This is our third Backstory feature on The Reef Lounge. See the first two here and here.
The Reef Lounge opened in 1961 on the corner of First and Center Street, bringing the coolest mid-century cocktail trend to Casper’s downtown.
In the early days it was the very picture of the classy and exotic, where patrons could escape the blustery cold of Casper and enjoy flavorful drinks and fine steaks in a palace of Polynesian fantasy.
By the end of the decade the owners were ready to sell their little slice of paradise. They found their buyers in two local athletes, Don Humberson and Ray Mora.
According to a January 1970 article in the Casper Star-Tribune, the new business partners were once teammates on the Natrona County High School football team.
Ray Mora in particular stood out. Mora, a competitive and determined athlete, was a regular star in the local sports pages.
After graduating in 1956, Mora competed as a featherweight boxer, becoming a Golden Gloves champ, and coached Oilers midget football. He worked as a mail carrier for 11 years before managing the Tomahawk Room at the Townsend Hotel.
Things must have been going well enough for The Reef’s new owners. A 1975 Star-Tribune article says Mora and Humberson were planning a “burn the mortgage party” for the Reef. Mora is quoted as saying, “Looks like we’ll have this thing paid off before the year is out.”
While business was good, the Reef’s vibe was taking a different turn. By the 1970s, Casper’s downtown, like many others in the country, was seeing its glitz replaced with grit. A newspaper article from January 1973 gives an account of Mora being assaulted by an angry patron with a knife. He was uninjured.
On July 16, 1975, James Peterson, a construction superintendent with the Pullman-Kellogg Company of Pennsylvania, was in Glenrock to start planning on a new smokestack at the Dave Johnson Power Plant.
After work, Peterson spent the afternoon drinking with his coworkers at a Glenrock bar. According to court documents, Peterson had several drinks before heading to their Casper motel. There, Peterson had more drinks while his two coworkers gathered their luggage to catch a plane home.
Now on his own, Peterson went downtown to the Reef where he struck up conversations and ordered more drinks for himself and numerous bar patrons that night.
According to documents, trouble started when Peterson became agitated about his ballooning bar tab. In a Star-Tribune article, witnesses said the argument culminated with Peterson throwing a drink at the bartender. He was given money back and ordered to leave. Peterson then went to the nearby Tomahawk Lounge inside the Townsend Hotel for more drinks.
According to his testimony, Peterson decided to make amends at The Reef. When he returned he was met by Ray Mora.
Mora, who’d seen trouble in his bar before, grabbed a can of “Halt” animal repellent and, according to court documents, sprayed Peterson square in the face.
The fracas spilled out to the street in dramatic fashion:
Defendant, in confusion and great pain, ran from the bar to the outside where he stopped to get his bearings. The decedent followed and, when defendant stopped, sprayed him again in the face. As defendant attempted to escape down the street, the decedent continued after him, spraying him at various times with the repellent and kicking him when he tripped and fell into the gutter. Eventually the defendant found himself at the Branding Iron Cafe where he requested a taxi be summoned and then returned to the street.
This should’ve ended as just another nutty night in ’70s-era downtown Casper.
Sadly, the story gets dark from here.
Peterson, now enraged, ordered his taxi to the motel, where he retrieved a revolver. He then took the taxi back to the Reef where he ordered the driver to wait for him.
Peterson stormed into the Reef. Mora took cover behind tiki beads near the jukebox. As Peterson approached, Mora again sprayed the repellant. Peterson fired, shooting Mora in the head and killing him instantly.
Peterson ran outside to the taxi. The driver had fled to call police. Peterson left the empty cab, found his truck and drove.
By 9:50 p.m., Peterson was in police custody.
Peterson was charged with first-degree murder. The trial took place in Cheyenne on a change of venue. The first trial ended in a hung jury.
Eighteen witnesses testified for the state, which argued that Peterson repeatedly threatened to kill Mora. His defense argued he never intended to kill, only “frighten,” and that he was too intoxicated and “incapable of forming an intent to murder,” according to a Star-Tribune account.
In May 1977, Peterson was sentenced to 20-21 years in prison. “Peterson had no statement to make on his behalf before sentencing, and showed no outward emotion after the sentence was imposed,” according to a Star-Tribune article.
On July 16, 1980, the Casper Star-Tribune published a memorial to Ray from his family:
In loving memory of our beloved Ray Mora, who was taken from us July 16, 1975, 5 years ago today. Gone but not forgotten, nor will he ever be. We love & miss him. The Mora Family.
The Reef Lounge was sold and in 1978 reopened as the Wine Cellar. The building has since been demolished.
