M. B. Woodward

M. B. Woodward
2nd Mayor of Bossier City, Louisiana, USA
In office 1910–1919
Preceded by	Ewald Max Hoyer
Succeeded by	T. M. Yarbrough
Personal details
Born	Date of birth missing (probably 1870s) Place of birth missing
Died	Date of death missing
Nationality	American
Political party	Democratic
Children	Mrs. Neill Albert Yarborough, Sr.
Occupation	Businessman

M. B. Woodward (dates of birth and death unknown and full name missing) was the second mayor of Bossier City in northwestern Louisiana, with service extending from 1910 to 1919.^[1]

About 1896, the Woodwards were among the first families to move to Bossier City. He was the manager of Southland Cotton Company.^[2] Woodward was elected mayor to succeed Ewald Max Hoyer, the appointee of Governor Newton Blanchard and the founding mayor at the time Bossier City was incorporated as a village. It did not become a town until the middle-1920s.^[1]

Little is available on Woodward's life. A son-in-law, Neill Albert Yarborough, Sr. (1893-1925), a member of the Louisiana State Police, was shot to death in the line of duty by a fugitive, Joe Airey, whom he had sought to arrest while the suspect was hiding out in a house. Upon Woodward's death, a mob lynched Airey and riddled him with bullets.^[3]

Woodward's grandson, Neill A. Yarborough, Jr. (1915-2009), graduated in 1932 from Bossier High School and returned in 1963 to his native Bossier City after extensive service as a colonel in the United States Army before, during, and after World War II, assigned to North African Campaign and the European Theater of Operations in Italy and southern France. His last military assignment was as the Army liaison officer at Barksdale Air Force Base. Yarborough was later the personnel director and assistant administrator for Bossier City Medical Center until his second retirement in 1979. Having developed an interest in city history, Yarborough in 2007 published A History of Bossier City from the Early Years (1833-2006). He lectured before civic groups on Bossier City topics, including details about the five city halls that were used since the founding of the municipality. Then Mayor George Dement declared Yarborough "Mr. Bossier City".^[4]

Woodward's great-grandson, Neill Yarborough, III (1947-2012), graduated from Bossier High School and the University of Louisiana at Monroe and thereafter served in the Vietnam War as a paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division and was a Special Forces A-Team commander. He received many military commendations for his service, including two Bronze Stars for valor and an Air Medal. He was later an executive in the oil industry in Houston, Texas.^[5]

Woodward was succeeded as mayor by T. M. Yarbrough, no relation to Colonel Yarborough, despite the similarity of the names.

References

1. Louise Stinson (1976). "Bossier City History". Retrieved February 24, 2015.
2. "Oral History Interview Retired Colonel Neill A. Yarborough". bossier.pastperfect-online.com. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
3. "Neill A. Yarborough, Sr.". findagrave.com. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
4. "Neill A. Yarborough (grandson of M. B. Woodwarde)". The Shreveport Times. August 22, 2009. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
5. John Andrew Prime. "Lieutenant Colonel Neill Albert Yarborough, III". findagrave. Retrieved February 24, 2015.