Eugene Clyde Moore, Deputy Sheriff

Atoka County Sheriffs Office
 

The evening of Friday, August 5, 1932, Deputy Moore and Sheriff C. G. Maxwell were at a dance in Stringtown, 6 miles north of Atoka, to keep the peace. Soon the officers noticed two men drinking in a parked car. As the officers approached the car the occupants, Clyde Barrow and Raymond Hamilton, opened fire killing Deputy Moore and seriously wounding Sheriff Maxwell. Moore became the first of ten law enforcement officers to be slain by the Bonnie and Clyde gang. Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker were shot and killed by officer in Louisiana on May 23, 1934. Raymond Hamilton was put to death by electrocution in Texas in January 1935.

 

Benjamin F Pearson, Deputy Sheriff 

Atoka County Sheriffs Office 

 A dance was held at a local home near Caney on the evening of Friday, October 14, 1910. A man named George Brown had been hired to play the fiddle at the dance.  Brown showed up at the dance drunk and disorderly and was told to leave. Becoming very angry, Brown drew a .32 automatic pistol and began shooting out the lights and windows. Party-goers left the dance and one summoned Deputy Sheriff Ben Pearson from Caney.  About 10 P.M. as Deputy Pearson along with a Deputy Sanders were in route to the dance they came upon Brown and two companions walking on the road toward them. As the deputies approached Brown, Deputy Pearson demanded that he surrender his weapon, Brown instead shot Deputy Pearson twice, once in the heart and once in the stomach killing him.

Deputy Sanders, unarmed, was unable to prevent Brown from escaping. A large posse was soon formed and began looking for the fugitive and a $750 reward was offered.  It was suspected that Brown escaped to Mexico where his father and brother lived as he was never located.

Deputy Pearson was survived by his wife Delta, a 14 year old daughter named Pearley and a 10 year old son named Leroy.