternative sites to get a first hand look and make his own assessments rather than just rely on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) produced by URS. However, it seems that the information in this document is the basis for others' decisions to select an alignment.

            For instance, last May, the U.S. Dept. of Interior (DOI) which includes U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) concluded based on information in DEIS that "Alt. 5 would impact the least acreage of wetlands and scenic streams...and would also impact the least acreage of developed and urban land, displace the fewest number of minority-occupied homes, impact the fewest residences with adverse noise, and would not directly impact any known archeological sites."

            DOI's decision would be contingent on results of wading bird and threatened or endangered species. In their assessment, Bayou Dorcheat was described as a 45-mile-long stretch in Nevada, Columbia, and Lafayette Counties in Arkansas—a high quality undisturbed cypress swamp, the only  area in Arkansas where laurel oak is known to dominate. DOI noted that, "Bayou Dorcheat was considered to have a high potential as a recreational river under the Wild and Scenic River System." Neither of the alternative alignments for I-69 are being proposed to cross Bayou Dorcheat in Arkansas.

            The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reached a similar conclusion in selecting Alt. 5 or 5.2. They based their decision on information provided in the DEIS that showed Alt. 4 had a greater potential direct impact to streams with more crossing on intermittent and perennial streams, such as Glass Creek.

            During one field study conducted in October, all but one of the creek beds were discovered to be dry in Glass Creek, which is a tributary of Flat Lick Bayou in Claiborne Parish. The DEIS, however, listed Glass Creek as a spring-fed perennial stream system, one that flows continuously year round. In contrast, the DEIS listed Dorcheat Bayou as intermittent (not continuous flow) in the lower portion of the study area.

            Lane Merritt, a resident of Cotton Valley who led the opposition to crossing Dorcheat Bayou in the middle and upper areas, said he questioned URS on several discrepancies in the DEIS and was told by Hoffeld, the DEIS was only a draft and did not have to be accurate. Hoffeld explained what he meant was that in all cases, the DEIS might have some information that is less than perfect.  He admitted that the information concerning Glass Creek being listed as a perennial stream had not been corrected. They were not to that stage of the process yet, but it would be addressed during their final field study.

            On October 12, 2005, URS solicited further guidance from all agencies in Louisiana, Arkansas and the U.S. who received the DEIS. He hopes the information provided in the DEIS will help legislators, DOTD and FHWA to make a decision.

            In response, a letter was drafted and submitted to URS November 3, signed by Roy Lewis, president of the Claiborne Parish Police Jury, Town of Homer Mayor Huey Dean, Minden Mayor Bill Robertson, Claiborne Chamber of Commerce President J. T. Taylor, Claiborne Watershed Chairman Alice Stewart, Claiborne Industrial Foundation President Dennis Butcher, and Claiborne Floodplain Administrator Cynthia Steele.

            The letter reiterated the support of Alternative 4.3, listing the advantages as 1) preferred by majority of public comments including signers of petition not to cross Dorcheat Bayou in upper or middle areas, 2) the proximity to the North Hills Lake Project proposed to reduce depletion of Sparta Aquifer, 3) less potential for obstruction or pollution of recharge area of Terrace/Sparta, and 4) fewer grade separations and cross road terminations.

            The letter also stated disadvantages attributed to Alt. 4.3 included in the May public hearing handout distributed by URS were misleading. Among the issues disputed in the letter were that 1) Alternative 4 would affect more surface waters and wetlands associated with spring fed streams in the vicinity of Glass Creek, 2) that fewer communities would benefit from close proximity to the Interstate on Alt. 4.3, and 3) that more little streams would be crossed with culverts on higher ground than in the bottoms.

            A meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, November 10 to allow URS to present the issues being evaluated to all Louisiana legislators, using the information included in the DEIS, the facts as they know them according to Hoffeld, in addition to a small amount of new information. According to Hoffeld, no changes have been made so far to the existing alignments, although they are considering a revision to Alt. 4 to minimize the wetlands impacted.

 Alpacas Coming To Town For Christmas Festival 

            The alpacas are here—or at least, fiber is here! That's right. Piney Hills Alpaca Ranch located in Minden will have some wonderful fiber products for sale at this year's Christmas festival scheduled for Saturday, November 26 in downtown Homer. They are the cutest and finest fibered animals in the world.

            Alpacas came to the U.S. in 1984 and, more specifically, to Minden in 1993. Laura Barnette Hudson has been raising these adorable, furry creatures for the past twelve years down the road in Minden. Alpacas are the cute first cousin to llamas and produce one of the world's finest and most luxurious fibers.

            Come see and feel the wonderful products made from these amazing, furry little creatures on the square in Homer during the Claiborne Christmas Festival on Saturday, November 26.

Holiday Open House & Taste Of Homer

Set For This Saturday - Nov. 12

            The Annual "Taste of Homer" is set for Saturday, November 12 from 11 AM - 1 PM at Homer City Hall. Tickets are $10 and will feature homemade specialities prepared by over 100 area cooks. In conjunction with "Taste of Homer", several Claiborne Parish businesses will be sponsoring a Holiday Open House and $250 Shopping Spree during the week of November 7-12. Each time you make a purchase from one of the following participating merchants, you can register for the shopping spree_in Haynesville: City Floral, Courtyard Gifts, Killgore's Pharmacy, and Talk About Town, and in. Homer: Claiborne Drug, Delta Interiors, Ltd., Design Concepts, Homer Flower Shop, Mary's Boutique, Gray's Jewelry, Miss Lizzie's, Lynn's Flowers & Gifts, Merle Norman Cosmetics, Michael's Men's Store and Sporting Goods, Something Old Something New, Spillers Applicance & Furniture, and Elite's Gift Shop. In addition to the wonderful dining experience and shopping experience, tours will be available in the historic Claiborne Parish Courthouse and Herbert S. Ford Museum. For more information, contact the Claiborne Chamber of Commerce at 927-3271. All proceeds from the Taste of Homer will be used to purchase lights for the Claiborne Christmas Festival scheduled for Saturday, November 26.

"White Lightning Feuds": Trouble Brewing 

White Lightning Feud Series: Part 5

NOTE: This is another in a series of articles reprinting prior published information on White Lightning Feuds.

Historical Series Chronology     Resposes have been favorable to this historical series. Additional material continues to come to light. This means the series will be longer than originally expected; therefore, we are including a brief chronology of past articles: Part 1 (printed 10/13/05) - J. H. Tuggle's rabid dog bit several livestock and other animals; W. W. Maddox assassinated by unknown person and rewards totalling $500 offered for arrest and conviction of the killer; J. H. Ramsey wounds J. D. Tuggle near Denman and Co. Hardware in Homer. Part 2 (printed 10/20/05) - Near Denman and Co. Hardware in Homer, J. D. Tuggle shot at John H. Ramsey, missed, and killed Professor J. H. Williams; W. W. Ramsey died and Hamp and Henry Tuggle were wounded in a shootout between the jail and Knighten's saloon in Homer. Part 3 (printed 10/27/05) - J. D. Tuggle and I. N. Glover died when ambushed by unknown assailant about three and a half miles toward Summerfield. Part 4 (printed 11/10/05) - Murray Tuggle, Hamp's 15-year-old son is shot and wounded; continuation of Dosia Williams' account of Hamp Tuggle's stay at Loyd Hall

* * * * *

COMMENT: Last week we printed the first part of an excerpt from the book War, Reconstruction, and Redemption on Red River, the Memoirs of Dosia Williams Moore. Dosia Moore mentions someone's shooting at Hamp Tuggle's son Murray. She gives that as a reason for Hamp's leaving Claiborne Parish with his two sons and his unnamed brother-in-law. We are inserting here the Guardian-Journal article that reported the wounding of Murray Tuggle:

* * * * *

Attempted Assassination

            Saturday night last [August 12, 1893] just after dark as Murray Tuggle, the fifteen-year-old son of T. H. Tuggle, went out to the lot for the purpose of watering his horse, he was fired upon by some would-be assassin who was concealed near the lot. Young Tuggle was struck in the upper portion of the thigh with three buckshot and one passed through the flesh just above the ankle. The wounds, while painful, are not serious. Two shots were fired with a shotgun.

            Mrs.Tuggle came into town immediately after the shooting for a physician and the sheriff. Drs. Gladden and Gladney went out, cut out the shot, and dressed the wounds. The sheriff and his deputy also went out. Dogs were sent for and arrived Sunday morning. The place where the party stood who did the shooting was found. He stood near some tall weeds and was not more than twenty steps from his intended victim when he fired. The dogs were put on the track and ran it to the big road and a short distance down the road but could not trail it any further. It is supposed that the would-be assassin mounted a horse after he reached the road.

            There were two or three different sizes of buckshot found in the wounded boy.

            There has been a great deal of this kind of bloody work done in this parish during the past few years. It has gone on from bad to worse until now mere boys are being shot from ambush. Who will they shoot next? It is high time our people were bestirring themselves for the purpose of deriving and putting into execution some plan of discovering and punishing to the utmost extent of the law the perpetrators of such cowardly and hellish deeds. If the miserable work is permitted to go on unchecked and unpunished, the pass will be reached where no one will be safe from the assassin's bullets.

We learn that Mrs. Tuggle has received anonymous notes urging her to leave the country and stating that if she [does] not, her boys [will] be killed.

----------

            Something must be done to restore the reign of law and order in this parish as we will reach the pass where the country will have to be abandoned to the assassins and other lawless elements. Will people always endure such a state of affairs with patience?

— Guardian-Journal, page 3

August 16, 1893

* * * * *

            We now return to the excerpt from Chapter IX "A Feud and an Indian" of the book War, Reconstruction, and Redemption on Red River, the Memoirs of Dosia Williams Moore, printed in 1990 and edited by Carol Wells.

            The foreword to the book explains that Dosia Williams Lewis Moore lived in Rapides and Natchitoches Parishes during and after the Civil War. Born in South Carolina, she came at three years of age with her parents to Louisiana. The book is based mostly on a collection of Dosia Moore's accounts stored in the Archives Division of the Watson Library at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches.

* * * * *

(continued from last week)

            Fourteen or more men had been killed, and a bitter hatred existed between the two families. On a day when Joe Tuggle and his brother Hamp had gone into town, one of the Ramsey's (NOTE: this was John H. Ramsey), a cousin of the Tuggle brothers, shot Joe Tuggle. He fell into his brother's arms. Hamp Tuggle, clasping his dying brother in one arm, shot his slayer dead. After this, Hamp, the only survivor of the tragedy, was sought by the officers of the law. He was arrested but was let out on bond and went home to his wife and three children (NOTE: wife was Sallie; children were Elmo, 18, Maud, 17, and Murray, 15).

            One day a friend sent him a warning to "keep close," as some men were planning to waylay and kill him. He and his two sons went on with their crop and minded their business, but one night when his younger son (NOTE: this was Murray—see preceding article) rode down to a stream to water his horse, he was shot from ambush, receiving a wound in the arm. Mr. Tuggle took his two sons and, accompanied by his brother-in-law, slipped out of the country that night. His lawyer advised him to keep out of the way until the other side quieted down; then he would arrange for him to have a trial. The Ramsey's, who were wealthy, were determined to go to law with it and have Mr. Tuggle either hanged or put in the penitentiary. He did not want to resist officers but was anxious to evade arrest until his lawyer advised him it would be safe to go back to Homer and give himself up.

            He was a poor man, so it was necessary for them to work to pay expenses, therefore, the cotton picking. My husband sympathized with him, told him to keep the cabin as long as he wanted it, that he would give him work and help him all that he could.

            Mr. Tuggle played the violin well, and often the four of them would dress up and come spend the evening at Loyd [Hall, located in Rapides Parish about 20 miles south of Alexandria]. They also visited at my sister's home nearby. We all enjoyed hearing him play the violin.

            After cotton picking was over, Mr. Tuggle began hauling cottonseed to the railroad station. One day while waiting near the track to unload his cottonseed, a passenger train stopped. Judge Blackman was on it, sitting by a window. (footnote: "Wilbur Fisk Blackman, judge of the Twelfth Judicial District, was born in Georgia in 1841. He lived at Homer, La., and died in 1873 in Shreveport, La."  from Northwest Louisiana Memoirs, p. 550.) He looked out and recognizing an old schoolmate shouted, "Hello, Hamp! What are you doing here?" Mr. Tuggle swung on the train, quietly explained the situation to Judge Blackman, and asked him not to tell anyone of having seen him. My brother-in-law, Mr. Baillio, told Mr. Tuggle that it was dangerous for him to be about the station as so many travelers passed through he might be recognized at any time. He thought that he would be safe if he stayed in the wagon, and his boys could attend to shipping of the seed.

            Meanwhile, trouble was brewing. A letter written by a young man from North Louisiana who was working for my brother-in-law told a friend in Homer of the mysterious stranger who was working at Loyd [Hall]. He described the man. His friend made some inquiry about it to the sheriff. The sheriff at once sent the description and a warrant to a deputy at Alexandria. Mr. Tuggle knew nothing of all this, so pursued the even tenor of his way, but he and his sons always went armed with a pistol and a shotgun.

            One day his wagon had just crossed Loyd's Bridge on the way to the station when a horseman rode down to the bridge, fell in behind them, and slowly followed the wagon. Mr. Tuggle felt uneasy. He said, "Elmo, look behind us. That man is after me." The man did not try to overtake the wagon, only loitered along behind them. When they were nearly to Lecompte, Elmo said, "Papa, you are watchin' the man behind us, but you better look in front." A livery stable hack with two white men and a negro driver had eased in ahead of them. It drove slowly along in front of the wagon.

            Mr. Tuggle slipped from his seat and walked along by the heavily loaded wagon, watching for a place where he could slip through the wire fence by the side of the road. He did not hurry but walked quietly along with his shotgun in his hand. Just ahead, he saw a turn in the road that would hide him for a minute. "Bud," he said, "I'll leave you here, and try to get away, but if these men get me, I want you to promise me to let this thing drop. I don't want you to get in any trouble. Just let them alone."

            The boy replied with tears streaming down his face, "Like hell I will! If they kill you, I'll kill one of them before they get me!" Elmo was [eighteen] years old. No wonder these old feuds died hard!

            Mr. Tuggle walked through the field, keeping the hack in range of his shotgun. The deputies had Winchester rifles. He thought if he got far enough from them, his shotgun would not reach them, but their rifles would carry so far he would be at their mercy. The men in the hack saw his advantage and did not begin shooting, although they saw Tuggle leave the wagon. Afterward, the hack driver told that the deputies said their "life insurance was not attended to," so they would return to Alexandria and make those arrangements, "and we will come again and get him." "Naw, suh!" the driver reported himself as saying, "We going to come no mo'. You gentmens can come but not Dutch, naw, Sir! Um got enough right now."

            The livery hack drove briskly off towards Alexandria. Mr. Tuggle glided into the swamp  back of the field and disappeared.

            That evening I was in the dining room at Loyd [Hall]. Supper was over; the servants were gone, and I was alone. Suddenly my husband and Mr. Tuggle stepped into the room through one of the French windows. Each carried a shotgun on his shoulder. William told me of Mr. Tuggle's trouble and that he was going to......(to be continued)

NOTES: Hamp Tuggle's marker in the Tuggle Cemetery shows he was born Thomas Hamilton Tuggle on February 3, 1855, and died April 10, 1935. His wife's marker shows her name as Sallie Boulware, born May 30, 1854, and died June 6, 1915. Hamp is listed in the 1880 Claiborne Parish Census as T. H. Tuggle, age 25. Listed in his household are his wife Sallie, age 26; son St. Elmo, age 5; daughter Maud, age 4; and son Murray, age 2. Dosia Williams refers to two sons who came with Hamp to Loyd Hall. We have concluded those sons were Elmo and Murray, ages 18 and 15 respectively at that time. We think it was probably the fall of 1893 that Hamp, Elmo, Murray, and the unnamed brother-in-law left Claiborne Parish and stayed at Loyd Hall Plantation, Hamp for 18 months or so and the others for a shorter period. Mrs. Williams mentions Hamp's "wife and three children." It seems clear that Hamp's wife Sallie and young daughter Maud remained in Claiborne Parish while Hamp's sons Elmo and Murray and the unnamed brother-in-law went with him to Loyd Hall. The Ramsey to whom Mrs. Williams refers ("one of the Ramsey's, a cousin of the Tuggle brothers") is John H. Ramsey who had shot at J. D. Tuggle in September, 1890. J. D. Tuggle's cemetery marker shows he was born Joe Dawson Tuggle on August 12, 1851, and died March 25, 1891. He and I. N. Glover were ambushed and killed by unknown person(s) about three and a half miles east of Homer toward Summerfield. J. D. Tuggle died unmarried without children. John H. Ramsey is listed in the 1880 Claiborne Parish Census as J. H. Ramsey, age 21 (born about 1859), and living in the household of his parents, William and Mary Ramsey. John H. Ramsey was killed August 15, 1891. Although Hamp Tuggle was charged with the crime, he was acquitted on March 12, 1895. John H. Ramsey had been indicted on October 11, 1890, for the attempted murder of J. D. Tuggle when Ramsey shot at Tuggle three times with a double-barreled shotgun on October 2, 1890. Released on $1200 bond, we found no record of legal disposition of the charge.......to be continued.

******

Note: Bill Hightower and Jimmy Dean researched this series of articles.

NOTICE: Deadline For Advertisements

No Later Than 5 p.m. On Mondays

All display and legal advertisements for The Guardian-Journal must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. on the Monday of the week in which it is to appear. Classified ads will be received until 12 p.m (noon) on Tuesday prior to the Thursday publication date. Thank you for your cooperation.