HIGH POINT CONFIDENTIAL: Mystery shrouded 1959 slaying of elderly man

Nov. 14—EDITOR'S NOTE — This is the first story in a two-part High Point Confidential series.

HIGH POINT

When 77-year-old J.M. Hoover was found dead in his home on Thanksgiving Eve, the victim of a sniper firing from close range, family and friends couldn't believe it.

Or understand it.

Why would anyone want to kill such a gentle soul? The man had no known enemies. He was just a simple farmer who was thoughtful enough to share his bounty, often leaving fresh melons on his porch for county sheriff's deputies to stop by and eat while making their nightly rounds. He also had donated land for a new church to be built.

And Hoover certainly wasn't wealthy enough to be a robbery target. His small, ramshackle house on Loop Road, in the city's Roseville community — the same house he'd lived in for 76 of his 77 years — was proof of that.

Investigators also discounted the possibility that the elderly man had been accidentally killed by a hunter's stray bullet.

So when Hoover turned up dead, struck down by a single .22-caliber bullet fired into the back of his head — and on Thanksgiving Eve, no less — shock waves raced through the community. Who would do such a thing? And why?

The year was 1959, and the news of Joseph Mayfield Hoover's slaying — plastered on the front page of The High Point Enterprise's Thanksgiving Day edition — cast a dark shadow over the city as families observed the holiday. "Sniper Slays Elderly Man With 1 Shot," the Nov. 26 headline read.

According to the article, Hoover had been shot to death the night before as he sat in his favorite chair, reading the evening newspaper. Two of his sons, Claude and Harold, found his body crumpled between the chair and a wood stove around 7 p.m. A pocket watch found in the bib pocket of Hoover's overalls had stopped at 5:53 p.m., so investigators believed that's when he was shot and slumped to the floor.

Only one clue suggested a possible motive for the killing: Hoover's billfold, which he always kept in his overalls, was missing. It only contained $335 — hardly enough to kill a man for — but what other reason could there have been?

Outside the house, investigators found footprints by a maple tree near the window through which Hoover had been shot, suggesting the killer probably hid behind the tree as he fired the fatal bullet.

Bloodhounds were brought to the scene to pick up the killer's scent, but they couldn't track it, largely because a sprawling crowd of curious rubberneckers had trampled through Hoover's yard, giving the dogs too many scents to choose from.

The crowd hampered the investigation in other ways, too.

"Fresh tire tracks found in a driveway a few feet from where the murderer stood when he pulled the trigger were obliterated before deputies could get the area roped off," The Enterprise wrote.

"Dozens of persons followed deputies around the house, peering curiously over their shoulders. Crowds roamed over the ground beneath the window where the murderer stood."

According to newspaper accounts, no witnesses had stepped forward with any promising leads, and the prospect of finding a credible witness seemed unlikely. Not only had the killer committed the crime under the cover of darkness, he also had stood in a secluded spot when he pulled the trigger.

"Though the general neighborhood of the murder is not desolate," The Enterprise reported, "the window through which Hoover was shot is on the side of the house that faces no neighboring dwellings."

It appeared the mystery sniper may have gotten away with murder.

And the $335.

The next day's Enterprise, the day after Thanksgiving, reported the bleak progress report: "Officers Hit Blank Wall In Slaying." The article mentioned two men who had been spotted in the vicinity of Hoover's house around the time he was slain, but after being grilled by officers for several hours, they had been cleared.

Little did the public know, however, that investigators were already questioning another couple of suspects who also had been spotted near Hoover's house around the time he was killed. And as the interrogations continued, officers believed it was just a matter of time until these particular suspects cracked.

Why were the officers so confident their new suspects could be broken?

Because they were only 15 and 16 years old.

jtomlin@hpenews.com — 336-888-3579

EDITOR'S NOTE: Part two of "The Silent Snipers" will be published in Tuesday's High Point Enterprise.