Tuesday I mentioned that Frank Stubbs’ eldest son murdered John Ludeling’s son Frederick near the Cedars plantation on Riverside. I now realized that I have never written about it on this blog! Here are the facts as I know them, mainly from the Ouachita Telegraph, March 25, 1881. Let me preface this by saying the Telegraph would be a bit biased due to the editor George McCranie being a very fiery Democrat and Ludeling was everything he hated (a Radical Republican). I am also pulling from an account by Judge Ludeling, published in the New York Times April 3, 1881. This one too has (of course) a bias. The truth is probably somewhere in between.
Just three weeks before this all began, the fathers of those involved, Col. Francis P. Stubbs and Judge John T. Ludeling, had been fellow lawyers and co-proprietors of the North Louisiana and Texas Railroad. For some unknown reason, the two had a falling out at the courthouse, cursed at each other and even threw chairs! This was a pretty sticky situation, since the two men were next door neighbors!
On March 17th, John’s son Frederick was informed a woman on the Stubbs’ plantation next door wanted to move to the Ludeling place to join her husband living there. Many were leaving the Stubbs place for better conditions next door and the Stubbs family was angry. Drivers were sent to the woman’s cabin. While they were inside packing, they heard George Mitchner, Stubbs’ overseer, pull up. After hearing him threaten the lives of the drivers, they jumped out of the window and fled back to the Ludeling place to tell Frederick. Frederick gathered his cousin Frank Dinkgrave to help and headed next door to get the wagons that had been left behind. Frederick was managing his father’s plantation at the time, and had just graduated Yale two years before.
The two men saw Mitchner, his brother W.B. Mitchner, Linton Stubbs who was Frank Stubbs’ eldest son and A.S. Brown, waiting for them near the wagons, which had their spokes cut out. It seems Mitchner was cussing Dinkgrave and Ludeling and eventually drew his gun and shot Frederick in the right arm. Dinkgrave drew his to return fire and shot Mitchner in the chest. The Stubbs party returned fire with shotguns, hitting Dinkgrave in both arms. Frederick was shot in the back of the head and neck, killing him instantly. Frank’s mule carried him back to the Ludeling place where a doctor was called for.
The Stubbs men were put on trial for murder but were found Not Guilty. There is a legend that says Frederick’s mother Maria Copley Ludeling dipped her gloved finger in the spilled blood of her son and made a mark on the Stubbs gatepost saying, “My son’s murderer shall never inherit eternal life.” Another version states she soaked her gloves in the blood and wrote the word MURDERER on the front of the Stubbs home (The Cedars). This is supposed to be the Ludeling Curse.
Frederick and his father John, along with the Stubbs Family, lie sleeping in Old City Cemetery. You can see Frederick’s picture and his grave here: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/130937001/frederic_lyndhurst-ludeling.
Look carefully at the photo of Frederick’s marker. It states, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord”.
Ouachita Parish History Tidbits 