Miscellaneous

Facts and Stories That Don't Fit in Other Categories

Former Resident Executed for Role in Plot to Overthrow Fidel Castro

A bizarre incident that occurred prior to the 1960 U.S. presidential election and was unrelated to the later also  failed Bay of Pigs Invasion. Allan Dale Thompson, a Korean War veteran, was  captured by the communists  at Navas Bay, Oriente province, Cuba and executed by firing squad along with two others, Anthony Zarba and Robert Fuller. They had been sentenced to death by a Revolutionary Tribunal during a summary trial that lasted only 20 minutes. The appeal and execution were carried out that same day.

 Source:  Monroe (LA) News Star 17-Oct-1960

Source: Stevens Point (WI) Daily Journal 17-Oct-1960

The event occurred  16-Oct-1960, just over two weeks before the  U.S. Presidential Election between Richard Nixon and John Kennedy. Zarba had been executed three days earlier. This was part of a plot by Rolando Masferrer, a supporter of prior dictator Fulgencio Batista who had ties to teamster boss Jimmy Hoffa and Mafia figure Santo Trafficante. The plan was to start a guerrilla movement to overthrow Fidel Castro's communist regime. The United States government disavowed any involvement in the plot or operation.

Thompson was listed as being from Queen City Tx at time of his death, but also reported to have grown up in Mooringsport, where he had worked around various fishing camps. He had been raised by foster parents Oscar   and Rachel Corn , who lived near the Caddo Lake dam.

Below is a picture of them at the time of their being notified of his death.

Source:  Oakland (CA) Tribune 17-Oct-1960, Page 3

Below are various links that provide additional information. The first is to a magazine article from the time describing the incident, while the others provided related information.

• Yanks Executed By Castro

•  U.S. Citizens Who Were Killed Or Who Disappeared By Cuba's Communist Regime

•  Timetable History Of Cuba After The Revolution

Legend of TG&Y Founder Being From Mooringsport Debunked

This is like an episode of Mythbusters, in that the following information debunks a long-held belief by locals, namely that the "T" of the now defunct TG&Y variety stores stood for a man named Tullos from Mooringsport. However per wikipedia:

"The chain was named for its three founders: Rawdon E. Tomlinson, Enoch L. "Les" Gosselin, and Raymond A. Young. The initials were ordered according to the age of the three, with Tomlinson being the oldest."

However Mr. Walter V. Tullos, Jr., who had owned stores in Shreveport, Mooringsport, Springhill, Minden, and Homer, LA under various names; did have a connection to  TG&Y. Per the obituary of his wife, Eugenia Rae Wood "Tom" Tullos:

"Together they owned Tullos Mercantile in Mooringsport and Tullos Bros. in Minden. During the war years, she and her mother-in-law managed their business successfully, giving them the opportunity to expand to multiple stores after the war until 1957 when they merged with TG&Y Stores."

Walter Tullos

Per his  obituary, after the merger Mr. Tullos became an executive vice president of TG&Y. This high position likely caused the confusion and misinterpretation regarding his status within the company.

Anyway, as Paul Harvey used to say:

Moore's Goat Farm

The following pictures and article are from the Monroe (LA) News Star 13-Apr-1964, Page 15.

A milk bottle cap from the time.

Per Bob Moore (Bobby in the picture above):

"Those who knew my family in the '60s probably knew about the goat dairy we operated for most of that decade. The article is from the Monroe News Star dated April 13, 1964 when I had just turned 17. The top photo shows my youngest brother Bruce doing nursery duty, and the lower one shows Buck with his sons Bobby, Dick, and Bruce, and a hermaphrodite goat we named (ambiguously) Tony. Since Tony had no other uses for us, we taught him/her to pull a small cart." 

Rodeo Trick Rider Killed Over Gambling Dispute


A. (Adolphus) J. Greening (Jr.) of Mooringsport was a trick rider in the Roy Rogers rodeo. He met an untimely death while on tour in Chicago, having been stabbed by a fellow troupe member during a dispute over a card game. Here's the article from the  Albuquerque (NM) Journal 09-Oct-1947, which is melodramatic in the fashion of the time and even offensive by today's reporting standards.

A. J. was an older brother of John and Keith Greening,