Eugene Love - The Dodson Times

by Tom Kelly
Editor and Publisher

I learned of the death of Eugene F. Love too late to attend the services, or to acknowledge the event in a meaningful way at the time--one of the hazards of living outside the "mainstream" of events in the small North Louisiana village of Dodson.

Mr. Love died on April 20 at age 91, after a career as an educator and community leader. Our paths first crossed over 60 years ago, when he was one of my first news sources, he in his first job as vocational agriculture teacher at Winnfield High School, and I as a brand-new, wide-eyed and inexperienced reporter at the Winn Parish Enterprise in Winnfield. At age 18 I was not far from the same age as the high school students in his class, where I was sent during the first day of my employment to "get a story." Mary Riser told me where to find his classroom at the Winnfield High School; George Larson tidied up the rough edges of the story, and we were off on a career that hasn't ended yet.

During his career as an educator, Eugene Love also served as principal of Winnfield Junior High School, principal of Winnfield High School, Superintendent of Schools, as Director of Secondary Education for the State of Louisiana, and as Assistant Superintendent of the Louisiana State Department of Education.

He was a longtime member and officer in the Masonic Lodge, was Past Master of Eastern Star Lodge No. 151 F&AM in Winnfield, and Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Louisiana, and in several other Masonic-related orders.

Gene Love as also a prolific writer, including articles for a number of daily and weekly newspapers and Masonic publications. He was a deacon and lay speaker in the Baptist church.

I became reacquainted with Eugene Love upon returning to Winn Parish in 1997 after we both had grown through the careers of our youth. I visited him and his wife, Mrs. Dhale Malone Love, while they were still active at their home on Love Drive off Highway 167 north of Winnfield. He had not forgotten his agricultural expertise, sending me packing home after the visit with a couple of large paper bags of squash and other garden truck which he enjoyed raising. The garden truck, plus copies of two books that Mr. and Mrs. Love had written on Winn Parish history. We have used excerpts from these books in The Piney Woods Journal a number of times. When I asked permission, he always said, "Use anything you find useful."

One piece that I find "useful" at this time, is from the chapter "News Media," from the book "Looking Back: Winn Parish, Louisiana 1862-1968," by Dhale and Eugene F. Love. You, the reader, may not know that Dodson, where we operate The Piney Woods Journal, once had a weekly newspaper, and the town was booming with industry and business. Well, surprise yourself; read on.

The Dodson Times
In 1901, the population of the railroad and sawmill town, recently named Dodson, was making rapid growth in many respects. The town had several large stores and served a large trade area. A hotel was built to house the traveling salesman, the cotton buyers and the real estate investors. A large railroad station and shipping platform had been constructed. The Methodists and Baptists had reorganized and built new churches. Doctors and dentists were locating in the town. A new school was in the planning stage. The town needed a newspaper of their own.

Joel T. Payne, often referred to as an amiable, clever, and obliging individual, organized a staff, purchased a news newspaper press, and put out the first issue of The Dodson Times on August 9, 1901.

Payne had 11 people working on his staff by 1903. He specialized in job printing for individuals, churches, schools, organizations, and political advertisements. Payne had a salesman calling on Ruston, Monroe, and Alexandria customers. He had the most modern equipment in Central and North Louisiana, and his work was professional in every respect.

Winnfield had two weekly papers, The Southern Sentinel, and The Comrade. The editors of both papers soon drew Payne into editorial controversy. The issue got so hot that several others entered into the feud. A move was started to move the "Seat of Justice" from Winnfield to Dodson.

Payne's paper, The Dodson Times, was selected by the Police Jury as their legal printer. The Central Baptist Association selected The Dodson Times to print their annual programs and reports. The program had a picture of the newly constructed Dodson Baptist Church on front.

The Dodson Times carried full page stories on the Winn Parish Fair held at Dodson. The paper reached a circulation of 2,000 per week.

The Dodson Times, which had correspondents throughout Winn Parish, made history for many years. The newspaper was carrying news of Monroe, Ruston, Shreveport, and Baton Rouge and was professional in every respect.

• From "Looking Back," by Dhale and Eugene Love

Other newspapers from Winn Parish's past are also profiled in the Loves' history. I'll pay a reasonable price for a copy of The Dodson Times if anyone will come forward with one which will be preserved along with several other mementoes which are accumulating in what may eventually become a historic museum in Dodson.

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