A local historian friend and current host of PreservationArlington.org, Eric Dobson, sent me this 1954 story about John Carl Parks, a troubled young man who threatened his mother multiple times and eventually killed an Arlington County Police Officer who had come to the Parks’ house on North Taylor Street to serve a warrant. Most of this collection is made up of a newspaper articles covering the story and cropped to fit on pages so they’re legible. In the article you’ll learn about the slain officer who became the second in Arlington history to lose his life in the line of duty; the first was Special Police Officer Louis Shaw in 1935.
It’s interesting that two persons named in the following articles have Collections of their own on our A.H.S. website – see if you can find the names and their Collections. Just another reminder that Arlington really is a small town.
Thanks Eric, I’m sure our viewers will find this tragic story as interesting as we did.
The gruesome day on Taylor Street made the headlines on this 1954 Washington Post front page.
Taylor Street article page 2.
Taylor Street article page 3.
Taylor Street article page 4.
Taylor Street article page 5.
Taylor Street article page 6.
Taylor Street article page 7
Taylor Street article page 8.
Taylor Street article page 9.
Taylor Street article page 10.
Taylor Street article page 11.
Taylor Street article page 12.
Taylor Street article page 13.
Taylor Street article page 14.
Detective William Dinsmore's Washington-Lee H.S. yearbook photo before he started working for the Arlington Police Department.
PreservationArlington.org learned a few years back the subject house on Taylor was going to be torn down so Eric called the Arlington Police Department to share the story with the new officers. The officer who took the call was unaware of the story and an appreciative department sent someone by to take some final photos in memory of their fallen comrade, Det. Russell C. Pettie.
PreservationArlington.org learned a few years back the subject house on Taylor was going to be torn down so Eric called the Arlington Police Department to share the story with the new officers. The officer who took the call was unaware of the story and an appreciative department sent someone by to take some final photos in memory of their fallen comrade, Det. Russell C. Pettie.