Arkansas
Tulsa WWII veteran laid to rest 77 years after disappearing in Arkansas River
A World War II veteran who worked for the City of Tulsa was finally laid to rest Monday after his remains went unidentified for nearly 80 years.
Floyd Harper, 22, was one of several City of Tulsa workers killed when a city barge overturned on the Arkansas River on Feb. 10, 1949. His remains were not identified at the time, and his family spent decades without answers.
His daughter, Linda Schrader, never got the chance to know him. She was two months old when he died.
“He died in the Arkansas River when I was exactly two months old,” Schrader said. “So I knew absolutely nothing about any of this wonderful stuff.”
Harper’s wife and family were left guessing what happened to him. According to Schrader, her mother never stopped looking.
“They said that she used to walk the banks of the Arkansas River for years, trying to find something of him where he died,” Schrader said.
Eventually, Schrader’s mother remarried, and the family began to accept they’d never get a chance to say goodbye. That changed last summer.
Tulsa Police Homicide Detective Brandon Watkins looked into human remains the department had discovered along the river in 1985. Using genealogy research, he tracked down Schrader, who now lives in Boise, Idaho. He flew out himself to administer a DNA test.
It was a match.
“We wanted to know who those human remains belong to. That’s important,” Watkins said. “Families deserve to have this moment.”
For Schrader, the confirmation set off a whirlwind. She discovered she had 29 first cousins she never knew, and attended a family reunion.
“I was just blown away with finding out I had 29 first cousins. And all of this going on. It’s just — it’s been insane,” she said.
For Watkins, solving the case stands as a career milestone.
“It’s one of the most rewarding things I think I’ve done in my career, is be part of this,” he said. “And I’m real happy for his family.”
Monday, after a gun salute and 77 years of wondering, Harper was finally laid to rest alongside other family members. Schrader said she’s grateful she can spend the rest of her life knowing how her father’s story ends.
“I’m just so happy he gets to be with his momma now,” she said.
Timeline: Floyd Harper’s 77-year journey home
Feb. 10, 1949 — Floyd Harper, a WWII veteran and City of Tulsa worker, dies when a city barge overturns on the Arkansas River. He is 22 years old. His daughter Linda is two months old.
1949–1985 — Harper’s family, including his wife, searches for answers. His remains are never found. Linda’s mother remarries; the family moves.
1985 — Human remains are discovered along the Arkansas River. Tulsa Police preserve them but are unable to make an identification at the time.
Summer 2025 — TPD Homicide Detective Brandon Watkins reopens the case, conducts genealogy research, and locates Linda Schrader in Idaho. He flies out personally to collect a DNA sample.
Mid-2025 — DNA results confirm the remains belong to Floyd Harper.
April 27, 2026 — Floyd Harper is laid to rest alongside family members in Skiatook, 77 years after his death. An honor guard renders a gun salute.
Arkansas
Latest Peppermint Hippo court filing alleges misconduct by Arkansas officials, asks for liquor license reinstatement
Video: Peppermint Hippo appeals liquor license revocation before Alcoholic Beverage Control board
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The latest court filing by a lawyer representing the Peppermint Hippo gentlemen’s club alleges misconduct by an Arkansas agency and its department head.
The filing asks that the club’s liquor license be reinstated pending judicial review of the January 2026 decision to revoke it. It alleges that Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Director Christy Bjornson “tainted the entire administrative proceedings.”
The filing alleges Bjornson had ex parte, or single-sided, conversations with Peter Riberiro about the death of his brother, John Riberiro. John Riberiro was killed in November 2021 after being ejected from the club and climbing a fence alongside Interstate 40, where he was hit by a car.
Peter Riberiro contacted ABC by email in February 2025, calling for the club’s license to be revoked. Bjornson replied to the email personally, and she and ABC Director of Enforcement David Potter then had a series of phone conferences with Peter Riberiro and his attorney through January 2026, ex parte communications since Peppermint Hippo representatives were not included, the filing alleges.
The filing also alleges that Bjornson acted with “extreme bias” in the club’s list of violations, including those that had previously been investigated and found unfounded. Bjornson determined the club was in violation, then looked for evidence substantiating her views, the filing alleges.
The state maintains, in a separate filing, that Bjornson’s communications were not ex parte under Arkansas law because she was acting as an administrator and the final decision was made by the ABC board, not her. Even if she was, the state’s filing continues, the decision to revoke was due to “substantial evidence and was neither arbitrary, capricious, nor an abuse of discretion.”
A hearing about the reinstatement is scheduled for Aug. 3 in Pulaski County Circuit Court.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — It may be hard to believe in the present day, but Arkansas did beat a Nick Saban-coached team once upon a time. Twice, actually.
Of course, it occurred when Saban was the head coach at LSU, not Alabama, where his Crimson Tide squads beat Arkansas 17 times in a row.
But all the way back in 2000, just months after Nolan Richardson’s Hoop Hogs delivered an SEC Tournament title, the Razorbacks beat LSU 14-3 at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock in Saban’s first campaign in Baton Rouge.
Do those circumstances sound familiar?
Yes, they might just be coincidences, but John Calipari’s team did cut down the nets in Bridgestone Arena on March 15 after winning the SEC Tournament.
Arkansas football is preparing to host LSU this fall (albeit in Fayetteville, not Little Rock) and the Tigers have a first-year head coach of their own in Saban protege Lane Kiffin.
Kiffin, of course, isn’t new to the SEC or Arkansas fans. The Razorbacks went 2-4 against Kiffin during his six years as the head coach at Ole Miss.
However, he does give the Razorbacks an opportunity, while a seemingly small one, to do something they haven’t done since beating the Tigers with Saban calling the shots in 2000: beat an LSU team led by a first-year head coach.
Teams led by first-year head coaches are supposedly more vulnerable and susceptible to defeat, though that trend has been largely nullified in the modern era due to the transfer portal and NIL.
Arkansas didn’t seem to get that memo, however. In its last three games against LSU when the Tigers had a first-year head coach, it lost all three.
Les Miles’ first LSU team beat the Hogs in a 19-17 nailbiter in Baton Rouge in 2005, though the 4-6 Razorbacks were surprisingly competitive against a 9-1 LSU squad.
In 2017, Ed Orgeron’s maiden voyage as LSU’s HC included a 33-10 rout of the Razorbacks at Tiger Stadium against a wounded Austin Allen.
In 2022, Arkansas gave LSU, the eventual SEC West champions, all it could handle in a 13-10 loss in Brian Kelly’s first tussle with the Hogs on what resembled more of a frozen tundra than Razorback Stadium.
Is there much hope for Arkansas and Ryan Silverfield to beat LSU on Nov. 28? Not really, and understandably so. Kiffin is not your average first-year head coach.
He’ll have an immensely talented QB in Sam Leavitt under center and a roster that could contend for a College Football Playoff berth or even an SEC title.
But depending on how Arkansas’ first 11 games of 2026 go, the Hogs could be playing for more than pride. There is potential for Arkansas to be fighting for bowl eligibility in Week 13 should it find victories against the likes of Utah, Auburn and South Carolina.
A win would be the Razorbacks’ first over their border rival at home since 2014. That’s not to mention the inherent nostalgia that will come with the Battle for the Golden Boot returning to its rightful place on the college football schedule as a Thanksgiving weekend rivalry game.
All that’s left for Silverfield to do is to dial up some 2000 magic and try and become the first man since Houston Nutt to beat the LSU Tigers with a first-year head coach on the opposite sideline.
Hogs on SI Season Preview Series
North Alabama: Why Week One Matters More Than It Should
Utah: Silverfield Doesn’t Know What Razorbacks Are, Utes Will Provide Answers
Georgia: Razorbacks Might Not Beat Georgia, But Offer Test Kirby Smart Didn’t Expect
Texas A&M: Can Hogs’ Rebuilt Defense Slow Down Marcel Reed?
Tennessee: Razorbacks Must Reclaim Homefield Advantage Against Tennessee
Vanderbilt: Arkansas Might Be Catching Vanderbilt at Right Time in 2026
Missouri: Silverfield Could Have Master Plan to Finally Beat Missouri
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The Arkansas Storm Team has designated Sunday overnight into Monday as an Alert Day for a line of storms moving through. Damaging wind gusts, flooding, and flash flooding are the main hazards. A tornado or two is also possible.
Flood-prone and low-lying areas should be aware of heavy rainfall overnight, leading to flooding and flash flooding. A Flood Watch is in place until 7 p.m. Monday, June 22, in northwestern and western Arkansas.
It’s strongly encouraged to have ways to receive weather alerts for your location overnight. This means ways that’ll wake you up in the event water is rising quickly or if you have to take shelter.
Download the Arkansas Storm Team app for the latest. The Arkansas Storm Team will also be live from 10:30 p.m. Sunday, June 21, to 4 a.m. Monday, June 22, on our streaming platforms. Coverage will continue at 4 a.m. on our morning newscasts.
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