M. M. Tucker & Family

DAILY ARDMOREITE

February 9, 1895

Submitted by: Jan Tucker Baldenweck

MURDER AND ARSON

M.M. TUCKER AND FAMILY, THE VICTIMS, AND FRED WILSON, THE ACCUSED.

News was brought to the city last night from the Bayou, 14 miles southwest of town, of what looks to be an atrocious murder and arson. The victims are M.M. Tucker, his wife and 3 children. The children were 2 girls aged 8 and 12, and a boy aged 6 or 7.

The crime, if crime it is, was committed Wednesday night, but was not discovered until yesterday morning. From the meager information at hand it appears that the entire family was murdered and then to cover up the crime, the house and dead bodies were burned. On arriving at the scene, the ruins were the only thing to mark the place where the house stood, and the 5 charred skeletons to tell the fate of the family inhabiting it. Investigation prompted by suspicion of murder confirmed that theory, for in the ruins were found the bones of Mr. and Mrs. Tucker near the fireplace, those of one of the children, presumable the boy, in the fireplace, and the other 2 where the bed on which they slept had stood. There was not enough of the remains to show what method they had met their fate, but the people say it is bound to have been murder, as it is positively out of the question for them to have all been burned while asleep. The position of the skeletons would explode any such possible theory. The house was newly built and was of green logs. The statements that the crime was committed Wednesday night is supported by the fact that Mr. Tucker was seen late that afternoon and not after. His house was in a secluded ara about a half mile from any other and Thursday was that bitter cold day, no one thought strange of none of the family being seen that day.

Suspicion at once pointed to Fred Wilson, a son-in-law of Tucker's as the murderer. It was known that on sundry and diverse occasions, Wilson had made threats against Old Man Tucker, the case being that a few months before Tucker had caused his arrest on a charge of seduction, his alleged victim being one of the now dead girls aged 12 years. On trial before Judge Gibbons, Wilson was discharged, the government failing to make out its case. On the termination of the trial, Mr. Tucker told Judge Gibbons that he feared Wilson would kill him.

Acting in the suspicion based on these threats, the citizens of the neighborhood at once took Wilson in charge pending the arrival of officers on the scene. Officers Stewart and Leatherman have been sent out and will probably return tonight, when full particulars will be available.

R.V. Helton, another son-in-law of the murdered man, arrived in the city this afternoon, and to a reporter of THE ARDMOREITE, he gave the facts as above related. He says that there is no doubt in his mind but that the family was murdered, and Wilson and others are the murderers.

Note: Randy Stewart sent this article to me several years ago. The children who died were Naomi, Marion and Edith.