The Gatesville State School for Boys

The Gatesville State School for Boys or simply gatesville was a word that conjured up bad thoughts in the hearts and minds of boys all over Texas. A facility in an area of Texas with a 120 year history of perpetrating crimes of physical, sexual, mental and verbal abuse on the throw away kids of Texas. This blog is here to share the state boys story. c/s

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Gatesville Today


The tyc stopped sending boys to the Gatesville school in 1975 unless they were an escape risk or as in the summer of 1975 the other schools were full, or you wouldn’t have sex with the goat roper caseworker chick in Brownwood who ran was the nazi in charge of who went where. I may have been locked up but she did nothing for me. The school was fully closed down to boys in 1981 and the facilities were transferred back to the department of corrections. Anyone who has ever set foot on that place knew it was never, culturally, transferred to what was called the juvenile training school in 1913. So now the good citizens of Coryell county and the surrounding area have moved on from the economy of abusing children to an economy of abusing women.
See what the state has done to the old Gatesville State School for Boys today.

Reception Center
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCC&cp=p7bbj66vnkmf&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27445427&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1

Terrace
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCC&cp=p7bydj6vp6s6&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27445630&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1

Sycamore
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCC&cp=p7c28c6vpsqt&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27445638&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1

Valley
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCC&cp=p79hh26vnjv6&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27445539&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1

Hackberry
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCC&cp=p79v1p6vp0bt&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27445779&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1

Riverside
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCC&cp=p7bm3j6vnfrj&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27445439&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1

Live Oak
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCC&cp=p7bv0s6vng40&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27445371&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1

Hilltop
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCC&cp=p7c6ws6vnw39&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27445623&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1

Mountainviewhttp://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCC&cp=p7dt026vp8vq&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27444520&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1

23 comments:

  1. This bring up some bab memories that I need to deal with after 45 years. Those people that worked there were child abuser and molesters.

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  2. I GUESS AS TIME WENT BY THE PAST 40 YEARS THEY HAVE PUT UP FENCES TO CURB ESCAPES ON JUST ABOUT ALL THE FACILITIES, IVE BEEN LOOKING AT THE ARIAL VIEWS OF HACKBERRY AND TERRACE THE FENCES WERENT THERE BACK IN THE 60S .MICHAEL SCHWINN A-36525

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  3. drove by Gatesville March of 2010. was there in 60-61. not a nice place - to be sure. child abuse? none that I heard about - and I would have. get your head knocked off? yes indeed. McMorris was said to be able to put his boot on your shoulder and tap your head with his toe. that didn't happen to me. I did hear him say something once and I'll regale you. breakfast was corn flakes and milk but the milk had been sour for days and a food strike was in the air. we ate in a big hall - hundreds of kids (some weren't exactly kids) - I'm at a table figuring out what to do with breakfast when McMorris swept in with other men and I heard him say "if you see anyone not eating kick the **** out of 'em." I dug into my corn flakes, no problem.

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  4. "Gatesville Cannonball" (can be sung to Washash Cannonball tempo)
    From the honky tonks of Houston to the slums of San Antone
    To the pool halls of Ft.Worth,whereever you may roam.
    Gather round young maidens and listen to my call.
    Of how I got my ticket on the Gatesville cannonball.
    When I was young and handsome it was my hearts delight to go to balls and parties and stay out late at night.
    It was at one of these parties I met this nice yound dame.
    She knew by the way I wore my pants that Gatesville`where I came.
    My stomps were neatly polished my ducks were neatly combed.
    Before the night was over I asked could I take her home.
    As we passed thru an alley I heard this couple say"there goes a nice young maiden just throwing her life away"
    It was at her fathers doorstep I asked her if I`d try.
    It was at her mothers bedside I forced her down to lie.
    The very next morning her mother said"you son of a bitch,you`ve *****my daughter dead"
    So gather round young maidens and listen to my plea,don`t ever trust a Gatesville boy and inch above your knee.
    Note:I spent a year in Gatesville `58/`59 I was sent there from Lubbock county and was housed in both G company and B company. For the most part didn`t see the abuse as some describe,but did have one personal experience. I just considered punishment for breaking the rules..........:>}. Does anyone remember"Rack`N Jack"? The person in charge during my stay was a Mr.Wiley. The Mexicans had a special name for him"La Mirana" I think it means fat pig or such?More interesting stories later.

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    1. Wondering if anyone spent time in Company B from 1954 to 1956.

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    2. I did. There three times from 1952-1956 C to B to A company New WILEY well. Went back to do him, he was selling fruit. Bought some, came back to Dallas.

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    3. I did. There three times from 1952-1956 C to B to A company New WILEY well. Went back to do him, he was selling fruit. Bought some, came back to Dallas.

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  5. "Rack`N`Jack"
    I don`t know his last name (he didn`t need one)but we all knew him. Jack must have been a local,who worked at Gatesville. A real cowboy. Wore a cowboy hat and dressed in Levi`and plaid shirt. Sort of a Gary Cooper type slim and lean. One of the things Jack did was chase runaways on his horse with dogs (more later). He also would repair fences and was in charge of some of the`ranch`equipment.He would also be in charge of small work details. A couple in which I worked on.One in particular,Jack and I in a Jeep and we were`installing`gates in the barbed wire fences so as he and horse could pass thru easily. On one occassion we even went to town (Gatesville)and he bought me a coke at a local drive-in. Doesn`t sound like much,but a real treat given circumstances. If you worked hard without problems Jack was alright. But there was another side to Jack. (to be continued)

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  6. It was Racking Jack Painter. I never knew him. His sister or wife, she was Mrs. Painter to me, worked at Wyoming Hall. Most of the men that worked there were like you said, "alright."

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  7. WYOMING HALL , THAT WAS ON THE HILLTOP SCHOOL,NOT FAR FROM THE DREADED, "ADJUSTMENT CENTER" OR LOCKUP . I GOT TO KNOW THE GROUNDS AROUND THERE PRETTY WELL , ESPECIALLY OUTSIDE THE HILLTOP MESSHALL , MR. CURB FOR WHATEVER REASON AT 5:00AM WHEN HE CAME TO WORK AT THE LOCKUP HED PICK SOME POOR SAP TO UNLEASH HIS ABUSE ON LOCKUP BOYS BY TAKEING ONE AT A TIME SO THERE WOULDNT BE ANY WITESSES TO THE BACK OF THE HILTOP MESS HALLS (GREASETRAP) MR CURB WHO HAD ALREADY GOT ME TO WEAR AN ARMY TYPE JUMP SUIT TOLD ME TO GET IN THE GREASE TRAP AND PUT MY WHOLE BODY SUBMERGED IN THE FUCKING TRAP , AS I GOT IN HE SAID TO ME (SWIN) GO DOWN TILL I CANT SEE YOUR HEAD , FUCK I COULD FEEL THE CORN AND TOMATOES, AND OTHER DIPOSED FOOD AS I TOOK A DIP .MAN WHEN ICAME UP I COULD SMELL THE STINCH OF FUCKIN LARD OR WHAT EVER , AND THEN MARCH ME BACK TO THE LOCKUP AND MAKE ME TAKE A SHOWER AND THEN JOIN THE REST IN THE DAYROOM FOR MORNING , TORCHEROUS EXERCISING , THEN IT WAS 1967 PRESIDENT NIXON HAD JUST BEEN ELECTED , MR. CURB RANTING TO US AS , IF YOU EVER GET TO VOTE IN YOUR LIFE ,YOU RE GOING TO VOTE REPUBLICAN , AND THEN HE'D MENTION SOME SHIT THAT WE MAY BE ASKED TO GO TO VEITNAM. SHIT LIKE THAT MADE ME QUESTION HIS COMPIDENCE. AS A HUMAN BEING , THIS WAS THE MAN I THINK OF WHEN I READ JACK HOTCHKINS POEM..RIGHTON JACK MICHAEL SCHWINN A-36525 1966 - 1970

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  8. I was there in 62/63. Hilltop, Wyoming Hall. It wasn't fun, but not as bad as some of the posts I've seen. I was beat down only twice by the guards and spent only two weeks in lockup. The blacks were still across the road. Mountain View opened while I was there. I had good State Brothers; we took care of each other and no one messed with us. I always wondered what happened to my State Brothers (Big Indian, 4-timer, Zebo and Red)

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  9. Does anybody know the names of the 16 boys that died during their stay?

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  10. Does anyone know about dorm 9 or annyone in the electric shop with Mr. Smith

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  11. I was at Gatesville State Boys School from 1959-1962, during the school years and went home to McAllen during the summers. I was sent there because I had gotten in trouble for fighting with a kid from another neighborhood. He pulled a knife on me and in self defense, I took it away from him and stabbed him a few times. I was only 12 years old. My Dad traveled out of the country for work and my stepmom was only 17 years old with a baby.
    My Dad had a military history and was out of the country, so my Uncles dealt with the authorities, but I don't know if they had a choice to send me to Gatesville or if it was out of their control. At home I had never had any type of harsh discipline, never been spanked and was the "baby" and grew up in a close net Hispanic family where the children were very loved and were the most important thing.
    My Uncles told me I was going to a boarding school and a counselor drove me to Gatesville. The trip took all night and I recall the counselor bought me cookies and treats. The morning we arrived there was a riot and instead of taking me to registration they took me to lockup. Instead of sending me to the place where beginners that arrive go, they put me in with other boys that had been in very serious trouble.
    IT WAS HELL. I was beaten quite a few times and working in the office as an office boy, I saw some pretty bad beatings on kids from guards. I was told by the guards to "watch out" while they beat kids (I was the office boy on weekends.) Then they would send some of the kids to clean up the bloody walls. I never had to do that. I never told my Dad or family about these things, I just told them I didn't want to go back. It was an old place and kids would just be gone one day and none of us knew what happened to them. One time while I was there, two kids killed a guard with a baseball bat. There was a lot of sexual abuse from the guards on the kids. No so much kids on kids that I knew about. If another kid touched you, the fight was on.

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  12. On of the first things that happened to me was that I was tattooed on my right leg with a number: 29635. Some of the other boys were tattooed and others weren't. I never did know what the tattoo was about, except that it was my "case number" and I didn't know why some boys had it and others didn't. It was the first tattoo every given to me.
    While at Gatesville, I tattooed a ball and chain over my numbers (which was a Black prisoner's face, missing an eye and eyebrow. A racist thing to do.) I hadn't had a girlfriend or ever been kissed yet, but I had the "State Chick" tattooed on my left arm. The next tattoo was my name on my hand. I tattooed the "State Snake" on my arm.
    My Dad was really angry that Gatesville tattooed a number on me. Many of the kids tattooed themselves with pictures, as it was a "cool" thing to do. We weren't supposed to tattoo ourselves, but we did.
    At Gatesville, I got the nickname "Monster Man" right away. Many of the boys had nicknames. There was "Yego" (horse), and "Chivo" (goat)and many others. I talked myself into the job as an office boy on the weekends which was visitors' time. I also worked in the photo shop. I got these jobs by just bothering the authorities until they finally gave me something to do. Drugs were available and were smuggled in while I was an office boy, but my expertise was smuggling in cookies, pop, shoe polish, Indian Ink and needles. The shoe polish was for our shoes. We had the chollo look going on and wanted our shoes to shine and look good.
    A "Geranimo" was when someone would yell Geranimo and all the boys that were at the place would all scatter and run and try to escape at the same time. Generally this happened when the companies were together and groups of boys (sometimes hundreds) would run at the same time. The guards would send dogs and men on horses after the boys. When they were caught, the kids were beaten and placed in the "hole" and would lose their job,if they had one. You had to run if a Geranimo was called. If I knew there was a Geranimo coming up and the guards had heard about it and were planning to stop it, I would warn the kids and I knew about the guards plans because I was the office boy.
    I was never involved in a Geranimo because they took off from chow and I worked in the kitchen butcher shop on the Hill when Geranimos were called. I would have had to run if I wouldn't have been in the kitchen.

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  13. While at Gatesville, I was taken to met my caseworker. I didn't say or do nothing and I never see them again. The only places I lived while at Gatesville were the following companies: Nevada, Ohio, Louisana, Washington and Rhode Island. Rhode Island Company was the highest in rank amoung the kids, as this is where the oldest kids that called the shots lived. While at Gatesville, I did learn butchering and photography skills. I was lucky compared to many of the other boys there.
    The whites and Hispanics didn't usually mix. The boys divided themselves up based on where they were from. There was the Houston group, the San Antonio group, the Corpus Christie group and the Southern Texas group. The Blacks were totally separate.
    The summer after I had been in Gatesville, I returned to McAllen and got in trouble for choking a policeman. My friend Richard and I were walking home early and the police came and roughed us up for no reason we knew of. I ended up choking one of the officers that had a hold of Richard. Richard also got sent to Gatesville and I never saw him again until over 40 years later. He was charged with attempted murder on the police officer, although I was actually the one who did the most damage to the officer. I got sent back to Gatesville and became what the kids called a "two timer". After our name and number we would put this sign "II" meaning we were a "two timer". This was our own creation.
    As I neared the age of 17, I was told that I would be "treated as an adult" and would be transferred to Mountain View, which was another facility for the older kids. But my Uncle somehow made arrangements for me to go to Mexico to work with a Circus and live with a Circus family, which I think kept me out of Mountain View or an adult facility. The Circus family were flyers and animal people. Thus, began my career as an exotic animal trainer, which I have done successfully for over 40 years. I have been fortunate to travel all over the world with elephants, tigers, lions, bears and some very interesting people.
    However, Gatesville has been my nightmare over all these 40 some years. When I think back at how young I was and that my Mother had died when I was 8 and my Father was out of the country working, I see that what I needed was some fatherly help and adult guidance. My dyslexia (undiagnosed at the time) made school difficult and frustrating for me. Unfortunately, Gatesville was not really a solution to what I needed, but a nightmare world of abuse.
    I am now retired and ill and want to get my story about my experiences at Gatesville written down while I am still around.
    PS. If anyone knows anything about Gregory Theall, who was my pal at Gatesville, please contact me via this blog. I would be interested in hearing from anyone else who was at Gatesville when I was, or who was taken away while I was there. We never knew what happened to each other.
    ElephantRaul

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    1. Just read this blog and I was there 60-61 "D" company Michigan. Rackin Jack I remember well it was he and I who took the guard to the hospital in a station wagon that night he was killed with the b bat there was a Geranimo but only in D co.I also worked in the clothes room and photo lab.Mountain View was just about completed when I left and I was glad cause rumor had it that all 2 timers starting at the hill would be going first I don't know if that ever came to be or not but I fit that label.

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  14. "El Half-Moon"....My name is Gilbert Jimenez. I was a "3-Timer" at Gatesville State School for Boys. I was at Riverside, the Valley, Hilltop and Mountain View. My 3 stays were from 1965-thru-1972. My nickname was Half-Moon or Chavalon. I got out from Mountain View in May 31st. 1972 after a law suite against the state for Child abuse. If any one out there remembers me, give me a shout out. I worked at the Gym, store, and the Auto-Mechanic shop. I have some stories to share with the Public at a later date. Simon Carnal... "El Half-Moon"

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    1. Do you remember a guard Mr. Maxwell. He was a nice and fair man that worked @ the State when you were there?

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    2. Jim Harmon AKA snakeJune 23, 2016 at 7:28 AM

      Nick name was Snake, the guards and dog caught me low crawling across the field. Did my time as a 2 timer 62 to 65. Terrace 1,3,4,and 5. Then transfer to Washington hall Was there when a kid by the name of Shoemaker hit his teacher in the heard with a hammer. Knew a "shot" Mark Pope nickname Brenda Lee. Was there when Taylor and Morris got in the Head superintendent house and pull a gun on him and his family. Some of the guards there love to beat on you i.e. Cooper, Rutherford, Williams, Clark and Davis. Got to work on the farm milking and feeding the hogs.

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    3. Did you happen to know Ed Stringer or another guy, last name Prescott? 1972 at Gatesville State School for Boys? I'm trying to learn more of my father's history.

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  15. The last sentence to the "Gatesville Cannonball"
    He'll tell that he loves you and always will be true. But after he get's your maiden head he'll say To Hell With You.
    1957-1959. C-B-A Company

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  16. Greetings! Our Priest Father Anthony Weber from Our Lady Of Lourdes used to bring some of “the boys” from the State School to have a meal/fellowship to The Church. I was very young ( under 7) Thru Fr.Weber we learned not to fear but to treat all as children of God.
    Quite a learning experience for me!
    My heart hurts for all those that were so mistreated. May God bless each of you abundantly!

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