Today’s Texas Youth Council/Commission is a great example of mischievous legislation that’s resulted in poor management practices and useless programs designed to further destroy a child’s chances at a life outside of state supervision. All the while decreasing public safety and feeding a booming prison industry. Since Morales vs Turman ordered closing the Gatesville State School for Boys this mischievous legislation has attempted to forces tyc to be something it can’t possibly ever achieve. Today’s tyc only stands to fool the public tax payers of this state, that it’s a rehab with resocialization programs that have the capability to civilize the worst of the worst juvenile delinquents in the state of Texas.
The abusive correctional culture that Morales vs Turman attempted to eradicate was just simply redistributed to other facilities around the state. Some say it was a ploy by government officials to turn our old reform school over to the feared Texas Department of Corrections to keep people from nosing around the buried atrocity’s perpetrated by those who ran the old reform school. I suppose one could base this thinking on the premises that no one dare jack with tdc. Look what happened to Bonnie and Clyde. While others may see our Legislators each session continue to look for ways to criminalize freedoms in order to feed its citizenry into the booming prison business. Today’s tyc with its de-socializing programs keeps a continuous feed of bad seeds into our communities that corrupts even more citizenry who are fed into the booming prison business. We have become a society who has found that incarcerating it citizens is good business.
During the discovery phases of Morales vs Turman state boys and girls as well as many state employees put their life in jeopardy to testify, only to have legislators build up the monster tyc is today. The child abuse in today’s tyc is worst than before Morales vs turman. Bruises heal but programs implemented that result in mental anguish and the continuance of breeding hopelessness can last a lifetime while its effect on the general public is devastating.
Somehow the public needs to be made aware of what our elected officials are doing, the effects of over criminalizing our freedoms, piling more bureaucracy in its building of our state’s juvenile in-justice system, the effects it has on the children, their parents, the people of this great state of Texas. We state boys are a powerful force, we shut down the most notorious reform school in the history of juvenile justice. If we can survive Gatesville we can do anything. Join me and others for a state boy reunion in Gatesville and we can start to figure a way to bring public awareness to this crucial issue our society faces. Join the mailing list oldschool@ironguardiansnt.org for upcoming information.
I was in this reform school three times. First two times was in the Valley and from there Hackberry then Terrace. This was between the years 1960 and 1964. Spent a lot of time in Lockup on the Hill. I remember the head guard was named Blum and he smoked cigars.
ReplyDeleteIn lockup we would be bussed to dig white rocks for they were then building Mountain View which, back then, was to be for reform school boys that were 18 and up. I remember a guy they called "Catfish" who was in on the escape where a reform school guard was killed. I later met him at the Ellis Unit in the Texas prison. One of those involved was executed from what I understand and "Catfish" got like 30 years.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if they have lists of the boys who were there back in those years?
This is the incident here which I have copied from the cite listed:
ReplyDeleteIn August, 1961, the brutal murder of a Gatesville guard confirmed this
view in the eyes of many observers. A staged fight lured the victim, 43-yearold
Billy Malone, a retired Air Force mechanic, into the sleeping area of a
dormitory around midnight. Nine boys attacked Malone, beating him to
death with a baseball bat before fleeing the facility. An uproar ensued, led by
local attorney and longtime training school defender Harry Flentge, who
blamed "theory-happy psychologists" who ran Gatesville by "remote-control"
from Austin.51
From page 16 http://www.criminaljusticecoalition.org/files/userfiles/juvenilejustice/reports/TCJC_Report_Part_2_for_web.pdf
I BET THE REASON THE BOYS KILL THIS FUCKER ,, HE WAS PROBABLY ABUSEING THEM , ONE AT A TIME ,, HE PROBABLY DESERVED TO GET WHAT HE GOT . I KNOW THIS BEINING IN THE OLD TIME SEVICE ARMY NAVY AIRFORCE WHAT HAVE YOU . HE DISHED OUT SOME SHIT , AND THATS WHAT HE GOT BACK ,,,,, NO LOVE LOST HERE .!!!
DeleteI'm a distant relative of Billie Malone. I remember attending his funeral as a child. I don't doubt there was abuse by some guards, but I don't believe Billie was one of them. A baseball bat was smuggled into the dorm by a trustee. A disturbance was created so that Billie would enter the dorm room where he was viciously hit in the head multiple times. Not all of those that escaped participated in the murder. The remaining boys not involved in the crime and did not escape tried to help Billie by calling for help. Billie's wallet and car keys were taken during the attack, and his car stolen. The main suspect was Charles E. Lowe of Sundown, Texas. I would like to know the outcome of the case. Yes, I'm sure here were some abusive guards, but that does not mean Billie Malone was. He left behind four young children.
DeleteAT THE T.Y.C. .I WAS IN DORM 5 IN HACKBERRY MR.PARR WAS THE MORNING DORM MAN, HE TOO WAS ALSO A MEAN SOB. BUT WAS FAIR, BUT SCRUB EVERYMORNING THOSE BLACK MARKS OFF THE FLOOR WE DID JUST WITH CAN OF WATER AND STEELWOOL, THE BEATLES MUSIC WAS A BIG THING BUT SO WAS JAMES BROWN, THATS WAS THE DEAL WHEN IN WAS FINALLY TRANSFERED TO THE LIVE OAK I WAS EXSPOSED TO ALL SOUL MUSIC OF THE TIMES, THE DORM MAN OF COMPANY B, MR. HAYNES A TALL COLORED MAN WITH A GOLD OPEN FACE CROWN. HE WAS A REAL M. F. AT TIMES AND SIDED WITH THE COLORED A LOT, HE’D MAKE THE WHITE KIDS SIT ON THE GRASS AND MAKE US WATCH THEM PLAY THE FOOT BALL MOVIES. TO LIKING OF MR. HAYNES COMPANY B. LIVEOAK SCHOOL MARCH 1968 FEB 12 1969. MY CASE WORKER MR. MYRICK HE GOT ME IN TO THE JOB CORPS DOWN IN CAMP GEARY AT THE SAN MARCOS AIR FORCE BASE. I GOT IN TROUBLE WITH PAROLE AND WAS SENT BACK THEY PUT ME ON THE HILLTOP, I THINK IT WAS LOUISIANA HALL. I DIDN’T LIKE THE HILLTOP. MOST OF THE BOYS THERE WERE BIGGER THAN I, SO I WAS DISLIKED BECASE OF IT AND I WAS WHITE. I GOT TO GO BACK TO COMPANY B BACK WITH MR.HAYNES. I FELT OK THERE, BECAUSE I KNEW WHAT TO EXSPECT. ANOTHER OLD MAN THERE AT LIVE OAK MR.ROY BLUM HE WAS OK. HE’D LET US SMOKE EARLY IN THE MORNIN BY ANNOUNCING (LIGHT EM UP). I WAS SENT TO TERRACE THAT SUMMER IN 1969 AFTER THE MOON LANDING ON T.V. TERRACE ANOTHER RACIAL HELL WITH MORE F--KIN COLORED BOYS WHO DIDNT LIKE US WHITES. BUT THEY HATED THE SPANISH BOYS MORE, AND THEY HATED THE COLORED EVEN MORE. YOU COULD’NT SAY BLACK SHOE POLISH THERE. YOU HAD TO SAY DARK POLISH OR SUFFER A RAT PACK BY COLORED BOYS. LATTER I WAS SENT BACK TO THE HILLTOPAN. I FINALLY GOT TO GO TO A HALF-WAY HOUSE IN FORT WORTH, WHERE AFTER ABOUT SIX MONTHS,I WAS MOST FORTUNATE TO ENLIST IN THE UNITED STATES ARMY. THANK GOD I’M FINALLY OUT OF TEXAS! PRAISE THE LORD , I’M FREE , FREE AT LAST NO MORE TEXAS OR THEIR BAD F--KIN ATTUDES ,MONTEREY FORT ORD HERE I COME! THAT WAS THE BEST THING I EVER DID TO GET OUT OF TEXAS AND RETURN TO GOOD OLD CALIFORNIA WHERE I CAME TO LEARN.
ReplyDeleteIF I COULD EXPRESS HOW MUCH I HATED THE ASS HOLES WHO GOT AWAY WITH BLOODY CHILD ABUSE , I KNOW THEY ARE PROBABLY ALL DEAD NOW , I WOULD LIKE TO PISS ON THEIR FUCKING GRAVES .. YES THIS IS MICHAEL SCHWINN A - 36525 I THANK GOD THAT THESE OLD FUCKERS ARE DEAD , AND TO THE COLORED BOYS WHO GAVE ME SHIT BECAUSE I WAS WHITE ,I HOPE YOU COLORED BOYS HAVE MADE A CAREAR IN THE TEXAS PRISON SYSTEM,AND HOPE YOU STAYED THERE AFTER ALL THIS YOUR HOME ,,BOY
ReplyDeletethank you once again sheldon for creating this site , sincerly michael andrew schwinn A36525,1966 to 1970
ReplyDeleteper Michael's comments above...I knew we were there at the same time (68-69) just from reading his post. Parr and Haynes both subbed over at Sycamore and my recollections mirrored Michael's - except that Parr almost choked me to death one day with the larynx-pinch manuver. McClure was our regular dorm man and he was a good apple. At Sycamore we were mostly white boys anyway so I didn't see a lot of the racial stuff described elsewhere. Being from South Texas, most of my homies en la corre were Mexican dudes but they didn't like me much because I refused to count. I had a big white buddy named Cody and a kick-ass black buddy named Jerry (he was a mean son-of-a-bitch). The 3 of us were blood brothers because none of us counted. Which meant we got into a lot of fights; but no body fucked us either. Buncha queers, that's my lasting memory of Gatesville. I was one of the barbers. I think there were 3 of us + the real barber man. So I went to all the schools at one time or another (except Mountainview, nobody got in or out of there). I haven't seen anyone comment about this but Gatesville then was segregated first by age; and then by grade level. So Hilltop was the 16 year old grade school students - Hackberry and Terrace were junior high - and Sycamore was high school. I always thought Terrace was the toughest. When we woluld walk to church on Sunday mornings, we would always fall in with the Terrace boys and they would try to start fights in the marching line. Way too much testosterone.
ReplyDeleteSo yeah, it was a brutal, shitty place. And in my case, the best thing that ever happened to me - The only time in my life I ever made good grades in school. I would watch those 2-timers and 3-timers coming back in, and say to myself "No fuckin' way I am EVER coming back to this hellhole." -Howard, Sycamore Dorm V
There is a blog post here about the seg times
ReplyDeleteI was there when the blacks were across the highway we were completly seperated if we had'nt been who knows how many kids would have been hurt or killed
ReplyDeleteMy dad told.me about this, if you knew him contact me. His name was johnny yates, my email is jaque.yates@yahoo.com
DeleteI am looking for information on Janice Plentl. She was director of nursing at this "home" and was brutally murdered by her texas state trooper husband(2/69). I am the sister-in-law of Janice's son. He discovered his murdered mom, but was raised by father's parents so he wasn't told what really happened.Any information you all have would be appreciated. His father(Wallace) committed suicide in prison. Thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteIWAS IN THE ADJUSTMENT CENTER MOST OF THE YEAR 1967, THERE WAS A MAN NAMED MR. CUPPS WHO WORKED THE AFTERNOON SHIFT TIME BED TIME LIGHTS OUT , AS THE LOAD OF US IN LOCKUP WENT UP STAIRS TO THE BUNK AREA , I WOULD WAIT TO BE LAST UPSTAIRS , MR CUPPS WOULD GIVE ME A COUPLE OF TOKES OFF HIS TARYTON CIGARETT AS I'D HEAD UP STAIRS , HEY MR. CUPPS IS PROBABLY DEAD NOW BUT HE WAS A DEPUTY SHERIFF IN CORYELL COUNTY I SAW HIM ONCE AT THE RECEPTION CENTER HE HAD ON HIS GUN , JUST AS LOW AS IT HUNG AROUND HIS WAIST, I TOLD HIM HELLO AND HE SAID ( HOWDY SWINN ) AS TO MY NAME ITS MICHAEL ANDREW SCHWINN A- 36525 1966 -1970. THANKS MR. CUPPS
ReplyDelete1959 I entered "F" unit age 15. A red neck guard named Perry pounded every boy in "F" because a boy spit gum in the water fountain. Jack Painter "Rack-N-Jack" was the superintendent. I'd been moved to "B" Co. when Jack, two guards came in the Gym. Jack picked a big farm boy to fight. If a boy did not fight, Jack beat him up anyway with his leather gloves. Farm boy knocked Jack down twice, kicked his ass good. The rest of my time I never saw Jack come back to fight any of us. I worked in the close room. We walked to the dinning room in lines, two-wide.
ReplyDeleteThe shower room is where we went to fight. Jack staff had horses, blood hounds, guns and whips. Often the old WW!! siren on "A" Bldg sounded at night. I'd hear the hounds. It was said you might have a 2% chance to get away. Some were rope drug behind a horse, tossed in lock up, beat, got more time. Boys that didn't return, may have been disposed of, some were buried under the horse barn. I did 6-Mo. and moved from Texas forever! Dwight- DT
To Michael Schwinn: My name is Ray ,I was in hackberry in 73,my brother in 71. My brother was in dorm 5 with Mr parr, and I remember him very well. I was in dorm 3 ,Mr kettler, Mr coward and mr. harrod on the weekends. Mrs Web was the dorm mother, and Mrs Marsh was the kithen lady. I kept in touch with Mrs Marsh until she passed.I recall a Mr Long as the supervisor there with Mr. Gardner.I was one of the lucky ones , I worked in the kitchen and was always there, kept me out of a lot of trouble.
ReplyDeletejust reading on this place my dad was in from 1965-1969, got some old pictures from there, dont know who they all are, some of you guys might.
ReplyDeleteEmail to me my dad was in and out around that time. Jaque.yates@yahoo.com
DeleteThat would be cool to maybe post some of your pics. How is your Dad doing today?
ReplyDeleteDue to time in gatesville probably, he had a problem with law enforcement and was shot in a conflict with the law, but he had told me many stories about that place. His name is Ronnie Bumgarner if anyone knew him i would like for someone to comment. I will get pictures out to scan and post A.S.A.P.. Thanks for commenting back on the first post.
ReplyDeleteI found pictures of last names, prichard, coker, hotchkiss, house, griffin, one nickname Fatboy, thompson,wright, and whole bunch more one pic of my dad and four guys from electric shop.
ReplyDeleteHEY BUMGARNER YOU MUST OF BEEN ON THE HILL OR RIVERSIDE? EAY
DeleteWas anyone there when Robert Sawyer,Keith Selleres,Catfish,Rob Lowe,Jerry Dacus would of been around 1959-60-61 "D" Co.
ReplyDeleteDavid
DeleteWas there 59-60 and 2nd time came thru lockup. At least one of those names I am familiar with and there are a few stories I remember that I have shared with just a couple of people
My home town is San Antonio
no my dad was in from 1964 for 2 years, then paroled then went the second time from1966 to 1969, not for sure what company, help me ouy if anybody knoes, please and thank you.
ReplyDeleteAnybody know anything about Dorm 9 ? Think thats where my dad was.
ReplyDeleteTo Roger Pirkle
ReplyDeleteMy name is Tommy and I was there in 60'-61' along with Catfish and the rest of the guys who escaped that night when the guard was killed in "D" company.I've got some pictures of Catfish along with several others because I was in the print shop. u stated that one of them was executed u don't know his name do u ?The report states that a fight lured the guard, the way I remember it several of the guys started talking and cusing and that is what lured him out,to some people I guess that would be considerd a fight but not to me.Talk to u later if u want.
The man that died that night was my grandfather. He had 3 sons and a daughter. I'm just looking for more info.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what else I can tell you. Like I said, I was there that night. If it's any consolation, I really liked him. He was a kind and gentle person, too kind and gentle to be working at a place like that. If you have any specific questions, let me know.
DeleteTo all those who were in The Reform Schools in Gatesville, Texas in 1965 through 1969; and even earlier or later than this time period, I have to say that I respect you. I know that it has been a long time ago, but damn it..., we got to see those beautiful curtains come closing down to an era that was truly wild and violent and it was called the Wild Wild west Days. In 1965 -'66 I did 10 months at Riverside School at the A-3 Unit. And on my second tour in 1965 I did 11 months at Louisiana Hall at Hill Top. And from here I was shipped to Mountain view for 22 more months from 1967 through 1969. At Mountain View I was at Dorm 10. Needless to say, I still remember the experiences here at Gatesville like as if it were yesterday. And as a Chicano..., we had no other choice but to "Count!, that was the Law and still is for me today." I am not lying, I can still see this old ancient place clearly in my mind today, and I am 74 years old. This experience and the suffering that went with here has left an lasting impact on my mind just like the 6 years in the Army's Infantry and Combat in Vietnam in 1970 and '71. And just like doing hard time at T.D.C.in 1980 through '85 at the Eastham Unit and Ramsey One. I can never forget all the hard and tedious labor and the Silence this Notorious Reform Schools Demanded. It was so bad here that the whole Land where these Schools were once are now haunted because of the evil that permeated this awful place back then. Breaking rocks, sweeping streets, polishing floors, cleaning shit; horse shit, cow shit, dog shit, and our shit. And the many types of sadistic punishments we were subject to everyday. Damn it, how can anyone say to us "Get over it!" Are you serious!? And the attempts at escapes and the Grease traps and the cleaning of the Zest-Pools at Riverside school with Honey Buckets in hand. And cutting grass by hand. And at Mountain View, it was hell! I worked in the Kitchen washing dishes and pots and pans, but throughout my time here I made hundreds of friends and got to eat other good foods besides Mexican poor man foods. And I got three squares a day, and showered very day, and clean clothes to boot. How can anyone get over that kind of experience I ask? If you have been here more than once, you are somebody. Take care everybody and stay out of trouble and stay clear of T.D.C.. Respectfully, Ruben n. Gutierrez From San Marcos, Texas
ReplyDelete