The Caddo Club (used throughout here for simplicity), also known as the New Caddo Club, Caddo Night Club, Caddo Nite Club, etc. was a night spot/dance hall that began its life four miles north of Rodessa, Louisiana and ended up at a location south of neighboring Vivian.. Below we trace its history.
The earliest found club advertisement is shown below. Ernest Earl "Ernie" Prichard (1895-1967) was a Tyler, Texas native and lived in that town for the great majority of his life. During the 1930s he led an orchestra that performed at east Texas nightclubs that included the Hollywood Club, Palm Isle (renamed the "Reo Palm Isle," it was renowned for later hosting Elvis Presley, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Ray Price and many others ), and the Ambassador Club. He additionally played at various social events (e.g., American Legion, sorority dances) as well as store openings and promotions. This was his apparent lone performance at the Caddo Club
Atlanta (TX) Citizens Journal 17-Feb-1938, Page 4
For his "real" job over the years Ernie was noted to be a truck driver, baker, laundry driver, and later owner of a collection agency. He was also active in the Boy Scouts as a district officer. He and wife Marie had one son, Ernest, Jr. who became a prominent car salesman in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. At the age of 71 Ernie died of injuries resulting from an automobile accident.
Tyler (TX) Morning Telegraph 24-Apr-1937, Page 2
Note the date of the advertisement above was the same day a tornado passed through Rodessa, killing 21 persons. Because of this, it's not known if the grand opening actually took place as scheduled. The club was apparently spared, as a benefit with music provided by Ben Burton was later held there to assist the cost of relief efforts.
Shreveport Times 01-Mar-1938, Page 11
A year later, a New Caddo Club was advertised to be opening south of Vivian. The exact location is not known. In this writer's opinion, given Vivian's smaller city limits at the time a likely site is in the area of the old Whiteway Cafe (presently occupied by Gorsulosky Funeral Home).
Atlanta (TX) Citizen's Journal 30-Mar-1939, Page 5
The club's grand opening featured Frank Monaco (1908-1983), a Pennsylvania native who led the KTBS radio orchestra during the 1939-1940 time period. He had lived in Houston in 1935 where he also performed, and was once mentioned as part of a group playing in Corpus Christi, TX. He and his band were noted appearing in the Shreveport area at the Lake Cliff Club, as well as the Nu-Tavern, Glass Hat, and Palm Club. He also performed in the orchestra of Steve Grunhart (more on him later), who conversely had been a member of Monaco's KTBS Orchestra.
Atlanta (TX) Citizen's Journal 15-Apr-1939, Page 4
Frank was said to play violin, flute, clarinet, and piano; but his guitar (described on occasions as "singing" and "hot") apparently was his primary instrument. He was also once mentioned as a "comedic" singer. After his time in Shreveport, he moved to Las Vegas in the late 1940s or early 1950s where he continued to work as a musician.
Brothers Bob and Joe Shelton and the Sunshine Boys (mentioned in the ad above), gained a level of fame, performing in Texas and Oklahoma, as well as Louisiana, where they appeared on KWKH radio and the Louisiana Hayride. They had a couple of hits, notably their version of the traditional song "Deep Ellum Blues", later covered also by other musicians including the Grateful Dead and Levon Helm of The Band. Below is their recording of "Sitting On Top Of The World"
The photo above did not include names, however that appears to be Felton "Preacher" Harkness seated at far left holding the mandolin. A fiddler as shown below, he and brother Bernie (a pianist) were members of the group for many years.
Times 18-Sep-1938, Page 15
Chester Leroy "Chet" Steadman had been a varsity quarterback and music student at Louisiana College in Pineville. While there he was a member of a quartet that included future Louisiana governor and country music hall-of-famer Jimmie Davis.
Atlanta (TX) Citizen's Journal 04-May-1939, Page 8
Playing primarily around Alexandria, Chet and band, on different occasions named "Jazz Kings of the Delta" and "Knights of Rhythm" performed frequently at the Hotel Bentley there and at various social events. In the Shreveport-Bossier area, he was advertised playing at the stylish Club Castle east of Bossier City and the Moonlight Gardens on Greenwood Road in Shreveport.
Alexandria Town Talk 22-Jun-1975, Page A-13
Jimmie West and his Hawaiian Playboys once passed through. Nothing has turned up on this band, though a Jimmie West was noted playing with several Los Angeles-area jazz orchestras in the 1920s.
Atlanta (TX) Citizens Journal 18-May-1939, Page 5
Monroe-based African-American bandleader Ben Burton (1902-1964) performed with his orchestra and later quintet for both black and white audiences in various nightclubs and at social events in that city, as well as in Shreveport, Alexandria, and numerous small localities; occasionally venturing as far south as Franklin.
Shreveport-area clubs/events included were Club Woodlawn, The Tavern, and the Caddo Club (played in both Rodessa, and Vivian after it moved), and the Calanthean Temple roof garden. Occasionally his group made joint appearances with that of Harry Walker, a bandleader from Alexandria. Burton also had a radio program on KRMD for a short time.
Shreveport Times 26-May-1939, Page 23
Burton signed a deal with Modern Records in 1952 and he and band recorded four sides on which Ike Turner (of Ike & Tina) played piano. Here is one of those recordings, "Blues And Jam."
Robert "Bob" Hogan (1900-1968) worked in local music stores (Werleins and B & M) and was president of the local musicians union No. 116 for over 25 years. He died just months before an international musicians convention was held in Shreveport in 1968, that he had been responsible for bringing to the city.
Shreveport Journal 22-Dec-1939, Page 10
Shreveport Journal 30-Aug-1941, Page 6
Below Hogan's orchestra is pictured performing at a home show in Shreveport in 1937.
Shreveport Times 07-Oct-1937, Page 9
Yet a third engagement by Ben Burton.
Shreveport Journal 27-Jan-1940, Page 11
Bob Hogan likewise reprised his earlier run.
Shreveport Journal 09-Feb-1940, Page 13
A leap year dance scheduled, though musical guests were not named.
Journal 27-Feb-1940, Page 9
Jazz musician and band leader Blue Steele performing at the Caddo Club. His wikipedia page is linked here.
Shreveport Journal 12-Apr-1940, Page 12
Blue Steele and orchestra
Nothing additional could be found about "Clown Prince of the Piano" Whitie Wallis, advertised for a one week engagement.
Journal 13-Jan-1940, Page 11
The "New" Caddo Club celebrated first anniversary.
Atlanta (TX) Citizen's Journal 02-May-1940, Page 3
Entertainment was provided by Harry Walker, who had a radio program and played a north Louisiana circuit consisting of Alexandria, Monroe, and Shreveport while occasionally branching out into neighboring states. His orchestra once participated in a "battle of the bands" with Ben Burton's at the rooftop garden of the Calanthean Temple in Shreveport. That was a popular nightclub (still standing on Texas Avenue) that hosted national celebrities such as Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong in its heyday.
What a hoppin' place the Caddo Club must have been! Here we have a performance by Kerry "Happy" King and orchestra. They were noted playing across the south from South Carolina to Texas in the 1920s to 1940s, with claims of having toured the midwest (in this advertisement) and out to the west coast. The only personal information found on King was that he (then age 35, born in Texas) and the band were lodgers at a boarding house in Burleson, TX (south of Fort Worth) in 1940. Other circumstantial evidence appears to place him later in south Louisiana and then the Beaumont, TX area.
Shreveport Journal 01-Jul-1940, Page 9
Shreveport Journal 19-Mar-1947, Page 11
Shreveport Journal 09-May-1934, Page 15
A Labor Day dance that year featured Arthur Robert "Shocky" Wilcox and band.
Shreveport Times 01-Sep-1940, Page 6
Shocky is shown several years earlier as a member of Buddy's Blue Melody Band...
Ancestry.com contributor, linked to Arthur Robert Wilcox (1901-1954)
...and later in life below.
Shreveport Times 01-Sep-1940, Page 6
Shocky is shown several years earlier as a member of Buddy's Blue Melody Band...
Ancestry.com contributor, linked to Arthur Robert Wilcox (1901-1954)
...and later in life below.
A Halloween dance announcement, again with unidentified entertainment.
Journal 29-Oct-1940, Page 13
Pittsburgh, PA native Stephen Edward "Steve" Grunhart (1906-1961) was a musician, band leader, and musician's union officer in the Shreveport area from the 1930s-1950s. He performed in several orchestras, either as leader or band member, and at several popular clubs of the day (e.g., Club Woodlawn, Glass Hat), including the Caddo Club, as well as on radio. He was active in Musicians Union Local 116 and served as its secretary for many years. In that role he was noted for insisting Louisiana Hayride performers be union members, but also exercising flexibility by allowing new or inexperienced talent to perform for a trial period before requiring that they join. Grunhart was also a charter member of the Shreveport Symphony in which he played violin. He passed away of an undisclosed illness in Feb-1961.
Journal 08-Nov-1940, Page 12
In this photo of the band, the man in the dark suit standing in the middle is singer Earl Williams while Grunhart is seated third from right holding a saxophone. At far right is Frank Monaco.
Journal 17-Aug-1940, Page 11
Times 02-Apr-1939, Page 41
Drummer Eddie "Coot" Lewis (1900-1980) got his first break as a teenager when given the opportunity to play with William Leviston's Caddo Jazz Band, at the time the top band in Shreveport, at a street dance held in celebration of the World War I armistice. Over the years he played at numerous Shreveport area night clubs such as Club Woodlawn (later rebranded the Skyway Club), the Lake Cliff, Sammie's Bar, The Chef, the Twilight Cocktail Lounge, the "71" Club (Clarence, La.), as well as at numerous social events and private parties.
At this link is a Feb-1980 interview where Coot, then residing in a nursing home, describes his career and the musicians he worked with and knew. Click on the link, then the page, to expand and read.
Shreveport Times 15-Apr-1941, Page 9
Below, Coot Lewis at age 80.
Shreveport Journal 18-Feb-1980, Page 1B
The club was put up for sale in August 1941.
Shreveport Times 01-Aug-1941 Page 18
This advertisement for Club Woodlawn in Bossier City (later became the Skyway Club) advertised Leon Allen and orchestra as being formerly of the Caddo Club. So far, no information has been found on him.
Journal 06-Nov-1943, Page 5
The club burned 03-Nov-1943, Here are newspaper accounts from the Shreveport Journal and Times respectively.
Journal 04-Nov-1943, Page 5
Shreveport Times 05-Nov-1943, Page 1
A reward was offered for information regarding the incident, however no information regarding resolution of the matter and identification of who committed the apparent crime has been so far found.
Shreveport Times 11-Nov-1943, Page 9
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