Chapter 2: The Death Of The Black Republic

Tim Patton was a Marine and Piling Contractor. He had been born and raised in Pritchard a city adjoining Mobile Alabama. His father had been the owner of the business before he was killed by a senseless drive by shooting on the main street of the city. Witnesses said that it was done by a car load of blacks. One of them had pointed a gun at Tim's father and fired it five times into his chest.

Tim's Father had been waiting for the traffic light to change. It was just another "Drive by shooting" !!

Tim had been a Navy Pilot and it was near his time to re-enlist. He had asked for an early discharge and had returned home to manage his father's business. Tim married his high school sweet heart when he got his wings. He had been stationed at Pensacola Florida and she had stayed with her mother in Pritchard. They were only an hour apart.

Tim's Father had purchased an island near Pritchard on the Mobile River years before. He had built docks, a warehouse and office there.

After Tim came home from the Navy he built a home on the island. It was a nice place and his loving wife liked living out there.

It was only a ten minute drive to her mother's apartment in Pritchard.

The business made money, plenty to keep his mother living in luxury and Tim and his wife able to spend as they pleased.

Soon after Tim left the Navy he bought a big amphibian air plane. It was a twin engine monster but would carry six passengers and several hundred pounds of luggage. It could take off and land in less than a thousand feet of water.

The business owned three spud barges equipped with drilling and pile driving equipment. There were three house barges with a mess hall and crew quarters.

Three Ocean going Tugs were normally assigned each to a work crew.

There was a hundred foot long ocean going yacht docked there. The owner had wanted Tim to store and sell it for him.

The night of August the first two of the barges their tugs and house barges were down Mobile Bay near Fairhope building a marina.

After midnight the crews were awakened by explosions on shore.

They had seen several big fires and heard a lot of gun shots. When a few rounds hit their vessels they had up anchored and had scampered back home. Until the power went off they had listened to the news reports. The radio stations quit broadcasting at about one.

The reports of riots and of people getting killed had the crewmen frightened for their families and friend's well being.

As they passed Mobile there were fires every where. The sound of gunfire could be heard over the noise of their engines. As soon as they were docked those with families took off to see about them.

Tim had advised them to bring their families and any fire arms back to the island. Many of them made it back.

Twenty one families got to the safety of Tim's island.

Tim's Mother and Mother in Law were spending the night. They and Tim's wife had been to Biloxi playing the slot machines that day and had gotten back before midnight.

The older ladies had decided to spend the night instead of going on home.

They were still up and talking about the jack pot Tim's mother had hit when they heard the first explosion.

Tim turned the radio on and they listened to the reports of the violence.

The power went out at near one and all of the radio stations quit broadcasting.

All three house barges had diesel generators on them. As they arrived back the wives and kids of the company employees were put on board them.

Tim set up a defense around his island. Several men had brought back assault rifles and plenty of ammo.

Others had sporting fire arms.

The glow of fires down river in Mobile and Pritchard painted the underside of the clouds bright red.

Tim was monitoring the ship to shore channels on the radio aboard one of the tugs.

It became plain that the black population all over the country was at war with the whites. Apparently there was no place in the United States any safer than where they were on the island.

At daylight Tim and two men with semi-automatic rifles drove out the access road to the island and chained and locked the gates at the highway.

The mile long drive to the island from the highway was not paved, just surfaced with oyster shells. From the high way it looked as if it were a drive way through the swamp to a weekender's fish camp.

All morning the chatter of fully automatic rifle fire could be heard down river. Occasionally there would be explosions.

At noon the gun fire ceased.

The Civil Defense radios had been broadcasting but had nothing important to say. Mostly the broad casts were pleas for every one to remain calm and stay in their homes.

Late in the afternoon those radio stations began announcing that all public water systems had been poisoned and the listeners were warned to not drink the water from any public water system. (that warning was to late for millions)

Another announcement was that on a broad cast, at Six p.m. eastern, the President would make a statement.

At Five p.m. central, everyone on the island listened to the President as he announced the surrender of their state and homes to the Black Republic.

The President repeated the terms of the cease fire two times.

Every one was stunned.

Later Tim asked that every one attend a meeting in the warehouse building at eight.

There were one hundred and twelve there counting the children.

Tim told them they were welcome to stay on the island as long as they wanted.

He outlined his plan to move all the vessels to Galveston Texas. He offered to take anyone with him that wanted to leave by sea.

He would send a truck with a sea-going shipping container to each persons home.

They could load their possessions in ship cargo containers and then stack them on a barge to be towed to Galveston.

There was room aboard the three house barges for them for now and then later for the trip to Galveston. At Galveston there might not be housing available, they could live aboard until they could find something.

He asked that all food in their homes be brought to the galleys. Food might become a problem soon.

Tim said that he planned to send armed groups to scavenge for food the next day.

Tim told them that water was no problem here on the island. A generator was furnishing power to run the well pump.

At sea and even after they made port at Galveston water might be a problem. He asked that the ladies wash all the soiled clothing while docked at the island.

Tim said he was going to fly to Galveston in several days and make what provisions he could for them there.

He gave them priorities.

Find as much food as possible.

Locate medical supplies and bring them aboard the vessels.

Find any fuel, Gasoline, Diesel, or any Aviation fuels. Get what they could and bring it back.

Tim told them he thought their personnel trucks and automobiles could be put on the barges and taken with them.

The first scavenging party left the next morning in two four wheel drive pickups followed by Tim's three ton van.

Their mission was to check a grocery warehouse at Pritchard. If it had not been burned or looted there might be food they could use there. They returned with a full load of cases of canned food, they made three trips back.

Each load was food that would store for a long time.

One of the wives was in charge of the kitchen where all the meals were prepared. She had been in charge of the lunch room at the Pritchard High School. She estimated that there was enough food to last two months.

Tim sent that party back for four more loads again the next day.

One of the wives had worked at a Medical Supply business. She volunteered to go with an armed group and get things from their ware house. That place had been destroyed.

She had recently changed jobs. She took her group to the medical supply business where she had worked before. She still had a key to it.

That building was not damaged.

They made two trips, bringing back things she thought might be useful.

While out she stopped at the residence of a doctor she knew and asked him what his plans were about leaving.

The doctor had made none.

She told him what her family's plans were and asked him if he might want to get his family to safety that way.

The Doctor thought that might be the best way to get his wife and three kids away.

She promised to ask Tim's permission for he and his family to be included on one of the vessels.

When she spoke to Tim about that later Tim told her that he had turned down a lot of requests that relatives of those leaving be included.

He said that a Doctor might be needed though and he would announce that he was trying to persuade a doctor and his family to join them.