05/16/2018
Centennial Cultural Center Events
You’ve had a DNA test. You’ve learned your ethnic background. Now what?
Come to the meeting of the new Centennial Cultural Center Genetic Genealogy Group. We will have a short presentation on the basics of genetic genealogy, and share some of the ways to find cousins using the data. We want to gauge the interest in starting a regular meeting to discuss genealogy in general, and genetic genealogy in particular. May 21, 6:00 pm at the CCC.
Memorial Day Celebration – Sunday, May 27, 2:00 pm
IncrediBall Tournament – TBA, Call Donna Lindsey for details– 318-495-7988
North LaSalle Parish History Tidbit
“Tullos Writes Oil History in Rapid Manner”
This was the headline from an article in the Monroe News-Star on February 15, 1926. The article goes on to say that Tullos was, at that time, the “newest and biggest boom city of the state,” and that it was growing by the hour.
Written ninety days after “the real oil excitement started,” the paper says that the population of Tullos had increased during that time period from about 50 people to over 5000.
In 1917, a wildcatter named Fred Stovall discovered traces of oil and gas between Tullos and Urania. But it was not until the mid-1920s that wells were successfully producing in northern LaSalle Parish.
The News-Star described the main street of Tullos as being lined with hamburger and hot dog stands. There were dancehalls, gambling places, and a moving picture show. Boarding houses were hastily thrown up, but many of the newcomers camped out along the roads around town. Others traveled back and forth to Tullos from facilities in Olla, Jena, and even Monroe and Alexandria.
The February 8, 1926, Alexandria Daily Town Talk reported that there were between 250 and 300 carpenters in the town, building shacks for the men to live in, and also stores, boarding houses, and hotels. The paper claimed that if there were 300 carpenters, then there were twice that many rig builders. New derricks were going up every day. One visitor reported that, from a single vantage point, he counted forty-eight derricks within the Tullos town limits.
New businesses were opening every day. Those who could do so, built shacks for their storefronts. Others sold their goods out of tents, brush arbors, and even covered wagons. There were dozens and dozens of little cafes. Soda water sold for ten cents and sandwiches were twenty, or sometimes even twenty-five cents.
In April 1925, the Town Talk interviewed Mr. Tom Russell, a leading citizen of Tullos. He related that the townspeople were optimistic about the future of the town. They believed that Tullos was the logical place for oil supply houses to locate, due to its central location and availability of land for extra train tracks.
On behalf of the town, Mr. Russell extended a cordial welcome to all legitimate businesses, and all respectable persons, rich or poor. However, he said that, “..ruffians and parasites of either s*x are not wanted.” The people of Tullos intended to keep their town clean. This proved to be impossible, as the influx of people was too great to control.
With so many men coming for work in the oil field, along with the inevitable dance hall girls, gamblers, bootleggers, and other criminal types, Tullos gained a wild and wooly reputation that lasted into the 1950s.
Downtown Tullos today bears no resemblance of the bustling town of the 1920s, and there are few left who remember the days when it was expected to be a major oil producing city. Future Tidbit columns will tell more stories about this exciting time in LaSalle Parish history.
