TAYLOR COUNTY, GA - NEWSPAPERS J.T. Peterman Murder of Allen Parr ***************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ga/gafiles.htm *********************** This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by: Carla Miles cmhistory@mchsi.com The Butler Herald Tuesday, August 20, 1912 Page Three Blow Inflicted by Mr. J.T. Peterman Produced Death of Mr. Allen Parr The two men, erstwhile good friends, met at the home of Mr. Asa Simmons, engaged in quarrel, later resorting to weapons. Mr. Parr receives wounds that causes his death. ------------------ The whole of Panhandle district, one of the finest localities in the county, has been shadowed by a tragedy enacted Saturday afternoon, causing a fever of excitement that will be a long while in over-coming. Not since the days many years ago when Mr. Fielding Caldwell was killed by Mr. Byrd in self defense has excitement reigned as high in Panhandle as it did all day Sunday. As a result of an all-uncalled-for disagreement between the two men, Mr. Allen Parr is dead and Mr. T.J. or Tom Peterman, as he is familiarly known, occupies a cell in the county jail in Butler. Mr. Peterman claims self-defense for himself, but as he has seen fit to wave commitment trial in Justice C.M. Lucas’ court in Panhandle, he must remain in jail until the meeting of the grand jury in October for an investigation of the case. The difficulty between Mr. Parr and Mr. Peterman occurred at the home of Mr. Asa Simmons where lives also Mrs. Jane Simmons and her granddaughter, Minnie Simmons, a girl about eighteen years of age, the family being near neighbors and tenants of Mr. Peterman. It is claimed by Mr. Peterman that he went to the Simmons home Saturday afternoon about three o’clock to serve notice upon the tenants that they must hunt shelter elsewhere. Mr. Parr, who is about 33 years old and unmarried, and a suitor of the young woman, became enraged with Mr. Peterman for his threat of evacuation and made violent attack upon him with a large jackknife. Owing to the long standing friendship between himself and Mr. Parr, Mr. Peterman says he tried to reason with Mr. Parr, explaining his reason for dismissing the Simmons family from his place but this did not satisfy Mr. Parr, who, according to his statement consulted with the women for a while in the house came into the yard again armed with knife and pistol. Here the stories of Mr. Peterman and the women conflict, the latter contending Mr. Peterman returned to his house, a distance of one hundred yards, and in a few moments reappeared at the Simmons home with his gun, when the quarrel was resumed. At a subsiding moment, they say, the young woman and Mr. Parr sprang into his buggy and attempted to leave the scene when weapons were again presented by the two men. No shots were fired but Mr. Peterman struck Mr. Parr across the head with his gun, felling his man to the ground, afterwards picking him up, placing him in his buggy and called to Mr. Simmons to take him to his father’s home. Mr. Peterman, however, denies going for or having a gun. He sticks to the story that Mr. Parr, attempting to leave the place and standing near his buggy, heaped upon himself and family vile epithets at the same time threatening this life. Mr. Peterman says he warded off the pistol with his left hand striking his man with his right hand. Mr. Parr losing his balance fell backward striking his head against the hub of the buggy producing the wound that caused his death. Dr. J.E. Mangham was summoned to dress Mr. Parr’s wound, which was not at first considered a dangerous one. Later in the night, however, he grew rapidly worse, expiring about dawn Sunday morning. Mr. Peterman was arrested Sunday morning carried before Justice Lucas for commitment trial, which was waived and then brought to Butler and placed in jail. Mr. Parr was 33 years old, son of Mr. W.W. Parr, a hard worker and well thought of in the community. The Butler Herald Tuesday, August 27, 1912 Page Three Local Paragraphs Sheriff Beeland carried Mr. Tom Peterman to Columbus Sunday to be placed in jail there till the meeting of the Taylor County grand jury the first week in October. It will be remembered that Mr. Peterman waived commitment trial for the killing of Mr. Allen Parr in Panhandle district on Sunday August 18th. The Butler Herald Tuesday, August 27, 1912 Page Three Card From Emory Parr Editor, Butler Herald, In the name of justice and truth and for the sake of an outraged community, I desire to give the facts as brought out by the eyewitnesses and other circumstances about the killing of Allen Parr by Tom Peterman, because the statement made by you in the last issue of your paper, based on statements made to you by Peterman are wholly misleading and without the slightest foundation in fact. It was stated by an eyewitness that Allen Parr was seated in his buggy when Peterman came up with his gun, struck Allen with the barrel thereof, from which blow he died; Peterman being angered by the presence of Allen at the home of Jane Simmons. It does not men matters nor satisfy the mind of sensible people to say that the murdered man fell out of his buggy and struck his head against the hub of his buggy. This transparent falsehood is so palpably false as to carry its own ridiculous falsehood upon its face. It is stated in your last issue that Allen Parr was a suitor of the young woman in question. Mr. Peterman being a married man of family could not have been a rival in that sense. It is shocking and deplorable enough to his family without attempting to add a heineous varnish and glamour of his falsehood to this outrageous killing of a peaceable citizen. I would be less than a man and a citizen of Georgia to say nothing of my being the brother of the man who was thus cowardly and outrageously assaulted and killed were I not to make this correction. The truth of the matter is that cowardly excuses and make believe frame-ups of self defenses have been too often used to cloak the conscience and guilty, and appease the public conscience. Are the ears of the upright and law abiding citizens of this good county dulled to a sense of truth, justice and the vindication of the law? Regardless of the personal bereavement that this homicide has placed on me, I feel that the truth should be known about assassination that there should be an arousement of a fair, searching and impartial investigation and prosecution of the facts, and this is my apology for asking space in your paper. Emory F. Parr This Aug. 22nd 1912 The Butler Herald Tuesday, September 3, 1912 Page Three Card of Thanks To the good people of Panhandle District and especially the good friends who sat up with and administered to the wants and needs of my son in his dying hours after having received the fatal blow that has taken him away from our family circle, I desire in behalf of myself and the other members of my family to extend my sincere and grateful thanks, ever holding myself in readiness to reciprocate this kindness whenever in my power to do so. This Sept. 2, 1912. Yours sincerely, W.W. Parr and Family