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i work with a Balentine and his father use to be pretty mean at the state line tn i have only heard a few stories also worked with a fellow and his last name was Townsend he use to go to the clubs alot he's told a few stories to me. these 2 fellow's are 60 to 65 years old yes i agree i wish someone would write a book
Dewitt Dawson: I have no idea what religion he practised (if any) but I know his wife was a member of the Church of Christ. I know this because I went to her church. Dewitt would only show up occasionally for stuff like dinners or meetings. He was a friendly guy from the few times I remember seeing him around. I have no other info about him other than the stuff I hear. Dewitt was not a preacher -- the poster who said that has Dewitt confused with another guy.

Johnny Hood: He was a barber at one time (worked at King Cotton in Florence, I think. Someone else might be able to confirm this). I know some people who used to go up to his clubs in the 60's and early 70's. I don't really feel like going into any stories they told me (though I have many). Let's just say that those clubs could be a dangerous place for your health if you messed with the wrong people. Hood was not, from what I have heard, really a member of any organized group. He might have been loosely affiliated with some people and involved in some minor drugs or something, but I don't think he was involved in any really serious mafia activity (rackiteering, drug smuggling, etc.). He was mainly just a guy who often walked on the wrong side of the law and a guy no one wanted to mess around with. There were rumours that Hood had been involved with some murders, but those are just rumours and I have no idea if they are true. When you are talking about people like Hood, everyone has their own story and a lot of the stuff is just plain BS. People tend to exaggerate.

Buford Pusser: Some of my family is from Finger, TN and I have a distant cousin who was a deputy sheriff under Pusser in McNairy Co. I don't talk to these people very often, but I have heard stories 2nd hand from some of my immediate family. I have heard basically that there is a lot of falsehoods out there about Pusser.

Pusser didn't really have anything to do with Johnny Hood or Dewitt Dawson. Buford was in a different region all together (McNairy Co. TN and northeast MS.) I guess its possible that Buford knew of the Dawsons since the Dawsons might have been connected loosely to the "dixie mafia" as depicted in Walking Tall. I know that in one of the films the Dawsons are mentioned, but not by name. They are called "that gang from Alabama" or something like that. However, I am pretty sure that Buford didn't know who Johnny Hood was.

Buford Pusser never carried a stick. That's a myth.

It's funny that this thread was started. I have thought this would make a good book (even though some of the characters didn't have any connection to the others).
Dewitt Dawson was not really a bad guy , to some he was as a Robin Hood, as my My Dad was . Dewitt and a few others was all, in this time, was friends .. as each had and did what they did , and had friends from up North to come down South if needed ! Some times it was a High Dallor Dice Games under a Shade tree in Lawrence Co. , or in a Card Game in a shack in Colbert Co.... Yes we as children had it good one day and not so good the next !! My Dad had a trade and was well repected in what he did . Mom did the best she could for us , and yes he had bad times in between Jobs , and good days at a Poker or Dice Games at times. So yes as a teenager during them times I remember the good and bad !!
quote:
Originally posted by bcmT:
Dewitt Dawson: I have no idea what religion he practised (if any) but I know his wife was a member of the Church of Christ. I know this because I went to her church. Dewitt would only show up occasionally for stuff like dinners or meetings. He was a friendly guy from the few times I remember seeing him around. I have no other info about him other than the stuff I hear. Dewitt was not a preacher -- the poster who said that has Dewitt confused with another guy.

Johnny Hood: He was a barber at one time (worked at King Cotton in Florence, I think. Someone else might be able to confirm this). I know some people who used to go up to his clubs in the 60's and early 70's. I don't really feel like going into any stories they told me (though I have many). Let's just say that those clubs could be a dangerous place for your health if you messed with the wrong people. Hood was not, from what I have heard, really a member of any organized group. He might have been loosely affiliated with some people and involved in some minor drugs or something, but I don't think he was involved in any really serious mafia activity (rackiteering, drug smuggling, etc.). He was mainly just a guy who often walked on the wrong side of the law and a guy no one wanted to mess around with. There were rumours that Hood had been involved with some murders, but those are just rumours and I have no idea if they are true. When you are talking about people like Hood, everyone has their own story and a lot of the stuff is just plain BS. People tend to exaggerate.

Buford Pusser: Some of my family is from Finger, TN and I have a distant cousin who was a deputy sheriff under Pusser in McNairy Co. I don't talk to these people very often, but I have heard stories 2nd hand from some of my immediate family. I have heard basically that there is a lot of falsehoods out there about Pusser.

Pusser didn't really have anything to do with Johnny Hood or Dewitt Dawson. Buford was in a different region all together (McNairy Co. TN and northeast MS.) I guess its possible that Buford knew of the Dawsons since the Dawsons might have been connected loosely to the "dixie mafia" as depicted in Walking Tall. I know that in one of the films the Dawsons are mentioned, but not by name. They are called "that gang from Alabama" or something like that. However, I am pretty sure that Buford didn't know who Johnny Hood was.

Buford Pusser never carried a stick. That's a myth.

It's funny that this thread was started. I have thought this would make a good book (even though some of the characters didn't have any connection to the others).


Fir Darrig, a post and paste for ya.
I'm going to ask my Dad about Johnny's club stories. I know that he was pretty much a regular and I believe he even had a personal friendship with some of these guys. We have never talked much about those days. Its the reason my mother divorced him.

He has talked alot over the years about what he considered "bad cops" in and around the MS line. He grew up in the top most corner of AL. He could be in TN, Or MS in a matter of a few minutes. I remember one story about him and one of his cousins traveling across the line into MS one night and met some girls at a bar. They were driving around with them talking and drinking, when they got pulled over. I can't remember all the details but the jest of the story was that the cops were in cahoots with the girls and they were going to rob my Dad and his Cousin, but they put up a fight and my Dad's cousin got shot in the arm. My dad was one of those country boys that would not let something like this go. He took his cousin home to his momma to get sewn up and then went got a bunch of buddies and went back across the line. They had some big fight with the cops and lots of cutting and beating and the like. Smiler I've heard him and his friends sit around and laugh and talk about those days like they were alot of fun. All I could ever think was "how awful" but then I am a girl and it seems like in another place and in another time this kind of thing was just a regular weekend and alot of fun. My Dad is 64 years old now and not in the best of health. A lot of years of living hard and fast have taken its toll on him. I am going to get him to tell me as much as he remembers before its too late to hear those stories.
quote:
Originally posted by p2bf_bama:
Who are the Balentines mentioned here? I knew the ones from Cypress Inn, they were basicly pretty good people, one was a bootlegger?


I grew up in that area. I can't think of his first name right now but the Balentine that stands out in my mind was a big guy that wore overalls every day. Nice guys. Like you said they were good people. Mostly farmers.
I vaguely remember that happening. Wasn't it before it was Dan Jones Ford? I remember stories that Nelda Stephenson worked as a bookkeeper at the time this happened for this Ford dealership and that is how she got the money and financial backing she needed to become Nelda Stephenson Chevrolet. The rumor was that she was mob connected.

This is strictly rumor and for entertainment purposes only...I have no basis for this information. Just what I have heard through the years.
quote:
Originally posted by BellaSwan:
quote:
Originally posted by Fir Darrig:
Are you talking about Bobby Mitchells Chevorlet ?


Yep. Have you heard about that murder? I am wanting to say it happened in the late 70's early 80's?


Yes , I have heard stories about it , I heard some man came in the dealership and shot at someone , cant remember, may have killed someone .
My mother bought a lemon from him and she called him and told him she would drive that car right into his picture window if he didnt make it right . Then she told him she would put a tag on the front of her car that said Bobby Mitchell Chevorlet # 1 drug dealer in the area .
Big Grin : He made the car deal right . lol
Bama, I didn't say anything negative at all. I am actually his third cousin by the way. I don't know that side of the family much b/c of alot of different reasons. I just have heard the story about his murder passed on through the generations. I just wondered if anyone had heard things I have not heard before about the murder. I really wish I did know some more of my relatives in this area.
quote:
Originally posted by Just_:
How can I save this whole thread??


Im not sure Just , but one time I wanted to save a thread that was 6 pages long . I did the copy and paste and put it in an email and sent it to myself. I bet theres an better way than that ,but it does work . Wink
quote:
Originally posted by BellaSwan:
Bama, I didn't say anything negative at all. I am actually his third cousin by the way. I don't know that side of the family much b/c of alot of different reasons. I just have heard the story about his murder passed on through the generations. I just wondered if anyone had heard things I have not heard before about the murder. I really wish I did know some more of my relatives in this area.


No Bella, you didn't say a thing out of the way. Bama was talking to me because I DID post something that I should not have. I have already deleted that part.
He wasn't talking about Bobby Mitchell or Peggy Fulton.
Right Bama? Confused
quote:
Originally posted by Fir Darrig:
quote:
Originally posted by Just_:
How can I save this whole thread??


Im not sure Just , but one time I wanted to save a thread that was 6 pages long . I did the copy and paste and put it in an email and sent it to myself. I bet theres an better way than that ,but it does work . Wink
Thanks Fir Smiler
quote:
Originally posted by blue's:
Bobby was shot over a bad car deal by a man from the Florence west side, there were all kinds of half-truths floating around that it was something else, but none was ever proven.


Thanks blues! Smiler

I heard at one time that the murderer had flown in and left after he killed Bobby.


I have read the book State Line Mob. It's very interesting to me, especially since it's close to home!
BellaSwan , cool name ..and thanks for the Job you do Smiler no as Julie said it was of something else nothing you said , lol I just home from playing golf.. a windy day for sure it was! Wink Now I am trying to catch up on what I may have missed . I know a lot about them days and many people involed and some things , I sure best not say on this forum Roll Eyes
Bobby Mitchell was shot by a man with the last name of Ingram...I left his first name off...Ingram was well known to us at the Police Department for various reasons...one is he shot his roommate while he was sleeping because when Ingram awoke he thought he smelled smoke. He assumed his roommate had blown smoke up his nose and shot him.
He was a known mental case and bobby was I belive the 5th person he had shot over the years......
We kept sending him to Bryce Mental Hospital in Tuscaloosa and they kept pronouncing him cured...
We now know who was right...
quote:
Originally posted by traderconnections:
Blues...
I believe you know who I am talking about...


Yep, I do "trader", also along with another one name "Billy Joe" last name not mention, who they said tried to take out an FPD officer and if I can remember either shot him or shot at him, I think at that time he was putting some pressure on some of the haulers of some to the whiskey that was coming in here from Missouri.

Also I talked to a retired State Trooper yesterday from Missoui, who said he knew one of the Tennesee State Trooper's who work the wreck of Bufford's and he was told there was no foul play, but as with most I still have doubt's about that watch the video RE: Link
Blues's...
Bufford by the time of the acccident had a obtained a desire for the taste of the hops and malt.
A research indicates that no test was given to determine if Pusser was intoxicated at the time of his death.
He had been in Memphis, Tenn for an announcement that he was going to play himself in another movie, that was going to be made about his life.
He was headed back home east on 64 late at night, being followed by his daughter in another car. According to witnesses that he was traveling at a speed way beyond the speed limit in the Cheverolet Corvette that he had gotten from Gene Crumps in Tuscumbia, Alabama.
I travel that road a lot and where he wrecked there is a slight upgrade and curve but nothing that would make one lose control.
He was west of Adamsville and just about home when around 12:55am his car ran off the road, and hit an embankment. He was thrown from the vehicle, killing him instantly, according to the State Trooper.
The Trooper arrived around 10 minutes after the accident to find the car engulfed in flames. What made him run off the road has not been determined. The Trooper goes on to state that it could have been a blowout or he just plain went to sleep. Foul play definitely was not involved.
The ambush that killed Pauline Pusser is still an open case with the TBI. The TBI refuses to receive any information on this case. This was a big case back in 1967 around west Tennessee. In 2 weeks it was over and Buford was back home from the hospital. All these operations that he had were mostly from another accident that really damaged his under his right eye. The injuries from the ambush were not life threating. I have the autopsy of Louise Hathcok. It appeared that Will Abernathy didn't use it in grand jury, Jim Moffit or Warren Jones didn't investigate the shooting very well. Ask any of the former and current tarven owners back in the Pusser era, he received bribes.

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