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Eugene P. Booze

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Eugene Parker Booze
BornJuly 14, 1878
Adams County, Mississippi, U.S.
DiedNovember 7, 1939
Greenville, Bolivar County, Mississippi, U.S.
EducationNatchez Junior College
Occupation(s)Businessman, planter, political organizer, Black community leader
Political partyRepublican
SpouseMary Cordelia Montgomery (m. 1901–1939; his death)
Children2
RelativesIsaiah Montgomery (father in-law)

Eugene Parker Booze (July 14, 1878 – November 7, 1939) was an American businessman, planter, political organizer, and Black community leader from Clarksdale, Mississippi and later Mound Bayou, Mississippi.[1][2] He was one of the wealthiest African American men in Mississippi at the time of his death. Booze was entangled in family drama during the last few years of his life which ended with his homicide. His former home, the Booze House (c. 1910), is part of the Mound Bayou Historic District. He also used the names E. P. Booze and Eugene Booze.

Early life and family

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Eugene Parker Booze was born on July 14, 1878, in Adams County, Mississippi. He was described as being light skinned, and being able to pass as White.[2] His older sister Trenma Ophelia Booze was married in 1893, to Charles Banks (1873–1923), the "Wizard of Mound Bayou".[3][4] Booze attended Natchez Junior College, and apprenticed in merchandising and cotton trading.

He married Mary Cordelia Montgomery (later known as Mary Booze) in 1901, the daughter of the founder of Mound Bayou, Isaiah Thornton Montgomery.[4] Together they had two children.[5]

Career

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Booze was on the executive committee of the National Negro Business League in 1907, and 1910, representing Colorado Springs, Colorado.[6] In 1909, Booze co-founded alongside Charles Banks the Farmer's Cooperative Mercantile Company in Mound Bayou, a store to sell affordable items to farmers.[7][4]

Booze was a delegate at the 1924 Republican National Convention for the third district of Mound Bayou.[8] His wife, Mary Booze, served on the Republican National Committee, and was the first African American woman to do so.[9]

Booze owned extensive cotton lands, and was described at Mound Bayou's wealthiest citizen at the time of his death.[10] The Booze House (c. 1910), 308 West Main South, is part of the Mound Bayou Historic District.[11][12]

Estate issues and death

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There was a Montgomery family feud over Isaiah Thornton Montgomery's estate after his death in 1924, Booze was the estate administrator.[13] Some of the Montgomery daughters were not given fair shares of the estate, and the case was brought to court.

In 1927, Booze and his wife Mary were charged with poisoning Isaiah Thornton Montgomery.[13]

In October 1939, Estelle Montgomery Booze, the daughter of Isaiah Thornton Montgomery, and the sister in-law to Eugene Parker Booze, attempted to enter Eugene's house in Mound Bayou (which was formerly her own father's house), this was her second attempt to enter, and she had been banned from entering by court order.[5] Eugene called the police and she resisted arrest, brandishing butcher knives. Estelle was killed by two deputies, in what newspapers described as possible "foul play".[5][14]

A few weeks later and in what was connected to his sister-in-laws death, Eugene Booze was ambushed and shot multiple times on November 6, 1939, in Mound Bayou.[5][15][16] He died the next day in the hospital in Greenville, Mississippi.[5][15]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Proceedings of the National Negro Business League: Its First Meeting Held in Boston, Massachusetts, August 23 and 24, 1900". National Negro Business League (U.S.). J. R. Hamm. February 11, 1901 – via Google Books.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  2. ^ a b McMillen, Neil R. (1990). Dark Journey: Black Mississippians in the Age of Jim Crow. University of Illinois Press. p. 20. ISBN 978-0-252-06156-1.
  3. ^ Jackson, Jr., David H. (July 10, 2017). "Banks, Charles". Mississippi Encyclopedia. Center for Study of Southern Culture. Retrieved 2025-04-19.
  4. ^ a b c Kranz, Rachel (2004). "Banks, Charles (1873–1923) banker, town developer, entrepreneur". African-American Business Leaders and Entrepreneurs. Infobase Publishing. p. 13. ISBN 978-1-4381-0779-0.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Eugene Booze Dies of Wounds". McComb Daily Journal. November 8, 1939. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Executive Committee National Negro Business League; 1. J. B. Bell, Houston, Tex.; 2. S.E. Courtney, M.D., Boston, Mass.; 3. W. L. Taylor, Richmond, Va.; 4. T. Thomas Fortune, New York City, Chairman; 5. N.T. Velar, Brinton, Pa.; 6. J. C. Jackson, Lexington, Ky.; 7. M. M. Lewey, Pensacola, Fla.; 8. E. P. Booze, Colorado Springs, Col.; 9. S. A. Furniss, M.D., Indianapolis, Ind.; 10. John E. Bush, Little Rock, Ark.; 11. James C. Napier, Nashville, Tenn". NYPL Digital Collections.
  7. ^ Feldman, Lynne; Ingham, John N.; Feldman, Lynne B. (February 11, 1994). African-American Business Leaders: A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 9780313272530 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ "Negro Year Book". Negro Year Book Publishing Company. February 11, 1925. p. 245 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ Nowlin, William Felbert (February 11, 1970). The Negro in American National Politics. Russell & Russell. p. 75. ISBN 9780846213673 – via Google Books.
  10. ^ "Mississippi: Booze Is Dead". Time. November 20, 1939 – via content.time.com.
  11. ^ "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Mound Bayou Historic District" (PDF). September 11, 2013.
  12. ^ "Mound Bayou Historic District". National Register of Historic Places, Digital Archive on NPGallery.
  13. ^ a b "Mound Bayou Row Becoming Serious". Clarion-Ledger. August 6, 1927. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Mound Bayou Founder's Daughter Slain After Leaving St. Louis; Hint Foul Play". The St. Louis Argus. October 6, 1939. p. 1, 12. Retrieved 2025-04-19 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ a b "Eugene Booze Fatally Wounded From Ambush". Detroit Tribune (obituary). November 11, 1939.
  16. ^ "Early Arrests in Slaying of Booze". The Shreveport Journal. November 8, 1939. p. 10. Retrieved 2025-04-19 – via Newspapers.com.
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