The Atlanta Journal-Constitution,(GA) - Friday, March 15, 2002
Denver Gaston, 85, longtime GBI agent
When he campaigned for Carroll County sheriff in 1950, Denver Gaston's platform was: "My deputies will wear uniforms."
He promised a more professional demeanor at the Sheriff's Department -- no more overalls and flannel shirts, said his son, Allen Gaston of Carrollton.
Mr. Gaston resigned from his salaried job with the Georgia State Patrol in 1949 to run for sheriff, which paid no salary. His pay came from fees and fines, mostly from busting up moonshine stills and catching speeders and drunken drivers, said his son. He was sheriff through 1953, later joining the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Pulp magazines chronicled his crime-fighting career in such articles as "A Bride, a Groom and a Murder" in a 1958 edition of Master Detective.
The funeral for Mr. Gaston, 85, who died Tuesday of vascular disease at his Carrollton residence, is 2 p.m. today at First United Methodist Church. Almon Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Most of Mr. Gaston's 37 years in law enforcement were spent solving nonviolent crimes, but a couple of his cases were notorious, said his son.
The detective magazine article was about a Douglas County murder Mr. Gaston cracked by catching the killer in a lie.
One Carroll County case that stood out in his father's memory was the 1949 murder of Carl "Buddy" Stevens and the attempted rape at gunpoint of his companion. Clarence Henderson was convicted of that crime in 1950, said Mr. Gaston.
While sheriff, Mr. Gaston used the media to avert a confrontation in his county.
"Back in the '50s, communism was as big as [Osama] bin Laden is today," said his son. An organizer announced plans to establish a Communist cell in Carroll County. Mr. Gaston was interviewed by newspapers about how he would protect the rights of the Communist organizer.
"He'll get little or no protection from me or my deputies," Mr. Gaston told the press.
He explained that he couldn't be responsible for the conduct of Korean War veterans in the community who might not like a Communist organizer among them, said his son. The Communist never came to Carroll County after Mr. Gaston's comments were published.
"Law enforcement was his bread and butter. He loved it. He hated it when he retired," said his son. He retired from the GBI in 1973 and became a top real estate agent.
In his youth, Mr. Gaston attended college in Carrollton, then worked in the Civilian Conservation Corps, where he broke his back in a truck accident. He was in a body cast for three months, out of commission another six months, then went on to become a football and basketball star at Clemson University in South Carolina, said his son. He studied law and served in the Navy during World War II.
Throughout his life he enjoyed following sports, current events and politics, said his son.
Other survivors include his wife, Corinne Wolfe Gaston; two daughters, Carol Mudd of Dallas and Wren Heavener of Harleysville, Pa.; a sister, Mildred Jobe of Frankfort, Ky.; and eight grandchildren.
Denver Gaston, 85, longtime GBI agent
When he campaigned for Carroll County sheriff in 1950, Denver Gaston's platform was: "My deputies will wear uniforms."
He promised a more professional demeanor at the Sheriff's Department -- no more overalls and flannel shirts, said his son, Allen Gaston of Carrollton.
Mr. Gaston resigned from his salaried job with the Georgia State Patrol in 1949 to run for sheriff, which paid no salary. His pay came from fees and fines, mostly from busting up moonshine stills and catching speeders and drunken drivers, said his son. He was sheriff through 1953, later joining the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Pulp magazines chronicled his crime-fighting career in such articles as "A Bride, a Groom and a Murder" in a 1958 edition of Master Detective.
The funeral for Mr. Gaston, 85, who died Tuesday of vascular disease at his Carrollton residence, is 2 p.m. today at First United Methodist Church. Almon Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Most of Mr. Gaston's 37 years in law enforcement were spent solving nonviolent crimes, but a couple of his cases were notorious, said his son.
The detective magazine article was about a Douglas County murder Mr. Gaston cracked by catching the killer in a lie.
One Carroll County case that stood out in his father's memory was the 1949 murder of Carl "Buddy" Stevens and the attempted rape at gunpoint of his companion. Clarence Henderson was convicted of that crime in 1950, said Mr. Gaston.
While sheriff, Mr. Gaston used the media to avert a confrontation in his county.
"Back in the '50s, communism was as big as [Osama] bin Laden is today," said his son. An organizer announced plans to establish a Communist cell in Carroll County. Mr. Gaston was interviewed by newspapers about how he would protect the rights of the Communist organizer.
"He'll get little or no protection from me or my deputies," Mr. Gaston told the press.
He explained that he couldn't be responsible for the conduct of Korean War veterans in the community who might not like a Communist organizer among them, said his son. The Communist never came to Carroll County after Mr. Gaston's comments were published.
"Law enforcement was his bread and butter. He loved it. He hated it when he retired," said his son. He retired from the GBI in 1973 and became a top real estate agent.
In his youth, Mr. Gaston attended college in Carrollton, then worked in the Civilian Conservation Corps, where he broke his back in a truck accident. He was in a body cast for three months, out of commission another six months, then went on to become a football and basketball star at Clemson University in South Carolina, said his son. He studied law and served in the Navy during World War II.
Throughout his life he enjoyed following sports, current events and politics, said his son.
Other survivors include his wife, Corinne Wolfe Gaston; two daughters, Carol Mudd of Dallas and Wren Heavener of Harleysville, Pa.; a sister, Mildred Jobe of Frankfort, Ky.; and eight grandchildren.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution,(GA) - Friday, March 15, 2002
Denver Gaston, 85, longtime GBI agent
When he campaigned for Carroll County sheriff in 1950, Denver Gaston's platform was: "My deputies will wear uniforms."
He promised a more professional demeanor at the Sheriff's Department -- no more overalls and flannel shirts, said his son, Allen Gaston of Carrollton.
Mr. Gaston resigned from his salaried job with the Georgia State Patrol in 1949 to run for sheriff, which paid no salary. His pay came from fees and fines, mostly from busting up moonshine stills and catching speeders and drunken drivers, said his son. He was sheriff through 1953, later joining the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Pulp magazines chronicled his crime-fighting career in such articles as "A Bride, a Groom and a Murder" in a 1958 edition of Master Detective.
The funeral for Mr. Gaston, 85, who died Tuesday of vascular disease at his Carrollton residence, is 2 p.m. today at First United Methodist Church. Almon Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Most of Mr. Gaston's 37 years in law enforcement were spent solving nonviolent crimes, but a couple of his cases were notorious, said his son.
The detective magazine article was about a Douglas County murder Mr. Gaston cracked by catching the killer in a lie.
One Carroll County case that stood out in his father's memory was the 1949 murder of Carl "Buddy" Stevens and the attempted rape at gunpoint of his companion. Clarence Henderson was convicted of that crime in 1950, said Mr. Gaston.
While sheriff, Mr. Gaston used the media to avert a confrontation in his county.
"Back in the '50s, communism was as big as [Osama] bin Laden is today," said his son. An organizer announced plans to establish a Communist cell in Carroll County. Mr. Gaston was interviewed by newspapers about how he would protect the rights of the Communist organizer.
"He'll get little or no protection from me or my deputies," Mr. Gaston told the press.
He explained that he couldn't be responsible for the conduct of Korean War veterans in the community who might not like a Communist organizer among them, said his son. The Communist never came to Carroll County after Mr. Gaston's comments were published.
"Law enforcement was his bread and butter. He loved it. He hated it when he retired," said his son. He retired from the GBI in 1973 and became a top real estate agent.
In his youth, Mr. Gaston attended college in Carrollton, then worked in the Civilian Conservation Corps, where he broke his back in a truck accident. He was in a body cast for three months, out of commission another six months, then went on to become a football and basketball star at Clemson University in South Carolina, said his son. He studied law and served in the Navy during World War II.
Throughout his life he enjoyed following sports, current events and politics, said his son.
Other survivors include his wife, Corinne Wolfe Gaston; two daughters, Carol Mudd of Dallas and Wren Heavener of Harleysville, Pa.; a sister, Mildred Jobe of Frankfort, Ky.; and eight grandchildren.
Denver Gaston, 85, longtime GBI agent
When he campaigned for Carroll County sheriff in 1950, Denver Gaston's platform was: "My deputies will wear uniforms."
He promised a more professional demeanor at the Sheriff's Department -- no more overalls and flannel shirts, said his son, Allen Gaston of Carrollton.
Mr. Gaston resigned from his salaried job with the Georgia State Patrol in 1949 to run for sheriff, which paid no salary. His pay came from fees and fines, mostly from busting up moonshine stills and catching speeders and drunken drivers, said his son. He was sheriff through 1953, later joining the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Pulp magazines chronicled his crime-fighting career in such articles as "A Bride, a Groom and a Murder" in a 1958 edition of Master Detective.
The funeral for Mr. Gaston, 85, who died Tuesday of vascular disease at his Carrollton residence, is 2 p.m. today at First United Methodist Church. Almon Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Most of Mr. Gaston's 37 years in law enforcement were spent solving nonviolent crimes, but a couple of his cases were notorious, said his son.
The detective magazine article was about a Douglas County murder Mr. Gaston cracked by catching the killer in a lie.
One Carroll County case that stood out in his father's memory was the 1949 murder of Carl "Buddy" Stevens and the attempted rape at gunpoint of his companion. Clarence Henderson was convicted of that crime in 1950, said Mr. Gaston.
While sheriff, Mr. Gaston used the media to avert a confrontation in his county.
"Back in the '50s, communism was as big as [Osama] bin Laden is today," said his son. An organizer announced plans to establish a Communist cell in Carroll County. Mr. Gaston was interviewed by newspapers about how he would protect the rights of the Communist organizer.
"He'll get little or no protection from me or my deputies," Mr. Gaston told the press.
He explained that he couldn't be responsible for the conduct of Korean War veterans in the community who might not like a Communist organizer among them, said his son. The Communist never came to Carroll County after Mr. Gaston's comments were published.
"Law enforcement was his bread and butter. He loved it. He hated it when he retired," said his son. He retired from the GBI in 1973 and became a top real estate agent.
In his youth, Mr. Gaston attended college in Carrollton, then worked in the Civilian Conservation Corps, where he broke his back in a truck accident. He was in a body cast for three months, out of commission another six months, then went on to become a football and basketball star at Clemson University in South Carolina, said his son. He studied law and served in the Navy during World War II.
Throughout his life he enjoyed following sports, current events and politics, said his son.
Other survivors include his wife, Corinne Wolfe Gaston; two daughters, Carol Mudd of Dallas and Wren Heavener of Harleysville, Pa.; a sister, Mildred Jobe of Frankfort, Ky.; and eight grandchildren.
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