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From: "Nancy & Jerry Thompson" <>
Subject: [MOMILLER] Bilyeu/Maylee - death notice
Date: Thu, 18 Dec 2008 07:17:36 -0600


The Iberia Sentinel, June 1936

Everett Bilyeu (spelled Belyeu on the death certificate), 52,
farmer of near St. Anthony, was shot by Everett Stark, his neighbor, at noon
Sunday and died almost instantly from a charge of No. 2 shot fired at close
range from a 10-gauge double-barrel shotgun. The charge struck Bilyeu just
below the heart and tore a two-inch hole in Bilyeu's abdomen, death coming
almost instantly.

Stark and Bilyeu lived on the same farm, the Taylor Shelton
place. Stark at the old building down on Wimmer Creek and Bilyeu at the log
house on that part of the farm known as the George Clark place, which had,
in recent years, been purchased and added to the larger creek farm.

According to information available, Stark and his wife had on
various occasions in the past, been quarreling. On Saturday, Mrs. Stark
left her home and went on the hill to the Bilyeu house. Later in the night,
Stark came to the Bilyeu home and demanded that Bilyeu give him a gun which
belonged to Mr. Shelton. Bilyeu refused, and Stark claims that Bilyeu fired
the gun at him as he was in the act of entering his car, a number of the
shot striking the car, but not injuring Stark.

Then early Sunday morning Stark came up to the Bilyeu home and
both parties apologized. Later the same morning Bilyeu took with him a
bucket of scraps to feed his dog which he had loaned to Stark, and went down
to the Stark home. This was the last time Bilyeu's family saw him alive.

About 12:30 Stark approached the home of a neighbor, Joe M. Bax,
and told him that he had shot Bilyeu, and said he wanted to call Frank Burks
of Iberia, deputy sheriff, and give up. Burks then called Sheriff Lafe
King, who went to the scene of the tragedy.

Sheriff King found the body of Bilyeu lying in a draw between
the garage and the machinery shed. He was lying on his back, his right hand
over his head and clutching his cap, while at his side was a pitchfork and
near his feet was the bucket of scraps, undisturbed. There were no
eye-witnesses to the shooting.

Stark told the Sheriff that Bilyeu threatened him with a
pitchfork, and that he fired while standing on the approach to the garage,
which was a distance of about eight or ten feet from Bilyeu.

King said further that Stark had phoned to him Saturday night
asking him to come down and settle a family quarrel, but that he had refused
to do so unless Stark would issue a warrant.

Stark was brought to Tuscumbia and lodged in jail awaiting this
report of the Coroner, Dr. J.R. Ellison. The inquest will be held at St.
Elizabeth Wednesday afternoon at 2 o'clock of this week.

The body of the victim was taken to Iberia by Adams & Casey,
undertakers and burial was held at the Bilyeu Cemetery Tuesday morning at 10
o'clock.

Bilyeu was a son of Mr. and Mrs. Fielding Bilyeu and was born
and reared on Humphrey's Creek, eight miles east of Tuscumbia. He was
married (his wife being a daughter of John Maylee), and they had three or
four children, one son being in CCC camp in California. John and Arthur
Bilyeu of the Humphrey's Creek community, and Sgt. Roscoe Bilyeu, instructor
in the Army school at Ft. Benning, Ga. are brothers.



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