Ed Hertel sent me the JMH chip back in 2010. Ed and I are giving the “Illegal Seminar Of The Year” at the convention in June. Have no idea who made that name up. Maybe Riverboat Rick? If you have questions about illegal chip collecting, I recommend you attend the seminar.

Ed was missing from the hobby for a few years while he was attending to changes in his life. Welcome back Ed. One more big welcome back to another dear friend, Kenny, who went missing a few years ago. Reminds me of the old days when several of us found new illegals and the 1st thing we did was mail them out to the others, no charge and never kept track of who owed who, what. To us, it was what collectors of history did.

A huge new Dallas Texas illegal chip find is coming to a future “Illegal Of The Day,” post. It will make us revisit the days of the Dallas Mafia, Southland Hotel, Benny Binion, and Herbert “The Cat” Nobel” the man with 11 lives. He beat the average cat’s lives by 2.

The JMH chips once again are a little bit of a mystery. Who is JM Hughes? Did he just fly under the radar or was it an alias. Either way it appears he left no footprint in history. I am 95% certain we have put a club name to the chips. The time frame, address, and gambling raid fits for “The Cellar” and the owner ordered his own chips in 1950.

Enough of that:

Texas:

What was 317 West Commerce in 1936 is 135 East Commerce today. It's a 3 story building on the Commerce Street level, but on the west side of the building is the riverwalk.

On the riverwalk is a 4th lower level to the building. In the late 30's there was a bar located at the address called "The Cellar".

I think it was probably located at the lower riverwalk level. The Cellar was raided for gaming in 1938 as well as liquor violations. The operator, Lee Stille, was busted for liquor violations several times.

Stille ordered chips from Taylor in 1950 (hot stamped M).

My note: I need this chip. Cough it up if you have a trader.

Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find anything about J.M. Hughes or if he had any connection to Stille and The Cellar, but it seems like a good possibility. I'll keep looking.

Here's a link to a site about a renovation project being done to the building. The bridge to the right of the building is Commerce St. Click the "view animation" button at the page.

http://www.douglasarchitects.net/index.php/projects/Witte_Building