Black Sheep Sunday - Part 12 (1958-1960) of From small town Georgia boy to notorious Texas (and beyond!) con man

 

This post is the 12th in a series of posts about the life of my cousin and con man Elridge Solomon Price, Sr.  You can find the other installments here:  

Part 1 (Preview up to 1913)  

Part 2 (1913-1930) 

Part 3 (1931-1934) 

Part 4 (1935-1939)  

Part 5 (1940) 

Part 6 (1941-1943) 

Part 7 (1944-1946)  

Part 8 (1947) 

Part 9 (1948-1950)

Part 10 (1951-1955)

Part 11 (1956-1957)

The year 1958 started out easy enough.  The Supreme Court had ruled on whose lien should take priority - Elridge's workers (mechanics lien) or the government (tax lien).  While the local and state courts took the workers' side, of course the IRS took it to the Federal Supreme Court and they ruled that the tax lien should take priority.  Shocker!  Of course, everyday folks did not agree with this finding.

Newspapers.com, Pampa Daily News, Pampa, Texas,
Sunday, January 05, 1958, Page 4

A whole year went by with no news about ole Elridge.  But in January 1959, Elridge's luck went from bad to worse with the dismissal of his appeal on the sentence he received in Georgia in 1957.

Newspapers.com, The Official Daily Court Record, New Orleans, Louisiana,
Tuesday, January 27, 1959, Page 1

Newspapers.com, The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia,
Friday, February 06, 1959, Page 7

In an Elridge Price typical move, he ran.  He did not turn  himself in to start his prison sentence, and he disappeared.  The manhunt was on.  

Newspapers.com, San Angelo Evening Standard, San Angelo, Texas,
Wednesday, February 11, 1959, Page 2

Newspapers.com, The San Angelo Weekly Standard, San Angelo, Texas,
Friday, February 13, 1959, Page 6

Newspapers.com, The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia,
Thursday, April 16, 1959, Page 6

Newspapers.com, The Colton Courier, Colton, California,
Thursday, December 17, 1959, Page 8

Newspapers.com, Medford Mail Tribune, Medford, Oregon,
Thursday, December 17, 1959, Page 7

Newspapers.com, San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco, California,
Friday, December 18, 1959, Page 5

Newspapers.com, Redlands Daily Facts, Redlands, California,
Saturday, December 19, 1959, Page 4

Newspapers.com, Arizona Republic, Phoenix, Arizona,
Saturday, December 19, 1959, Page 59

Newspapers.com, The San Bernardino County Sun, San Bernardino, California,
Sunday, December 20, 1959, Page 6

Newspapers.com, Rialto Record, Rialto, California,
Monday, December 21, 1959, Page 10

Newspapers.com, Daily Press (formerly The Victor Press), Victorville, California,
Thursday, December 31, 1959, Page 1

Happy New Year 1960, Elridge!! You're caught!

Newspapers.com, The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia,
Saturday, January 02, 1960, Page 8

Newspapers.com, El Paso Herald-Post, El Paso, Texas,
Saturday, January 02, 1960, Page 16

Newspapers.com, The Daily Advance, Lynchburg, Virginia,
Saturday, January 02, 1960, Page 1

It may seem that I share a lot of news stories that say the same thing over and over.  However, many of the articles are just different enough... they add an interesting bit of information to the story.  Take for example this next article... the last paragraph took me by surprise.  It also saddened me because I so wanted Edith to escape her life with Elridge unscathed.  

Newspapers.com, The Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati, Ohio,
Sunday, January 03, 1960, Page 3

Newspapers.com, The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia,
Monday, January 04, 1960, Page 2

That is all.  Nothing more the rest of 1960. They must have moved him to a prison at some point, but it was never printed in a newspaper I could find.

Check back next week for the finale of this series.  Yes, folks, I'm sorry but we are approaching the end of this story.  It's been quite a ride.  But don't leave now.  The story isn't over until it's over.