A shooting occurs at the notorious Crown Hotel in 1924, and two local papers publish different details.
__Feb. 21, 1924__
• Interstate American and the Poplar Bluff Republican agree a man was shot 10 p.m. last night in a notorious Poplar Bluff hotel. Beyond that, details are sketchy.
Crown Hotel porter Asa Borders is on the run after shooting patron Oscar Hoffman, possibly in self-defense, on the third floor of the hotel last night. The primary witness was hotel manager W.M. Verbel. Verbel reportedly heard a disturbance a couple minutes after telling Borders to escort Hoffman to his room — one paper reports he only heard the gunshot, the other says there were loud voices first — and investigated. He encountered Borders running the opposite way, either in the third floor hallway or on the stairs, and Borders said he shot Hoffman after the man attacked him with a knife. Verbel saw several deep slashes in Border’s coat. Borders ran away while Verbel continued onwards and forced open the door of Hoffman’s room to find him conscious and bleeding from a head wound on the floor.
The bullet had struck Hoffman’s left ear, traveled along the scalp and exited at the back of his head, creating a wound several inches long. He was taken to a Caldwell Hospital and later transferred to St. Louis.
Police searched for the knife and gun, but located neither.
As for motive, Verbel told the Interstate American he believed Hoffman was drunk when he arrived and heard him verbally abusing Borders, who is Black. The paper also published the witness account of J.A. Morey, Borders’ part-time employer, who spoke with him several hours after the shooting. Borders claimed Hoffman became violent after refusing to pay for a room he’d booked the night prior. He also said Hoffman shot at him and showed an apparent bullet hole in his coat, without mentioning he shot Hoffman. Borders sheltered in Morey’s hayloft around 3 a.m. this morning but disappeared when police visited the property a few hours later.
The Republican quotes a telegram from Hoffman to his wife, saying the argument started when Borders falsely accused him of owing him 50 cents.
Verbel had never met Hoffman before yesterday, he told the Interstate, and he described Borders as a model employee used to dealing with difficult customers. He didn’t know Borders carried a gun.
Hoffman is a resident of Poplar Bluff and a mechanic for Missouri Pacific Railroad. The Republican states he arrived back in town on a late train from St. Louis and decided to stay at the hotel instead of walking home. It did not report Verbel’s suspicion he was drunk.
He is expected to make a full recovery. Prosecuting attorney R.I. Cope is seeking Border’s arrest but charges are pending.
The Crown Hotel was previously in the news after a police raid captured 24 men illegally gambling in its basement on Feb. 9. The hotel closed shortly after.
__Feb. 21, 1949__
• Construction union leaders announce they’re unable to identify the man who made a bomb threat against a house last week.
Earl Baumgardner received a phone call threatening to dynamite his new home under construction on Barron Road unless he changed plans for the plastering. Local union leaders launched independent investigations into the threat and found no suspects, they told the Daily American Republic in a signed letter.
“So far we have not found anyone that would have any excuse to make any complaint about the work on that job being unfair to union labor...The different organizations of the building trades and the individual members are proud of our work and as citizens of this community we have a reputation to protect,” the letter said.
__Feb. 21, 1974__
• Gary Weatherspoon, 21, of Poplar Bluff was arrested far from home on aggravated robbery charges.
Weatherspoon was taken into custody in Waco, Texas yesterday and is charged with robbing a drive-in grocery store at gunpoint on Feb. 4. He allegedly stole of $1,000. Weatherspoon is also wanted in Butler County for felony forgery and on a federal warrant for fleeing the state to avoid prosecution.