Ocean Springs Families

Contents

Alves Family

Ames Family

Calongne Family

Camba Family

Colligan Family

Dale Family

Davis Family

Egan Family

Gormly Family

Hamill Family

Jakins Family

Lundy-McClure Family

McEwen Family

Morris-Maxwell

O'Keefe Family

Seymour Family

Soden Family

Steelman Family

Swedish Families [Ackander, Hakanson, Lindholm, Lindstrom, Nelson, Nilsson, and Strahle]

Taltavull Family

Tillinghast

Toche Family

Van Cleave

Ward Family

Westbrook Family

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ALVES FAMILY

            Peter Alves (1863-1939) was born in Louisiana on December 11, 1863, the son of Peter Alves and Elizabeth Supass.  He married Angelina Trasierra (1876-1957), the daughter of Manuel Trasierra and Emily Numberg (1848-1924).  Angelina was born at New Orleans and her parents were from Mexico and Texas respectively.  Their children were: August George Alves (1893-1959), Charles Alves (1896-1971), Jennie Alves Tillman (1898-1980), Bertha Alves Gerosa Churchill Thomas (1901?-1980+), Joseph Alves (1903-1953), Alma Alves Olier (1907-1987), and Wilhemina Alves West (1910-2005).

           The Peter Alves family arrived at Biloxi circa 1910, probably from New Orleans.  In 1920, Peter Alves was sick and not working.  Angelina was an oyster shucker in a canning plant. They lived on Myrtle Street at Point Cadet in a domicile adjacent to the Joseph A. Toche (1872-1960) family.

 

BERTHA ALVES

            Betha Alved married a Mr. Gerosa.  On December 21, 1921, she married Henry T. Churchill (1897 or 1900-1931), the son of Henry Frank Churchill and Mary Collins.  Henry was born at Redmonville, Mississippi.  He expired at Breton Island, Louisiana on May 15, 1931, while at crewman on the Willomena, a Biloxi fishing boat owned by Marco Skrmetta (1889-1959).  Henry was buried in the Alves family plot in the Biloxi City Cemetery.  He was survived by a son, Henry Churchill.(The Daily Herald, May 16, 1931, p. 2)

 

Children:

AUGUST GEORGE ALVES (1893-1959)

August George Alves was born December 23, 1893.  He married Lola Daniels (1898-1940).  Children: August G. Alves II (1915-1979), Lola Claire Alves (1918-1919), Joyce Alves Nocora, and Rita Alves Oliver.  He died on March 15, 1959 while she expired on November 11, 1940.  Buried Biloxi City Cemetery.

 

August G. Alves II (1915-1979)

August G. “Ducky” Alves II married Phala Louise Vierling (1921-1978).  Their children: August G. Alves III, Kay A. Braun DeSilvey, and Kevin Alves.  In 1958, August G. Alves is making his livelihood as a ship captain and living at 120 West End Homes in Biloxi.

 

August G. Alves III

 

Kay Claire Alves (b. 1939) married Robert E. Braun (b. 1942), the son of Russell Braun and Louise Ruiz, at Pascagoula in April 1963.  He was a water ski instructor and bartender.(JXCO, Ms. MRB 103, p. 204)

 

Kevin Vincent Alves (b. 1948) the son of August G. Alves II (1915-1979) and Phala Louise Vierling (1921-1978).  Grew up at 27 Holcomb Boulevard.  Joined USAF and while a serviceman, he married Lynn Belle Speed (b. 1950), the daughter of Alfred Speed and Irene Martin, at Ocean Springs in August 1968.(JXCO, Ms, Circuit Court MRB 111, p. 157)  Appointed police chief in 1983 and served in this capacity until 1989.  Elected Mayor of Ocean Springs in 1989 and 1993.

Kevin Vincent Alves married Lynn Belle Speed (b. 1950), the daughter of Alfred Speed and Irene Martin, in August 1968.(JXCO, Ms. MRB 111, p. 157)

            Children: Kevin V. Alves II (b. 1975) and Shannon Lyn Alves (b. 1972?) married Mark Andrew Williams (b. 1969?), the son of Albert L. Williams (1927-2000) and Norma Williams of Ocean Springs, on November 27, 2004 in Biloxi.(The Ocean Springs Record, October 28, 2004, p. A6)

 

Joyce Alves Nocora

 

Rita Alves Oliver

            Rita married William Oliver.  They had a daughter, Chi Chi Joyce Oliver (1940-1940) who expired as an infant on May 23, 1940.  Buried Biloxi City Cemetery.

 

CHARLES PETER ALVES (1896-1971)

            Charles Peter Alves was born at New Orleans on November 17, 1896.  He married Adele Marie Primeaux (1903-1975) a native of Erath, Louisiana.  She was the daughter of Dupre Primeaux and Octavia Duplantis.  They resided at 302 Rose Street in Biloxi where he worked as a fisherman.   They had a son, Henry G. Alves (1920-1992), and four daughters: Vivian A. Cellucci, Donna A. Flores, June A. Palumbo, Gloria A. Landry, and Mary A. Williamson.  Charles Alves expired in July 1971.  His remains were interred at the Biloxi City Cemetery.(The Daily Herald, August 1, 1971, p. 2)

Gloria A. Landry, d. 1-29-1991, 5-24-1991, 9-22-2000.

 

Henry G. Alves (1920-1992)

            Henry G. Alves, called Bubba” was born at Biloxi on November 22, 1920.  He made his livelihood as a marine salesman.  Henry never married.  During WW II, he served in the U.S. Navy.  Henry G. Alves expired at Gulfport, Mississippi on November 12, 1992.  His remains were interred in the Biloxi City Cemetery.(The Daily Herald, November 14, 1992, p. A-2)

 

JENNIE ALVES TILLMAN (1898-1980)

            Jennie “Honey” Alves Tillman was born on November 22, 1898, at New Orleans.  She married John William Tillman.  Member of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in North Biloxi. Her family was: Lionel Pete Tillman, Frank Tillman, Norma T. Rhodes, Rita T. McMillan, June T. Cannette, Shirley T. Mallette, and Joyce T. Merritt.  She expired on January 26, 1980.  Buried Biloxi Cemetery.(The Daily Herald, January 28, 1980, p. A-2)

 

JOSEPH ALVES (1903-1953)

            Joseph “Joe” Alves was born at New Orleans.  He married Mable Marie Tauzin (1907-2004), a native of New Iberia, Louisiana, and the daughter of Emile Tauzin and Angela Borrell. (HARCO, Ms. MRB 36, p. 35). 

Joseph Alves passed on October 19, 1953, and was buried in the Biloxi Cemetery.  They were the parents of Raphael “Ray” P. Alves (1926-1988), Edmonia “Mona” Alves Sorci, Daniel Alves, and Helen Alves Wadja. 

Sometime before 1918, young Joe Alves was injured while working for the Sea Food Company on Point Cadet in Biloxi, Mississippi.  While unloading an oyster schooner at the factory, Alves fell through a hole in the wharf and suffered bodily harm for which litigation was brought against the Sea Food Company.  In February 1918, the Mississippi Supreme Court upheld the lower courts decision in favor of Alves against the defendant.(The Daily Herald, February 26, 1918, p. 1)

  Mable T. Alves worked at the Dejean Packing Company in 1958, while residing at 260 Miramar Avenue in Biloxi. She expired at Ocean Springs on May 27, 2004.  Buried in the Biloxi City Cemetery.(The Sun Herald, May 29, 2004, p. A-8)

 

Raphael P. Alves

Raphael “Ray and Ralph” P. Alves (1926-1988), called Ralph, was born at Biloxi on October 25, 1926.  He married Willine Wright.  They were the parents of Joyce Alves Von Heeder of Sealy, Texas.   In 1958, he was a fisherman employed with the Moore Seafood Company and residing with his mother.  At the time of his demise on August 30, 1988, in Houston, Texas, Raphael P. Alves was a maintenance technician for a food equipment company.  His corporal remains were sent to the Biloxi City Cemetery for burial.(The Daily Herald, September 2, 1988, p. A-4)

 

Edmonia “Mona” Alves

            Edmonia “Mona” Alves married John B. Sorci, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Salvdore Sorci, of San Jose, California on July 1, 1950, at St. Michael’s Roman Catholic Church in Biloxi, Mississippi. At the time of her mother’s death in 2004, she was residing at San Jose, California.  No children?(The Daily Herald, June 29, 1950, p. 8)

 

Daniel Alves

            Daniel “Buddy” Alves was a resident of Houston, Texas in August 1988.  Children: John, Ray, and Gail Alves.  Buddy expired before May 2004.

 

Helen Alves

            Married Wadja.  Children: Anthony, John, Eugene, Jeanne W. Dykraff.

 

ALMA ALVES OLIER (1907-1987)

            Born July 8, 1907.  Married Voorhis Louis Olier.  They had a son, Voorhis L. Olier II (1928-1948), who died on April 25, 1948.  She expired in September 1987.

 

WILHEMINA ALVES WEST (1910-2005).

            Wilhemina Alves was born April 8, 1910.  She was married to Houston West (1908-1997). He expired

September 12, 1997.  They were the parents of: Phyllis W. Spataro; Ralph West; and Hollis West.  Mrs. West expired at Biloxi, Mississippi on September 30, 2005.  Her corporal remains were interred in the Biloxi City Cemetery.(The Sun Herald, October 4, 2005, p. A6)

 

REFERENCES:

 

The Daily Herald, “Biloxi Youth Wins His Suit”, February 26, 1918.

The Daily Herald, “Churchill-Gerosa”, December 21, 1921.

The Daily Herald, “Fisherman Dies Suddenly”, May 16, 1931.

The Daily Herald, “Miss Mona Alves”, June 29, 1950.

The Daily Herald, “Charles Pete Alves”, August 1, 1971.

The Daily Herald, “Raphael P. Alves”, September 2, 1988.

The Daily Herald, “Mrs. Jennie A. Tillman”, January 28, 1980.

The Daily Herald, “Henry G. ‘Bubba’ Alves”, November 14, 1992.

The Ocean Springs News, “Jennie Alves Tillman”, January 1980.

The Ocean Springs Record, “Williams and Alves honored by VFW", May 6, 1976, p. 14.

The Ocean Springs Record, “Alves Named Ocean Springs Chief of Police”, February 10, 1983.

The Ocean Springs Record, “New chief assumes duties”, February 17, 1983.

The Ocean Springs Record, “First Family”, June 22, 1989.

The Ocean Springs Record, “Alves-Williams", October 28, 2004, p. A6.

The Sun Herald, “Mabel Marie Tauzin”, May 29, 2004.

The Sun Herald, "Mrs. Wilhemina West", October 4, 2005, p. A6.

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AMES FAMILY

       The forefather of the Ames family at Ocean Springs was John Ames (1797-1852+).  Ames settled originally at New York (1843) and came to Ocean Springs circa 1845 where he made his livelihood as a collier (charcoal maker).  Ames secured land patents in 1847 and 1848 from the United States Government on one hundred-twenty acres of land in the SE/4 of Section 19, T7S-R8W. 

This parcel of land, known in the past as the "Ames Tract", was bounded on the north by the south line of the SW/4 of the NE/4 of Section 19 (which strikes east-west through the southern one-third of the Evergreen Cemetery) and a line south of Iberville through the Spring Plaza Shopping Center, west by a line projecting from Government through Blount to Fort Bayou, south by Government, and east by a line from Government to the east side of the Spring Plaza Shopping Center.  Oddly, Ames Avenue is just west of the original Ames Tract.

Probably, the first baseball park at Ocean Springs, called the "Baseball Green" was located on a part of the Ames Tract.  It was 763 feet by 363 feet (6.36 acres) and located west of present day Germaine's Restaurant.  Captain Antoine Bellande (1829-1918) purchased the tract from James Stranby of New Orleans in November 1873.  It later became known as Veillon's Ball Diamond after Mrs. Henrietta Hyde Veillon (d. 1920) bought it from Bellande in May 1913.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 39, pp. 208-210 and Bk. 39, pp. 328-329)

Dr. Henry Bradford Powell (1867-1949), a Canadian physician and inn keeper, operated a four hole golf course here in 1910.  The links were short lived as Powell with A.E. Lee (1874-1936) and George E. Arndt (1857-1945) developed the Ocean Springs Country Club on the Rose-Money Farm north of Fort Bayou in 1914.

John Ames and his wife, Helen (1814-1874) reared four children at Ocean Springs: Thomas Ames (1843-1906), Elizabeth Ames (1845-1917), William Ames (1848-1922), and Jeremiah Ames (1852-pre 1922).

 

Thomas Ames (1843-1906), the eldest child, was born at New York.  He made his livelihood as a carpenter.  At the time of his demise on June 30, 1906, he was employed by the Dantzler Lumber Company at its Cedar Lake Camp in Harrison County.  It is believed that Thomas Ames never married.

 

Elizabeth Ames (1845-1917) called Eliza was the first Ames child born at Ocean Springs.  Her younger days were filled with acts of heroism and works of charity which entitle her to a prominent niche in the history of Ocean Springs.  In October 1878, the dreaded "yellow jack" struck the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  Miss Eliza Ames and her brothers led the small brave corps who nursed the sick and buried the dead.  They often worked day and night without pay or hope of reward.

In 1884, Miss Eliza Ames sold the lot adjacent to the Public Cemetery to Bishop Francis Janssens, the Roman Catholic Bishop of Natchez.  At this time, this burial ground was known as the Catholic Cemetery.  Later, the Public and Catholic Cemetery were called collectively the Evergreen Cemetery.

In 1900, Eliza Ames was the proprietress of a hotel or boarding house probably the ancestral Ames home located on the east side of Cemetery Road (now Sunset).  By 1910, she had retired from the business world.  Miss Eliza Ames died in January 1917.

After the Augustus von Rosambeau Store and home on Jackson at Calhoun were destroyed by fire on November 13, 1917, Leo von Rosambeau (1883-1931) and a group of workmen tore down Miss Ames's residence.  The lumber from that ancient structure was utilized to build the new von Rosambeau home at 420 Jackson Avenue.  Thomas Gautier and his family reside here today.

 

William Ames (1848-1922) married Mary Lux.  They had at least two children:  Giordina Beatrice Ames (b. 1885) and Thomas Alexander Ames (b. 1888).  They left Ocean Springs to reside at Bay St. Louis where he may have worked for the railroad.  William Ames died there in September 1922.

 

Jeremiah M. Ames (1852-pre 1922) married Louisa Monti (1856-1925), the daughter of Giacomo Monti (1820-1891) and Rosa Lendre Bacchi.  They married on January 15, 1876 in Bay St. Louis at Our Lady of the Gulf.  He made his livelihood initially as a merchant (1880) and later with the L&N Railroad as a bridge builder (1900).  Jerry and Louisa Ames reared a large family at Ocean Springs.  Their children were: Theodore J. Ames (1876-1927), Helen Rose Ames (b. 1878), William Thomas Ames (1880-1969), Emma Louise Williams  Ames (b. 1882), Floyd Ames (1885-1969+), Allen Monti Ames (1888-1963), Westley Ames (b. 1890), and Mabel Veronica Ames (b. 1896). (Lepre, 1995, p. 263)

 

Children of Jeremiah M. Ames

Theodore J. Ames (1876-1927), known as Ted, married Carrie Seymour (1889-1979), the daughter of Narcisse Seymour (1849-1931) and Caroline Virginia Krohn (1847-1895).  In 1904, Ames operated a livery stable behind the Commercial Hotel on Robinson.  He later moved into a metal building further east nearer Cash Alley. 

In the early part of this Century, Ted Ames functioned as the director of the Ocean Springs Brass Band.  In 1918, During WW I, he served with U.S. Army at Camp Wheeler, Georgia where he was a member of the 123rd Infantry Band.  When Ted Ames returned from his military service, he worked as a railroad carpenter (1920).  Later Ames was the caretaker of Captain Alex L. Bisso's home (Terrace Hill) at 414 Martin.  He and Miss Carrie lived at present day 1108 Calhoun (the Centennial House) where their only child, a son, Kenneth Ames (1923-1987), was born.  Kenneth Ames appears to have been the last male Ames left at Ocean Springs.

    

William Thomas Ames (1880-1969) was born at Ocean Springs, Mississippi on September 4, 1880.  His father, Jeremiah Ames (1852- circa 1920) was a first generation American of Irish parentage, and his mother Louisa Monti (1856-1925) from Bay St. Louis was the daughter of Giacomo Monti (1820-1891) and Rosa Lendre Bacchi.  Jerry Ames made his livelihood initially as a merchant (1880) and later with the L&N Railroad as a bridge builder (1900).  Mrs. Ames had eight children of which six were living in 1900.  They were: Theodore J. Ames (1876- 1927), Helen Rose Ames (b. 1878), William T. Ames (1880-1969), Emma Louise Ames (b. 1882), Floyd Ames (1885-1969+), Allen Ames (b. 1888), Westley Ames (b. 1890), and Mabel Veronica Ames (b. 1896).  Mr. Jeremiah Ames died at Ocean Springs prior to 1922.  One daughter married Will Sigerson of Bay St. Louis.    

 

Career

Young William T. Ames worked as a typesetter for The Progress, an Ocean Springs journal, from 1900 to 1903.  He listed his occupation as manager of an electric company, probably the Mississippi Coast Traction Company, in 1910. 

It is known that he went to Nashville, Tennessee and took a course in telephone work and was appointed manager of the Cumberland Telephone and Telegraph Company at Ocean Springs in 1904.  In April 1909, Manager Ames announced that the phone company was going to rebuild the local phone exchange because the company was unable to supply the demand for telephones at Ocean Springs.

            Ames was frequently transferred temporarily by the telephone company and was sent to Hattiesburg in 1917.  He returned to Ocean Springs and resigned his position as local manager of the Cumberland Telephone Company, and head of the Gulf Coast Traction Company.  Eugene W. Illing succeeded Ames of the affairs of the Gulfport & Mississippi Coast Traction Company, which furnished electric lights to Ocean Springs.

            In January 1918, Ames accepted a government job with the sanitation department at Hattiesburg.  He was in charge of the sanitary works and garbage collection of that city. 

Evidently this opportunity was short-lived as The Jackson County Times reported Ames back with the phone company.  In March 1918, W.T. Ames went to New Orleans.  In July 1918,

he was made manager of Cumberland Telephone Company at Crowley, Louisiana.  In October 1918, at Covington, Louisiana in charge of the telephone exchange.(The Jackson County Times, October 26, 1918, P. 5, c. 2)  It is believed that Mrs. Ames and the children remained at Ocean Springs during these times.

            William T. Ames officiated as Mayor of Ocean Springs (1913-1916), and alderman of Ward One 1905-1910.  He was known for his faithful attention to his duties both as mayor and alderman.  This was reflected by his almost perfect attendance at all public meetings.

           

Marriage

In 1910, W.T. Ames married a widow, H. May Bertolotti of Mobile on September 11, 1909.  Her first husband, E.A. Bertolotti, was the local manager of the Biloxi Railway & Power Company.  He was a first class electrician.  His company specialized in wiring buildings, burglar alarms, desk fans, ceiling fans, and electric door bells.  The Bertolottis lived at Ocean Springs in 1904, and had a daughter, Mary L. Bertolotti Baehler (1904-1984). 

            In May 1915, a daughter, Elizabeth Ames Estalote (1915-1995), was born to the Ames at Ocean Springs.  It is believed that the Ames had another child, probably a son.  Ames was a musician in the famous turn of the century Ocean Springs Brass Band.

            After leaving Louisiana circa December 1918, Ames relocated to Pascagoula where he was the manager of the Pascagoula telephone exchange. He joined the Mississippi Bottling Works at Pascagoula as manager in March 1919.  The company made pop, ginger ale, and other soft drinks.  In Pascagoula as late as September 1919.

            The Ames relocated to Selma, Alabama where he was employed by the L&N Railroad as an electrician.  They resided at 519 Lamar Street until Mrs. Ames death on May 26, 1926.  Her body was sent to Mobile for burial.  She was survived by three children. 

            When his mother, Louisa Ames, died in August 1925, she was living with Dr. Allen Ames in Pensacola.  Her other surviving children were:  Mrs. Will Sigerson of Bay St.Louis, Floyd and Wesley Ames of Hattiesburg, and W.T. Ames of Selma, Alabama.

            W.T. Ames moved to 226 Franklin Street at Selma and remained here until his retirement in 1964.  He probably moved to Algiers, Louisiana to be near his daughter ? 

Mayor Ames died on September 27, 1969 at Algiers.  He is buried at Westlawn Memorial Park.

 

Floyd Ames (1885-1963+) married Martha Elizabeth Cragin of Purvis at Hattiesburg in February 1909.  They resided at Hattiesburg where Ames was a partner in the Century Drug Company.  No further information.

 

Allen Monti Ames (1888-1963) would go to Hattiesburg in the summer months to assist his brother, Floyd, at his drug store there.  He began his medical education at Vanderbilt University and in 1912, graduated from the Tulane Medical School at New Orleans.  In 1914, Dr. Ames opened his medical practice at Pensacola, Florida.  He was a veteran of WW I and returned to Pensacola where he served the community for nearly fifty years.  Dr. Ames expired at Pensacola in mid-June 1963.  His corporal remains were interred in the Holy Cross Cemetery at Pensacola.  He was of the Roman Catholic faith.

(The Pensacola Journal, June 19, 1963, p. 8-A)

 

REFERENCES:

 

Jerome Lepre, Catholic Church Records Diocese of Biloxi, Mississippi, Volume 1, "Ames", (Catholic Diocese of Biloxi: Biloxi, Mississippi-1991), p. 4.

 

The Daily Herald, "W.T. Ames Goes to Hattiesburg", January 14, 1918, p. 4.

The Daily Herald, "Mrs. Willie Ames Obit", May 26, 1926, p. 1.

The Jackson County Times, "W.T. Ames Goes to Hattiesburg", January 12, 1918, p. 5.

The Jackson County Time, "Local News Interest", March 16, 1918.

The Jackson County Times, "Local News Interest", July 6, 1918.

The Jackson County Times, "Local News Items", October 26, 1918.

The Jackson County Times, "Local News Interest", March 29, 1919.

Jackson County Times, "Mrs. Louisa Ames Buried Here", August 15, 1925, p. 4.

Jackson County Times, "Local News Items", October 1, 1927.

Ocean Springs News, "The Weekly Roundup", April 17, 1909.

The Ocean Springs News, "W.E. Wilson in the Race for Mayor", September 26, 1914, p. 1.

The Ocean Springs News, "Mayor Ames a Candidate for Reelection", October 24, 1914, p. 5.

The Ocean Springs Record, "Obituary", October 9, 1969, p. 8.

The Progress, "Local News", July 2, 1904, p. 4.

The Selma Times-Journal, "Ames Remains Carried To Mobile For Burial", May 27, 1926.

 

US CENSUS - Jackson County, Mississippi (1880, 1900, 1910)

 

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CALONGNE FAMILY

            This family name may have originally been Fauconne de Calongne.  Calongne is a small village or estate in France.  Progenitors of the American family were Francois Calongne and Emilie Adelaide Henry of New Orleans.  Their son, Sidney Auguste Calongne (1855-1911), built the American Sugar Refinery in St. Bernard, Parish and other buildings in New Orleans.  In 1881, he married Sally A. Forschee (1853-1942), the daughter of J.H. Forshee and Sarah Knight. Sidney A. Calongne and Sally Forschee Calongne had five children: Sidney E. Calongne (b. 1883), Wilford F. Calongne (1885-1967), Emily C. Mead (b. 1887), Ashely Calongne (1890-1953), Mildred Calongne (1891-1892), and Evelyn Leah C. Smith (1896-1973).(Bill Calongne, April 1997)

The Calongnes were fond of Ocean Springs and began coming here in the early 1900s.  They rented a cottage behind Glengariff, the beach front home of Captain Francis O' Neill (1849-1936), the retired Superintendent of Chicago police.  It was here that a young Wilford F. Calongne met Mary Haggarty, the daughter of John J. Haggarty.  The Haggartys were also residents of the Crescent City and enjoyed the breezy, warm summers of the Mississippi coast.  Wilford married Miss Haggarty in September 1920 at New Orleans.(Bill Calongne, April 1997)        

 

 

Calongne-Reeves House [destroyed by Katrina, August 2005]

204 Washington Avenue

Hillside

The Calongne family built a home in the fall of 1909 at present day 204 Washington Avenue.  It was called, Hillside, and cost $3000.  The contractors were Wieder & Friar.  Hillside burned in the 1930s, and was rebuilt.  Muriel Cousins, wife of Mayor George Barrow Cousins (b. 1883), once lived here.(The Ocean Springs News, November 27, 1909, p. 1 and Bill Calongne, April 1997)

 The Calongne home on lower Washington Avenue had been possessed since December 1978 by Louise “Lit” VanCourt (1914-2004).  In the late 1990s, Miss VanCourt sold it to James D. Reeves and Nell Webb Reeves.  In the summer of 1999, the Reeves family renovated their home with consultations from Carl D. Germany, AIA, and under the auspices of the Ocean Springs Historic Preservation Commission.  They restored the L-shaped gallery of the original structure, replaced windows, and installed a balustrade around the perimeter of the porch.  New colors, Tarrytown Green with Windham Cream trim, were selected to replace the faded dark green and white trim.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 636, p. 449 and City of Ocean Springs-Historical District Application for Certificate of Appropriateness-March 1999)

 

Paving company

The three sons of Sidney A. Calongne formed a paving company called Calongne Brothers.  They came to Ocean Springs in May 1915, to remove the defective schellinger paving and laid over one mile of cement walks and driveways at the Benjamin Estate, the large, well-landscaped property of Anna Louise Fitz Benjamin (1848-1938), the widow of David M. Benjamin (1834-1892) of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.(The Ocean Springs News, June 3, 1915, p. 1)

 

 

Calongne Children

Sidney E. Calongne

Sidney Edward Calongne (b. 1883) received a Civil Engineering degree from Tulane. Married Ethel Calongne.  Died at Baton Rouge.  Four children: Dorothy Calongne, Ethel Calongne, Calongne, and Sidney Calongne married J. Arthur Smith.  No further information.(Bill Calongne, April 1997 and Philo Hooper DuVal, April  2001)

 

Wilford F. Calongne

Wilford F. Calongne (1883-1967) was born November 30, 1883 at New Orleans.  He received a Civil Engineering degree from Tulane.  Married Mary Haggarty at New Orleans, in September 1920.  She was the eldest of sixteen children (only eight survived).  Only child, a son, Wilford F. Calongne Jr. was born a New Orleans in 1921.  The family resided on Webster Street near Audubon Park.  They later relocated to the Broadmoor section of New Orleans, which is now predominantly Black.  W.F. Calongne for WPA during the Depression and assisted in the construction of the Lake Pontchartrain seawall.  He expired in May 1967.(Bill Calongne, April 1997)

 

 

W.F. “Bill” Calongne House (built 1996)

11001 Pointe-aux-Chenes Road

 

Professor Wilford F. Calongne Jr.

            Wilford “Bill” F. Calongne was born at New Orleans in 1921, the son of Wilford F. Calongne and Mary Haggarty.  He was reared on Webster Street near Audubon Park.  The Calongne family came to Ocean Springs for their summer holiday.  They stayed in their grandmother's cottage, Hillside, at present day 204 Washington Avenue.  Hillside was built in October 1909, by Wieder & Friar, local building firm. 

These were days when Johnny Seymour operated his fish and oyster house at the foot of Washington Avenue, the Anchor Inn of Mark Seymour was in full swing, and the "natives" were more prominent than they are today.  Ocean Springs still reeked with atmosphere and ambience of the small village, which it had been since the first tourist had discovered it during the steam packet days of the middle 19th Century.

In the summer of 1938, young Bill Calongne met Nathaniel Curtis, the Dean of the Tulane School of Architecture.  Dean Curtis and family were at Hillside for the summer.  Calongne's aunt, Emily C. Mead?, was letting the Connor Cottage on Lovers Lane.  They met at the Connors and the two became fishing companions often taking a boat into Back Bay to fish for white trout.  During their fishing ventures, Professor Curtis influenced young Calongne into studying architecture. 

Professor Calongne retired from teaching at Tulane in 1984.  In November 1973, he bought four acres of land at Pointe aux Chenes described as the W/2 of Lot 5 from William B. Rudolf and his wife, Hayne Rudolph.  Ruth Carr was sales the agent.  Bill Calongne planned to build his dream home here upon retirement.  When construction costs soared beyond his budget, he scaled down the project.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 482, p. 296)

Capital for the Calongne home was raised by selling the land to William Seaman and Wynn Seaman in March 1994.  Seaman rents the land to Calongne for $1 per year.  The home will naturally belong to Seaman upon the demise of Calongne. (JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 1049, p. 329 and JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Plat Book 1, p. 120)

Professor Calongne started a house on the bluff facing the Gulf of Mexico.  Foundation completed and framing commenced, when Seaman discovered the location and didn't want the house there.  In 1996, the Calongne project was restarted at a location farther from the water.  Ken Snyder of Ocean Springs was the general contractor.  The Calongne home has an area of 1500 square feet.(Bill Calongne, April 1997)

 

Ashley Calongne

Ashley Calongne (1890-1953) married Carol Burns.  For twenty years, Ashley was the chief sanitation engineer for the New Orleans District for the U.S. River Commission.  He died June 23, 1953, at his Waveland, Mississippi home.  Three children: Mrs. Frank London (Baltimore), Claire Calongne (Waveland), and Ashley Calongne (New Orleans).(The Gulf Coast Times, July 2, 1953, p. 1)

 

Emily Calongne

Emily Calongne (b. 1887) married Walter R. Mead of Mobile at New Orleans in November 1913.  He worked at New Orleans for the U.S. Post Office commuting from Ocean Springs.  Three children: Elaine Mead, Muriel M. Cousins married George Barrow Cousins, and Audrey Mead.

 

Evelyn Leah Calongne

Evelyn Leah Calongne (1896-1973) married Alwyn Smith Sr. (1892-1987) at New Orleans on June 30, 1917..  Al Smith was a 1912 graduate of the Tulane School of Dentistry.  Naval commander.  Came to Mississippi coast to reside in 1945.  He was a retired oral surgeon.  The Smiths had four children: Captain Alwyn Smith II (Poway, California), married Mary Lou Dixon; Jr.; Dr. Stanley T. Smith (Beaumont, Texas) married Betty Grant; Dr. Roland C. Smith (Novato, California) married Elizabeth Leach; and Joy Evelyn S. Luckey (1932-2003?) married Toxie Hall Luckey (1927-1984) and Philo Hooper DuVal (b. 1930). (The Sun Herald, April 20, 1987, p. A-4 and Philo Hooper DuVal, April  2001)

Dr. Smith was a member of the New Orleans Country Club, the Louisiana Dental Association, New Orleans Kiwanis Club, and Tulane Alumni Association.  He died April 18, 1987.  Mrs. Smith passed on July 1, 1973.(The Sun Herald, April 20, 1987, p. A-4)

  

REFERENCES: 

 

The Daily Herald, "Calongne Death", July 25, 1953, p. 12.

The Gulf Coast Times, “Funeral Services Held For Late Ashley Colongne (sic)”, July 2, 1953, p. 1.

The Jackson County Times, “Mrs. Calogne Dies”, July 25, 1942.

The Ocean Springs News, "Local News", August 28, 1909.

The Ocean Springs News, "Local News", October 23, 1909.

The Ocean Springs News, “Ocean Springs is Growing”, November 27, 1909.

The Ocean Springs News, "Local News", December 24, 1910.

The Ocean Springs News, “Death of Sidney A. Calongne”, March 4, 1911.

The Ocean Springs News, "One Mile of Cement Roads", June 3, 1915, p. 1.

The Sun Herald, "Dr. Alwyn Smith", April 20, 1987.

 

Personal Communication:

 

W.F. “Bill” Calongne Jr.-April 1997.

Philo Hooper DuVal- April  2001.

 

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CAMBA FAMILY

     

Francis H. Camba

Francis “Frank” Henry Camba (1853-1885) may have been the son of Frank Camba and Rosalia Oser.  He and Elizabeth Catchot (1854-1927) were the progenitors of this local family.  They were married at Jackson County, Mississippi on September 22, 1877.  At this time Mr. Camba was employed as a teller in a New Orleans bank.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, May 21, 1880, p. 3)

  Their only child, Walter F. Camba (1878-1960), was born on July 4, 1878, at Ocean Springs, Mississippi, the home of his mother.  Mrs. Camba was the daughter of two European immigrants, Antonio Catchot (1826-1885) of Menorca in the Balearic Islands, and Elizabeth Hoffen (1832-1916), a native of Bremen, Germany.  Birth records from archivist of the Diocese of Menorca at Ciudadela, Menorca indicate that the Catchot family migrated to that Mediterranean Island from Malta in the late 18^th Century.  Antonio Catchot appears to have immigrated to the United States circa 1850, while his wife arrived in 1853 from Germany.  Their children were: Elizabeth C. Camba Dunn (1854-1927), Joseph S. “Joe Tony” Catchot (1858-1919), Mary C. Bellande (1861-1931), and Antonio “Toy” Catchot Jr. (1868-1948).

            The Camba family left Ocean Springs for New Orleans circa 1885.  Shortly thereafter, Frank H. Camba died at the Louisiana Insane Asylum at Jackson, Louisiana.  His remains were interred in the Girard Street Cemetery at New Orleans.  When the Louisiana Superdome was erected in the 1970s, the cemetery had to be removed.  Camba’s remains were probably sent to the Greenwood Cemetery for internment.(Walter F. Camba Jr., March 1997)

           

John M. Dunn

Frank H. Camba’s widow, Mrs. Elizabeth C. Camba married John M. Dunn (1853-1932) at the St. Alphonsus Church in Ocean Springs in October 1887.  Mr. Dunn was from Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.  They had no children.  Both are interred at the Evergreen Cemetery at Ocean Springs.

 

Walter F. Camba (1878-1960)

(Courtesy of Walter F. Camba Jr. (1912-1999)-south elevation of the cottage of Captain A.V. Bellande (1829-1918) and spouse, Mary Catchot Bellande (1861-1931), on Jackson Avenue north of Cleveland)

 

Walter F. Camba

Walter F. Camba grew up in New Orleans.  He married Grace Hunt at Fort Philip, Louisiana on April 22, 1903.  Miss Eva Catchot was a bridesmaid in his wedding.  Walter Camba later married Mary Ellen Glaven (1880-1957).  They had three children:  Mercedes Camba Schmid (1909-1987) m. Dewey I. Schmid (1898-1979), Walter F. Camba Jr. (1912-1999), and Mrs. Paul Schriber.  Most of the Camba family members were interred in the Metairie Cemetery-Glavin-Section 26.  Mr. Walter Camba made his livelihood with the Illinois Central Railroad.  He worked for that organization for forty-six years retiring in August 1940. Walter F. Camba passed on June 14, 1960.  His remains were placed in the family mausoleum at the Metairie Cemetery.  Walter F. Camba Jr. expired on January 29, 1999 at Metairie, Louisiana.( Walter F. Camba Jr., March 1997)

   

Eva Louisa Camba

            Eva Louisa Camba (1880-1914), sometimes called Eva Catchot, was the illegitimate half-sister of Walter F. Camba.  Her parents were Frank H. Camba (1853-1885) and Mary Catchot (1860-1931), the sister of Mrs. Frank H. Camba.  Eva was born at New Orleans, and carried her mother's maiden name, Catchot, until her marriage.  She married Issac Clayton Chance, a protestant, of Rome, Georgia on March 8, 1911, at the St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.  His parents were Isaac Chance and Etheline Hobbs.  While growing up in Rome, Georgia, Issac Chance knew Ellen Axson (1860-1914), who married Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), the 28^th President of the United States.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, May 21, 1880, p. 3 and The Ocean Springs News, August 15, 1914)

            Issac and Eva Camba Chance had a daughter, Mary Etheline Chance, who was born in October 1911.  The Chances lived at No. 68 Church Street in Ashville, North Carolina.  Eva Catchot Chance died on November 4, 1914.  Her remains were sent to Ocean Springs for burial in the Evergreen Cemetery.(The Ocean Springs News, November 14, 1914, p. 2)

 

Camba Cottage- 520 Rayburn Avenue

 In June 1924, Mary Catchot Bellande (1861-1931) conveyed for $1200 a Queen Anne cottage on the east side of Rayburn Avenue at Ocean Springs to Walter F. Camba.  The small, cottage at present day 502 Rayburn Avenue was utilized by the Cambas as a retreat from New Orleans. (JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 76, pp. 431-432).

The small, one-story, wood framed, structure was built circa 1880.  It has a front gabled roof with imbricated shingles in the gable.  The projecting wrap-around gallery has turned posts and sawn brackets.  There are shed and gabled-roofed additions on the north and east elevations.

            Mr. Camba sold his sanctuary to Roland Lovelace (1889-1967) and spouse, Valera Pickel (1910-1977), in April 1951. The conveyance included all furniture and equipment, excepting the Camba’s lawn furniture.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 117, p. 362)

             In April 1958, the Lovelace family conveyed their Rayburn cottage to Ralph P. Aiken and Charlotte B. Aiken (JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 176, p. 522)

            Ralph P. Aiken and Charlotte B. Aiken.  No information.

            In October 1966, Special Warranty Deed issued by Everette E. Cook to get Mrs. Aiken on the title.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 301, p. 436 and Bk. 301, p. 437)

             In September 1967, Ralph P. Aiken and wife conveyed to Zella Ward Walker (1918-2000).(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 318, p. 545)

In June 1998, several years before her demise, Kitty Walker conveyed her home to herself and her brother, Guy M. Walker, as joint tenants in common.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 1145, p. 298)

The Camba Cottage is presently owned by Guy M. Walker.  Guy is married to the former Betty Goodwin.

 

           

REFERENCES:

 

Books

Brother Jerome Lepre, Catholic Church Records Diocese of Biloxi, Mississippi, Volume I, (Diocese of Biloxi: Biloxi, Mississippi-1991), p. 54.

 

Journals

The Gulf Coast Times, “Roland Lovelaces Purchase New Home”, January 26, 1951.

The Gulf Coast Times, “Lovelaces Purchase Walter Camba Home”, April 19, 1951.

The Jackson County Times, August 17, 1940, p. 1, c. 3.

The Ocean Springs News, “Local News”, August 15, 1914.

The Ocean Springs News, “Mrs. I.C. Chance”, November 14, 1914.

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, “Local News Paragraphs”, May 21, 1880.

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, April 24, 1903.

 

Personal Communication:

 

Walter F. Camba Jr.-March 23,1997.

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COLLIGAN

Irish immigrant, Henry Colligan (1823-1887) and Louisiana born, Mary Colligan (1832-1904), arrived at Ocean Springs circa 1848.  Mary Colligan was first generation Irish probably born at New Orleans.

            Henry Colligan made his livelihood as a gardener and farmer.  He patented several forty acre tracts of land from the U.S. Government in March 1854.  These were the SW/4 of the NW/4 and the NW/4 of the SW/4 of Section 20, T7S-R8W.  This land later became the property of J.C. Wright (1879-1941) and his brother-in-law, Texas oilman, Haroldson Lafayette Hunt (1889-1974).  Here Wright operated the Fort Bayou Dairy, raised cattle, and cultivated pecans.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 12, pp. 545-547) 

            Henry and Mary Colligan had three children:  James Robert (1855-1905), May (1856-pre 1870), and John (1859-1893).

             James Robert Colligan (1855-1905) married Ellen E. Birdrow (1860-1926), a native of Louisiana.  Her father may have been from France, while her mother, Theresa Birdrow Bird (1843-1920), was a native of the Magnolia State.  Mrs. Birdrow appears to have been widowed circa 1870.  She then married a Bird (died pre-1900) who was a native of Pennsylvania.  Their children were:  James (1876-1918), Jesse Galle (1880-1942), William (1883-1956), and Samuel (1886-1925).  Theresa Bird acquired lands in the Cox Avenue area from Sarah A. VanCleave in 1887.

            James R. Colligan made his living initially working as a farmer with his father and then later as a carpenter.  In 1900, he was employed on the bridge gang for the L&N Railroad.  James and Ellen Colligan's children were: James H. Colligan (1888-1951), Hattie V. Hoffman (1889-1958), Mae C. Ryan (1892-1966), Nancy C. Bertuccini (1894-1984), Ellen C. McKay (1896-1951+), Jasper Colligan (1899-1951+), and Jessie C. Illing (1903-1972).  The Colligans resided on the west side of Cox Avenue.

James Henry Colligan (1888-1951) was a plumber and electrician commencing that profession before 1910.  He may have apprenticed under George W. Dale (1872-1953) who was probably the senior plumber at Ocean Springs at this time.  When Colligan had his own plumbing business, Mayor Albert S. Westbrook (1900-1980) worked with him before joining the L&N Railroad. 

            Ellen Colligan's brother, George Birdrow (1865-1923), was a carpenter and building contractor at Ocean Springs.     In the 1920s, James H. Colligan left Ocean Springs for Texas.  By 1929, he had settled his young family at Kenner, Louisiana.  At Louisiana, Colligan was employed during the Great Depression helping to construct the Bonne Carre Spillway near Norco.  He later worked for the East Jefferson Parish Waterworks and did carpentry work.

James H. Colligan married Catherine Cunningham (1900-1955).  She was a native of New Orleans and met Colligan when she came to Ocean Springs on a vacation.  At the time, Catherine Cunningham was employed by the D.H. Holmes Company.  This organization provided the opportunity for its female employees to spend a week at Ocean Springs each summer for $7.00.  They stayed at "Haven on the Hill", the F.J. Lundy home located at LaFontaine and Washington.  Mrs. Hilda chaperoned the young ladies when they were visited by the young men of Ocean Springs.  The Colligans met in this manner.

James and Catherine Colligan had three children born at Louisiana: Louise Wilbert (1921), James H. Colligan, Jr. (1926-1926), and Ellen Catherine Colligan (1928-1928).

Jasper Colligan (1899-1951+) was a plumber for the L&N Railroad.  He left Ocean Springs in the 1920s and lived briefly at New Orleans where he met his wife, Lillian.  The Colligans spent the remainder of their years at Mobile.  They had a daughter, Claire Danks (1926), who was born at New Orleans.

 

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DALE FAMILY

 

William F. 'Willy' Dale (1899-1990)

         Willy Dale has been described as a “hard working, good businessman and mechanical wizard”.  He was a passionate fisherman and motorboater as well.  Here circa 1927, Willy he shown with two drum that he caught in Biloxi Bay near Gulf Hills.  Courtesy of H. Randy Randazzo-Arlington, Virginia.

 

Hattie Rose Seymour Dale (1876-1956)

[L-R: William F. Dale (1899-1990), Hattie S. Dale, and George Dale (1901-1953+)

 

William ‘Willy’ Frederic Dale was born March 4, 1899, at Ocean Springs.  He was known in the community as Willy Dale.  His parents were George William Dale (1872-1953) and Harriet ‘Hattie’ Rose Seymour (1876-1956), the daughter of Narcisse Seymour (1849-1931) and Carolyn V. Krohn (1847-1895).  They were married on December 9, 1897 at the St. Alphonsus CatholicChurch.  George W. Dale was baptized into the Roman Catholic Church on June 27, 1897, several months before his marriage to Miss Seymour.(Lepre, 1991, p. 78)

 

Catherine Dana Dale (1852-1934)

[Courtesy of Dr. Judy Bassham-Niceville, Florida]

George W. Dale was a native of Hayward, California. His parents were William Dale and Catherine Dana (1852-1934).  William Dale made his livelihood as a plumber and taught the trade to his sons at Hayward, California.  Catherine Dana Dale was a native of Sacramento and had lived at Hayward since 1869.  George W. Dale settled at Ocean Springs in the 1890s and made his livelihood as an L&N Railroad employee, tinsmith and plumber.  In 1909, he went into the hardware and plumbing business with Joseph B. Garrard (1871-1915).  They erected a building on the west side of Washington Avenue between Desoto and Robinson.  Dale’s father-in-law, Narcisse Seymour, was a pioneer in the seafood industry at Ocean Springs operating at the foot of Washington Avenue.  He was especially known for his fine raw oysters.(The Jackson County Times, November 10,1934, p. 3 and The Daily Herald, July 23, 1953, p. 13)

In the fall of 1916, George W. Dale retired from plumbing when he transferred his business to James H. Colligan (1881-1951), an employee.(The Daily Herald, September 27,1916, p. 6)

 

     

Alforetta Newcomb Dale (1905-1932) and Leo B. Dale (1904-1954) and John A. Dale (1914-1975)

[Courtesy of Dr. Judy Bassham-Niceville, Florida]

Willy Dale was the eldest of the eight children born to George and Harriet Seymour Dale.  His siblings were: George E. Dale (1901-1953+), Leo B. Dale (1904-1954), Lillian Dale Jefferis (1906-1998), Louise Dale Scott (1909-1979+), Milledge Dale Whitworth Allen (1912-1998), John A. (1914-1975), and Gerrard W. Dale (1917-1957).  The Dale family was reared at present day 1203 Calhoun Avenue near the homestead of Mrs. W.F. Dales father, Narcisse Seymour, at present day 1108 Calhoun Avenue.

 

1203 Calhoun

[image made August 1997 by Ray L. Bellande]

Dale family cottage

In May 1913, Narcisse Seymour conveyed Lot 9-Block 35 (Culmseig Map of Ocean Springs 1854) to Hattie Seymour Dale, his daughter.  Shortly thereafter, George W. Dale erected at No. 19 Calhoun Avenue, present day 1203 Calhoun, a 1600 square-foot, vernacular, side-gabled roof cottage with a small, shed-roof porch.(Jackson Co., Ms. Land Deed Bk. 39, p. 241)

In July 1936, during the Great Depression, George and Hattie Seymour Dale sold their home to Eugenia Zeolide “Gallie” Eglin (1877-1962), the wife of Henry L. Armstrong (1874-1945).  The Armstrongs resided at 1112 Bowen with their two children: Rollin “Polly” Stanley Armstrong (1907-1979), and Bernadette Armstrong Cavanah (1909-1962+).  Mrs. Armstrong returned the Dale cottage to them in a sale in November 1942.(Jackson Co., Ms. Land Deed Bk. 69, p. 173 and Bk. 82, p. 282)

            In July 1953, George W. Dale expired in his home at No. 19 Calhoun Avenue.  His corporal remains were passed through St. Alphonsus Catholic Church and interred in the Bellande Cemetery on Dewey Avenue.(The Daily Herald, July 23, 1953, p. 13)

            In her later years and post-demise of George W. Dale, Hattie Seymour Dale was domiciled in a personal care home at Mobile for two years before she expired on August 7, 1956 in Mt. Pleasant, Maury County, Tennessee, at the home of Milledge Dale Allen, her daughter and spouse of Clarence S. Allen (1906-1987). Mrs. Dale’s corporal remains were returned to Ocean Springs and interred in the Bellande Cemetery.(The Daily Herald, August 9, 1956, p. 2)

            Milledge Dale Allen was appointed executrix of her mother’s estate, which consisted solely of her residence at No. 19 Calhoun.  Hattie Seymour Dale’s heirs conveyed the George W. Dale cottage to Conrad and Mildred von Salzen in May 1959 for $4500.(Jackson Co., Ms. Chancery Court Cause No. 14007-December 1957 and Jackson Co., Ms. Land Deed Bk. 187, p. 512, Bk. 187, p. 514, and Bk. 187, p. 516)

            The von Salzen family lived here until J.Y. Christmas III acquired the Dale cottage from them in October 1976.  Mr. Christmas remains here today.(Jackson Co., Ms. Land Deed Bk. 575, p. 451)

 

Early Life

Willy Dale attended local schools and graduated with the Ocean Springs High School Class of 1916, which was headed by Professor Benjamin H. Ashman (1892-1983) and spouse, Mildred D. Ashman (1890-1975).  Among his classmates who would also find success in their chosen careers were: Edward A. Bellande (1897-1978), A. Lynd Gottsche (1902-1974), and Walter B. Holloway (1900-1965).

On January 20, 1920, Willy Dale married Ethel Sophia Endt (1900-1978), the daughter of Anthony J. “Tony” Endt (1870-1948) and Johanna Friedericka Wendel (1873-1931).  Their nuptial ceremony took place at St. Alphonsus Catholic Church and was presided over by the Reverend Joseph H. Chauvin (1867-1959).  Shortly after the wedding, Willy Dale moved to Oklahoma.  His wife joined him later.(The Jackson County Times, January 17,1920, p. 5 and Jackson Co., Ms. MRB 13, p. 274)

The parents of Ethel Endt Dale were natives of New Orleans and the children of German immigrants.  Ethel’s parents had married October 29, 1896 at St. Alphonsus Catholic Church.

(Lepre, 1991, p. 103 and JXCO, Ms. MRB 6, p. 70)

 

1406 Porter

[L-R: images made April 1990 and August 1997 by Ray L. Bellande]

 

Dale-Marion home

In March 1920, Ethel Endt Dale acquired Lot 5-Block 33 (Culmseig Map 1854), from Elijah Brown of Washington D.C.  Here the Dales built their familial home at 1406 Porter Street and reared their two children: Thelma Dale Bradford Christopherson (b. 1921) and William F. Dale Jr. (1926-1979).  In November 1989, before his demise, Willy Dale sold his Porter Street home to Thelma Dale Christopherson, his daughter, and Gary W. Christopherson, his grandson, who reside in South San Francisco, Lake Co., California.(Jackson Co., Ms. Land Deed Bk. 48, p. 3 and Bk. 949, p. 31) 

In June 1990, shortly after Willy Dales’s death, Thelma and Gary W. Christopherson vended the structure to Andrew A. Marion Jr. and Melissa Schloegel Marion, his wife.  They relocated to Seapointe in 1996 and conveyed the Dale cottage to Andrew’s parents, Andrew A. Marion and Martha B. Marion, who remain here on Porter Street today adjacent to Freedom Field..(Jackson Co., Ms. Land Deed Bk. 959, p. 656 and Bk. 1084, p. 660)

 

Dale Motor Company [circa 1927]

9  Porter Street

[from The Ocean Springs Record, June 22, 1972, p. 1]

 

Mechanical genius

As a young man Dale learned to repair automobiles.  In May 1926, he went into business as the Dale Motor Company.  He opened a 3500 square-foot garage on West Porter, in a structure which was once the locus of the J.J. O’Keefe Livery Stable.  It was of the most modern on the entire coast.  Dale's machines and tools were mostly electrically powered, state of the art for the period.  Among his inventory of apparatuses were: the electrical valve resurfacing and reseating tool; electrical riveting; counter-sinking machine for relining brakes; cylinder hones; aligning gauges for front wheels; acetylene welding and cutting torch; weaver wrecker for hauling in disabled vehicles; air pump; Weaver tire change stand; Humpy-Cooper re-babbitting machines and other appurtenances applicable to automobile repair.  At this time Willy Dale was the local Chevrolet dealer.  He also sold gasoline, oil, and greases and his Porter Street auto service business.(The Jackson County Times, June 12, 1926)

 

Milledge Dale Whitworth Allen (1912-1998)

[Milledge Dale standing in front of Willy Dale's Ocean Kid, circa 1928.  Courtesy of Dr. Judy Bassham-Niceville, Florida]

Motorboat Racing

Willy Dale was a passionate man and motorboat racing and fishing were his salient avocations.  His Ocean Wave was the only competitive speed boat at Ocean Springs.  The watercraft was powered by a Lockwood Motor.  Willy’s Dale Motor Company was  the agent for Johnson and Lockwood outboard motors.

On May 10, 1928, Willy Dale participated in a motorboat regatta in conjunction with the dedication of the Harrison County seawall.  Dale in his Ocean Wave, won three trophies.  He piloted his light craft to victory in the Class B races.  Willy also captured second place in two other class events.  He was a contender in a fourth event, but his craft was damaged.(The Jackson County Times, May 12, 1928, p. 2)

On June 10, 1928, Dale participated in the Pass Christian Motor Boat Regatta.  This time he was in a small light craft called the Ocean Kid.  This boat developed great speed from its Johnson outboard motor.  Willy Dale expertly drove his craft to first place in its class, and finished second in a race against all competitors piloting craft of all sizes and horsepower. (The Jackson County Times, June 16, 1928, p. 3)

            Two weeks later, Willy Dale ran the Ocean Kid in Back Bay at a race course off Bay Terrace.  He had recently been experimenting with the small craft and the June 24^th race was a ‘test race’ for him.  Willy’s experimentations proved deleterious to his watercraft.  The Ocean Kid ran well in the first contest finishing second in a hotly contested race with The Last Flea of Biloxi.  Dale was not able to race again that day.(The Jackson County Times, June 23, 1928, p. 3 and June 30, 1928, p. 3 )

            Willy Dale made a successful appearance at the Biloxi Yacht Club Regatta held in July 1928, piloting the Red Gold, built by a Biloxi party with one of Dale’s ten and one-half, horsepower, Lockwood engine.  The Red Gold averaged thirty-five miles per hour and swept every class race.(The Jackson County Times, July 14, 1928, p. 3)

In August 1928, Dale drove his Lightning to first place finishes in the Class B and Class C outboard motor races at Bay St. Louis.  Competitors were from New Orleans and other Mississippi coast towns.(The Jackson County Times, August 25, 1928, p. 1)

 

Entrepreurial years

As previously mentioned, Willy Dale commenced his long career as a local entrepreneur in 1926 with the opening of Dale Motor Company on West Porter Street. Mr. Dale had leased the “O’Keefe Livery Stable Lot”, east of the mansion in August 1927, from the J.J. O’Keefe family.  Here he operated a garage and initially sold Texaco products.  Mr. Dale later vended Shell gasoline here.(JXCO Land Deed Bk. 70, pp. 196-200)

In September 1929, he Dale began Dale Motor Sales, Inc. with two partners, Arthur W. Hersey and Arthur .T. ‘Ted’ Hersey.  This enterprise was an agency that represented and vended Chrysler and Plymouth motorcars .  It also was located on West Porter Street at the site of the Dale Motor Company and garage.  Willy Dale continued here with his auto repairs and the vending of auto accessories, tires, tubes, and outboard motors.  Willy and Ted Hersey managed the motorcar sales of their Chrysler-Plymouth enterprise.(The Jackson County Times, September   , 1929, p.   )

 

Hersey family

Arthur W. Hersey (1879-1971), a native of Boston, Massachusetts, was a consulting Civil Engineer who came to Ocean Springs from Harvey, Cook County, Illinois.  He was reared in Bean Town where his family was in the grocery business.  A.W. Hersey was the City Engineer for Harvey, Illinois, a south Chicago suburb, before becoming a consultant engineer.(1900 Suffolk Co., Massachusetts; 1910 Cook Co., Illinois; and 1920 Cook Co., Illinois Federal Census T9_560, p. 17, ED 749; T624_241, p. 13B, ED 120; and T625-363, p. 14B, ED 216)

A.W. Hersey and A.M. McElrath, also from Cook County, Illinois supervised the dredging and road construction at Gulf Hills for the Branigar Brothers in 1925 and 1926.  At this time, a thirty-six ton dredge was utilized to dig a six to eight-foot depth channel to residential sites at the Gulf Hills development.  Mr. Hersey oversaw the construction of Shore Drive and Ridge Road, as well as, connecting roads and an eight mile bridal path through the wooded region.(The Jackson County Times, January 23, 1926, pp.1 and 3)

Circa 1906, Arthur W. Hersey married Emma B. Hersey (1887-1930+), a native of Pennsylvania.  They had one child, Arthur T. “Ted” Hersey (1907-1991), who was born in Illinois, probably Harvey.  In May 1930, A.W. Hersey was a resident of Gulf Hills and employed as a real estate manager.  In 1927, he and Emma had built one of the original Gulf Hills homes, a Spanish Colonial Revival structure at present day 13720 Windlo Circle, now the residence of Maria Mavar.  The Hersey-Mavar domicile will be one of four Gulf Hills habitats on tour for the 2007 Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra Guild Kaleidoscope of Homes, which will occur on December 2^nd.(1930 Federal Census-Jackson Co., Ms., T626-1150, p. 83) 

A.T. “Ted” Hersey married Helen Wertz (or Werts) of Champaign-Urbana, Illinois on June 24, 1929.  She was the daughter of A.E. Werts and the sister of Mrs. Paul Beam.  The newly weds honeymooned in the Midwest and then took a steamer from New York to New Orleans.  They planned to be in Ocean Springs on July 10, 1929.(1930 Federal Census of JXCO, Ms., T626-1150, p. and The Jackson County Times, June 15, 1929, p. 2)

In 1930, Ted and Helen Hersey were living in Cherokee Glen.  As mentioned, he made his livelihood in automobile sales with Willy Dale.  The Herseys were members of the “Monday Night Club”.  They were hosts of a meeting of the club in May 1930 and their guests included his parents.(The Daily Herald, May 28, 1930, p. 2)

 

 

The Dolphin

      The Dolphin-was built for Willy Dale on Porter Street in 1938 by Henry F. Fountain (1899-1964), a Biloxi boat builder and hull superintendent at the Westergard Boat Works on the Back Bay in Biloxi during WW II.  Westergard’s vessels were wooden, minesweepers, which were 110 feet in length and saw service in the North Atlantic.  They were dubbed the ‘Splinter Fleet’ and the ‘Donald Duck Navy’.  Willy Dale’s  Dolphin was used in the Mississippi Sound for commercial fishing charters and pleasure cruising to the barrier island. 

 

The Babendriers or Babendreers

In March 1936, Willy Dale formed another local corporation, Dale Inc., to manufacture, sell, and build oil dispensing devices.  His partners were Dr. Albert Babendrier and spouse, Dr. Estelle Turner Babendrier (1871-1958).  Capital stock for the new company was $26,000.(The Jackson County Times, March 28, 1936)

Dr. Charles Albert Irving Babendrier (1867-1938) called Albert, was born in Baltimore, Maryland on November 13, 1867 of German parentage while Estelle Turner Babendreir was a native of Mobile, Alabama.  She was born July 28, 1871.  Her father was a native of North Carolina, and her mother was a French speaking Swiss national.  Estelle Babendrier attended Plute Medical College probably located at Kentucky.  She graduated in March 1896, after completing four courses in allopathic medicine.  Her experience as a physician was with Dr. J.E. Million of Kentucky where she practiced for thirteen years.(JXCO, Ms. Physician’s License Bk. 2, p. 199)

The Babendriers may have arrived at Ocean Springs in late 1906.  They probably came here from Kentucky where their two children, Eleanor Sophia Babendrier Moore (1900-1986) and Eric Turner Babendrier (1902-1975) were born.  Both Babendrier children practiced law.  Eleanor was the first woman attorney at Ocean Springs and possible in South Mississippi.  She was admitted to the bar in August 1922 with Judge D.M. Graham administering the oath at Pascagoula.(The Jackson County Times, August 12, 1922, p. 1)

It is generally believed that the Babendriers chose Ocean Springs to retire from their respective medical practices.  Later Estelle did develop her medicinal skills at Ocean Springs after being granted a license to practice medicine in Jackson County on July 18, 1922.(JXCO, Ms. Physician’s License Bk. 2, p. 199)

            On January 3, 1907, Albert Babendrier purchased thirty acres of land in the SE/4 of the NW/4 of Section 28, T7S-R8W from Mayor F.M. Weed (1852-1917) and merchant, Elias S. Davis (1859-1925), for $840.  This tract is south of Government Street and west of Pine Hills Road.  After building a unique, 3000 square-foot, concrete home at present day 601 Pine Hills Road in the northeast corner of his estate, the Babendriers planted pecans and citrus trees.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 32, pp. 143-144)

Circa 1916, Albert Babendrier came out of semi-retirement to become an entrepreneur.  By May 1917, he and E.S. Davis were active in cereal making with their Whole Grain Wheat Company at Monence, Illinois.  Albert Babendrier acquired the Biloxi Canning Company in October 1919 for $4000.  Willie C. Rose Humphreys (1877-1921+), the wife of  John Brown Humphrey (1861-1921), was the vendor of this seafood factory, which is now the site of the Imperial Palace Casino on Bay View Avenue in Biloxi.(The Jackson County Times, May 12, 1917 and HARCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk.125, p. 73) 

In 1920, at Biloxi, Albert Babendrier entered into the machine and foundry business, which was complimentary to his cannery.  The enterprise called the Biloxi Machine Works & Foundry Company was located on the northeast corner of Railroad Street and Magnolia.  The organization manufactured the Gulf Standard Gasoline engine, gray iron, and made brass and aluminum fittings. Louis Braun served as vice president and J.R. McElroy was the treasurer of the organization. 

When Dr. Albert Babendrier died on June 19, 1938, he was buried in a mausoleum like structure located southwest of his home.  This feature may have been used originally as a cyclone cellar.  Paul bearers at Dr. Babendrier's funeral were: W.G. Wilkes, E.C. Tonsmeire, Willie Dale, W.A. Vierling, F.B. Royster, and Dr. Carl Lindstrom.  Dr. Estelle Turner Babendrier lived until March 12, 1958.  She was a member of the Gulf Coast Medical Society and American Medical Association. She specialized in skin disorders and allergies.  Her treatment of patients at Ocean Springs is legendary as it is generally believed she prepared her own formulae from herbs and plants grown in her garden.  George E. Arndt (1910-1994), remembered that Dr. Babendrier gave him some "little pink pills" for a respiratory ailment.  He believed also that some of her medicine was manufactured by a pharmaceutical house in St. Louis.  Many other people at Ocean Springs can relate to having been treated for poison ivy and sumac by Dr. Babendrier.  Her treatments for these irritating skin ailments were oral liquids, salves, and lotions.  It appears the good lady doctor took her apothecarial secrets to the grave.(The Daily Herald, June 20, 1938, p. 1 and June 21, 1938, p. 3; and March 12, 1958, p. 2; and J.K. Lemon)

 

The Dolphin

In April 1938, Willy Dale contracted with Henry Fountain (1899-1964), a Biloxi boat builder, to construct a cabin cruiser.  It was built on Porter Street at his boathouse adjoining the Dale automobile garage.  When completed, the $7500 vessel was launched in Old Fort Bayou and christened, Dolphin.  The Dolphin was about forty feet in length with a twelve-foot beam and hold depth of six feet.  She was built of clear cypress with the cabin and interior made of mahogany.  Willy Dale and William Walter Hearther (1892-1981), the spouse of Mildred Peacock (1896-1968), the granddaughter of Charles D. Peacock, founder of C.D. Peacock Jewelers and E.J. Lehmann, founder of the Fair Store, which merged with Montgomery Ward & Company, had just returned from Detroit, Michigan where they went to select a 165 horse power GM diesel engine for the new vessel.  W.W. Hearther was a Chicago stockbroker and part time, Gulf Hills resident.  The 1050 mile return trip to Ocean Springs was made in 17 ½ hours.  When completed, the Dolphin was used by Sportsman’s Services, Inc. out of Biloxi for sports fishing and pleasure cruising to the nearby barrier islands.  Willy Dale managed the operations.(The Daily Herald, April 22, 1938, p. 6 and May 25, 1938, p. 8 and The Chicago Tribune, February 14, 1968)

 

Willy Dale and the O’Keefe Mansion

The O'Keefe family began its long and illustrious history at Ocean Springs when Irish immigrant Edward "Ned" O'Keefe (1815-1874), came here from New Orleans in the mid-1850s.  O'Keefe married Mary Tracy (1832-1895) in 1859, the same year he purchased Lot 5 of Block 26 (Culmseig Map) from A.F. Ramsay on the northeast corner of Porter and Rayburn.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 7, p. 272)

After returning from the Civil War (1861-1865) with the Live Oak Rifles, Company A, 3^rd Mississippi Regiment, Ned O'Keefe became a teamster and started a livery business.  He supplied transportation service to the multitude of visitors who arrived at Ocean Springs by steam packet and later train.  When people passed on, his carriages were used to transport their corporal remains to the local cemeteries, primarily Evergreen and Bellande.  Before his death in 1874, Ned O'Keefe and his wife had two children:  Jeremiah Joseph “Jerry” O’Keefe (1860-1911) and Mary Helen O’ Keefe (1863-1878), a victim of the 1878 Yellow Fever epidemic.

In February 1881, Mary Tracy O'Keefe commenced her boarding house and store operations on the northeast corner of Jackson and Porter.  The property was purchased by her husband, Ned O'Keefe in two parcels.  The first lot was bought from Enoch N. Ramsay (1832-1916), in April 1867, and described as Lot 6 of Block 27 (Culmseig Map-1854) and comprised 52 feet on Jackson and 200 feet on Porter.  In August of the same year, Ned Keith purchased Lot 5 of Block 27 (Culseig Map-1854) from George A. Cox (1811-1878).  This tract became the site of the O’Keefe livery stable and later the Willy Dale garage.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, February 4, 1881, p. 3 and JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 62, p. 475 and Bk. 62, p. 476)

In 1909, Jerry O'Keefe built a large family home behind the old family boarding house at present day 911 Porter Street.  This 2 1/2 story mansion of Beaux-Arts "polite" design, Corinthian columns, and wide porches has become a symbol of O'Keefe prosperity and financial calamity.  The edifice was completed with cost approaching $10,000.  The Jerry O’Keefe mansion was lauded in 1909, as a handsome addition to the numerous beautiful edifices situated in Ocean Springs.(The Ocean Springs News, November 27, 1909, p. 1) 

An adjunct to this tale is that of the fabulous cut-glass portals on the 1909 O’Keefe home.  They were constructed by Jefferson Davis Egan (1864-1907), the son of Irish immigrants John J. Egan (1827-1875) and Julia Egan (1833-1907), as a wedding gift for his childhood friend, Jerry O’Keefe.(1860-1911).  From 1938 until 1971, the O’Keefe cut-glass doors remained at Ocean Springs in Miss Mary C. O’Keefe’s cottage, which was located on West Porter between Dale’s Garage and the W.S. Van Cleave Store.  After Miss O’Keefe’s domicile was demolished to erect the Villa Maria in the early 1970s, the doors were stored in Biloxi.  They were mounted on the O’Keefe mansion during its restoration by Jeremiah J. O'Keefe III, which was completed in December 1987.(Ellison, 1991, p. 67, Alice O’Keefe Sebastian, September 13, 1999, and The Ocean Springs Record, December 3, 1987, p. 1) 

It is believed that the 1909 O’Keefe home at present day 911 Porter was modeled on that of the Dr. Don Carlos Case-H.F. Russell edifice, which stood on the southwest corner of Washington and Porter until it was demolished in the1930s after being damaged by a fire in 1934. (The Jackson County Times, September 29, 1934 and J.K. Lemon, 1993)

 

Boarding house

In July 1910, the antiquated, wooden O’Keefe boarding house was sold to Samuel Backous (1855-1921), a farmer from Indiana, who had recently returned to Ocean Springs from Texarkana, Texas.  Mr. Backous and his wife had sold their Texas farm, and planned to reside at Ocean Springs permanently.  In September 1907, they had purchased the NW/4, NW/4 of Section 29, T7S-R8W from E.E. Clements of Buncombe County, North Carolina.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 32, pp. 616-617)

The old O’Keefe boarding house was moved to the Backous place, now the Ted Clark place at 2122 Government Street, in 1910.  The upper story was removed.  It is speculated that the O’keefe home was transported over the shell roads of Ocean Springs using a method popular at this time i.e., oxen pulling the house, which had been jacked off its foundation and supported by poles or logs which were chained to a pair of wagon wheels.

 

 

 Dale’s Restaurant and Lounge

          From the early 1940s until the early 1980s, Willy Dale was the proprietor or lessor of this magnificent edifice which had been built in 1909 by Jeremiah J. O’Keefe (1890-1911) as his family residence.  During Dale’s long ownership, this building was often the social center of town with food, music, and libations to enjoy.  In addition to Dale’s, it was also known as Trilby’s, the White Oaks Restaurant, and the White Oaks Inn.  During WW II, the Greyhound bus line stopped here as well.  Courtesy of Robert W. Potter (1918-2008).

         

            Unfortunately, the 1909 Jeremiah J. O’Keefe architectural, gem at present day 911 Porter Street was lost by the O’Keefe family during the Depression, when it was repossessed in December 1938, by the Home Owners Loan Corporation, a Federal corporation.  A balance of $5612.17 was owed by the O’Keefe family on the mortgaged property.  It was vended by this Federal government agency to William F. ‘Willy’ Dale (1899-1990) in December 1939, for $3850.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed JXCO Land Deed Bk. 71, pp. 580-581 and Bk. 74, pp. 158-160)

One of the great success stories of Ocean Springs, is the return of the J.J. O’Keefe family residence on Porter Street to the family.  When they lost it in 1938, the Jeremiah J. ‘Ben’ O’Keefe II family relocated to Biloxi and resided on Fayard Street behind the Bradford-O’Keefe Funeral parlor at 601 West Howard Avenue.  A young Jeremiah J. “Jerry” O’Keefe III (b. 1923) and his sister, Alice O’Keefe Sebastian (b. 1922), vowed that someday, they would reclaim their former home in Ocean Springs.(Alice O’Keefe Sebastian, September 13, 1999 and The Ocean Springs Record, July 3, 1986, p. 2 and  July 10, 1986, p. 2

This was accomplished in July 1986, when the Willy Dale family sold the former O’Keefe mansion to Gulf National Life, an O’Keefe corporation.  A ceremony was held on the grounds and after signing the warranty deed to the O’Keefe family, Willy Dale said, “Folks, the first day [of owning this building] was fun and the last day is fun too.”  In December 1987, Jeremiah J. ‘Jerry’ O’Keefe III with the competent architectural advice and service of Bruce Tolar completed its restoration.  The refurbished edifice has been used as the Bradford O’Keefe Funeral Home since this time.(JXCO Land Deed Bk. 863, p. 159 and The Ocean Springs Record, July 3, 1886, p. 2 and December 3, 1987, p. 1) 

           

Dale’s Restaurant and Lounge

After Willy Dale took possession of the O’Keefe home, at present day 911 Porter Street, he converted it into a restaurant and lounge.  Its chronology is varied and interesting as for the next forty plus odd years, the Dale building, formerly O’Keefe residence, was leased by many individuals who attempted to make their livelihood from the food and beverage business within its hallowed halls and expansive rooms.  During some of this time, Willy Dale continued his interest in the vending of gasoline and oil and the selling and repairing of automobiles.  An example of this interest was demonstrated in October 1941, when he opened a new Shell filling station and in January 1946, when Willy Dale reopened his auto repair service in Ocean Springs.(The Jackson County Times, October 25, 1941, p. 1 and January 26, 1946, p. 4)

 

World War II

World War II introduced mass changes on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  Ocean Springs was highly influenced by the establishment of Keesler Field at Biloxi in 1941 and our own Army Air Corps Crash Boast Base set up in early 1944 on the Inner Harbor.  The overflow of military personnel and their dependents from Biloxi for housing and entertainment was surely excellent for local business and rentals.  Dales’s on Porter Street was the social center of town during these trying times.  Several local gals found husbands whom they met at Dale’s during WW II. 

Willy Dale also was the local agent for the Greyhound Lines at his Porter Street establishment during WW II.  He advertised this enterprise as follows: 

 

GREYHOUND

BUS STATION

Now located at Dale’s

Ocean Springs, Mississippi

24-HOUR RESTAURANT SERVICE

Will appreciate your business and patronage

(The Jackson County Times, April 15, 1944, p. 4)

 

Ancel D. Thompson

Shortly after the termination of WW II., in January 1946, Willy Dale leased his restaurant and lounge on Porter to Ancel David Thompson (1907-1977), a native of Alabama, and Mildred Elizabeth Izard Thompson (1905-1998) of Biloxi.  Mr. Thompson had been an assistant manager of a wholesale grocery in Gulfport and a traveling salesman prior to joining the military in 1943.  He expected to improve the restaurant in several areas.  Miss Nora Ladnier continued tending bar for the Thompsons.(The Jackson County Times, January 26, 1946, p. 1)

Ancel D. Thompson opened in early February 1946, with the following advertisement in The Jackson County Times of February 8, 1946, p. 4:

 

ANNOUNCEMENT

DALE'S

Restaurant

REOPENS

Saturday, Feb. 9, 1946

We will specialize in Sea Food Dinners,

Steaks and Chicken

Dances Continue on Wednesday and

Saturday as Usual with C.F. Gollote's (sic)

Orchestra

Restaurant Hours 12 Noon to 9 P.M.

 

The Thompson’a tenure at Dale’s was short-lived as by the summer of 1946, a new tenant had taken over the property.

 

            Willy Dale (1899-1990) was an avid fisherman and boater.  He is depicted here with a large Spanish mackerel.  After the Dolphin, Mr. Dale acquired the Hubba Hubba, a twenty-four foot, mahogany, cabin cruiser.  It was kept in his boathouse on West Porter between the restaurant-lounge and the former service station, which had been converted to offices.

 

Nosery M. Abraham

            In August 1946, Nosery Mark Abraham (1898-1969), a 1909 Syrian immigrant, undertook the management of the Dale property.  Nosery M. Abraham had been reared at Ocean Springs, as William Abraham (1865-1941), his father, had operated a fruit stand, general store, and residence, probably on Washington Avenue.  In September 1911, Joseph A. Wieder (1877-1960) was contracted to erect another story onto the structure occupied by the Abraham family.  The family planned to reside on the second floor and enlarge their business on the bottom story.(The Ocean Springs News, September 9, 1911 and September 30, 1911

On June 1, 1918, Mrs. William Abraham moved to Pascagoula and leased a store building near the post office to take advantage of the booming economy there reacting to America’s entry into WW I.  Nosery M. Abraham showed the patriotism often evoked by recent immigrants and enlisted in July 1918 in the U.S. Marine Corps.  He finished basic training at Parris Island, South Carolina and was mustered out of the Marine Corps at the Marine Barracks, Quantico, Virginia in January 1919.(The Jackson County Times, June 1, 1918, p. 5)

            Nosery M. Abraham returned to Mississippi after his military service and opened an ice cream manufacturing business at Columbia, Mississippi.  His father closed his shoe repair business at Ocean Springs in August 1920 and joined him in Marion County.(The Jackson County Times, August 21, 1920)

            At Biloxi in April 1926, Nosery married Loretta Sablich (1901-1992), the daughter of Julius Sablich (1873-1947) Alphonsine Ruex (1874-1960).  After their nuptials, the newly weds were domiciled at Gulfport, but by 1930 had returned to Hopkins Boulevard at Biloxi where Nosery was employed selling sea food.  At this time, they had two sons, Nosery M. Abraham Jr. (1927-2003+) and Joseph E. Abraham (1929-1976).(The Jackson County Times, April 10, 1926, p. 3 and 1930 Harrison Co., Ms. Federal Census R 1146, p. 14A, Ed 5)

 

The Silver Gull and Dale’s

Prior to commencing his food and beverage services in the Dale place on Porter Street, Nosery Abraham had been the proprietor of The Silver Gull, a restaurant and lounge, situated on U.S. Highway 90, now the Old Spanish Trail or Government Street, two miles east of Ocean Springs.  He opened The Silver Gull in February 1940.(The Jackson County Times, February 24, 1940, p. 4)

On August 3, 1946, Nosery M. Abraham, the new manager, opened as:

 

DALE’S

Restaurant and Lounge

Dining Room

Specializing

Fine steaks, fresh well-prepared seafood, fried chicken, and poor boy sandwiches

Curb service  No cover or admission charge

           

Mr. Abraham also offered C.F. Gollott (1911-1987) of Biloxi and his orchestra with Miss Mae Morgan on vocals.  C.F. Gollott played Dixieland Jazz and was associated with name bands of his era: Ace Cannon, George Brunies (1902-1974), Dan Glasser, and Chuck Foster.(The Daily Herald, August 2, 1946, p. 3 and The Ocean Springs Record, December 2, 1982, p. 2)

 

Pete Lowery

In the spring of 1947, Leland ‘Pete’ Lowery (1914-1955) took over the management of Dale's Place, a cafe and lounge, on the northeast corner of Porter and Jackson Avenue.  Pete Lowery was a native of Grenada, Mississippi.  He came to Ocean Springs with his family from Gulfport after WW II.  They had earlier resided in the Delta region of northwest Mississippi.(Donnie L. Beaugez, August 1998 and The Jackson County Times, July 26, 1947)

 

 

     It appears that Pete Lowery left Dale’s Place in the spring of 1949, and relocated across the street to the Neville Byrd property situated on the northwest corner of Porter and Jackson.  Here he commenced a business called Pete’s Lounge.  Mr. Lowery’s place featured nightly dining and dancing with music by Toby Gunn on the Hammond organ and the Dixie Land Band.  Adam “Frenchie” Bourgeois (1914-1987), the bar tender, later opened his own West Porter establishment called, Frenchie’s Fine Foods.  Pete Lowery also had a drive-inn restaurant with curb service.  A barbecue pit was located near the Cosper Courts, now Dale Cottages.  The Lowery family also resided here as there were two apartments on the site.(The Jackson County Times, June 10, 1949 and July 1, 1949, p. 10 and Donnie L. Beaugez, August 1998) 

     In late September 1950, Leland “Pete” Lowery left this location and opened a Pete’s Lounge on Highway 90 on the west side of the War Memorial Bridge in the former Kersanac’s Snug Harbor building of J.J. Kersanac.  Pete Lowery made significant improvements to the property.  The exterior and interior of the structure was repainted, the rear of the building was excavated to create a circular driveway and space for patron curb service, and adequate rest room facilities were installed.  Local artist, Charles Kuper, painted jungle scenes in the Cocktail Lounge.  Jo Selzer of New Orleans was hostess.  In relocating to Highway 90, Pete Lowery had taken a four-year lease from Mrs. May W. Lundy (1885-1951+).(The Gulf Coast Times, September 22, 1950, p. 1 and JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 124, pp. 394-396)

     In January 1951, Pete Lowery suffered a heart attack, and spent several months recovering.  It appears that he may have decided to retire from the restaurant business as in October 1951, Pete Lowery sub-leased the property known as Pete’s Lounge to Edwin L. Matheny (1920-1987).  Mr. Matheny took an option to buy Lowery’s equipment and fixtures in Mrs. Lundy’s building.(The Gulf Coast Times, January 19, 1951, p. 1 and JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 124, pp. 397-400)

     It is known that Pete Lowery went back into the lounge business as he was operating Pete’s Lounge in West Biloxi in December 1953.(The Gulf Coast Times, December 10, 1953, p. 1)

Bingo

            Bingo has long been that game of chance used so ubiquitously to raise money for good causes.  Dale’s was also the venue for Bingo as advertised in 1947 and 1948.

 

 

BINGO Every Friday Nite at Dale’s 8 p.m. Prizes and Surprises For St. Alphonsus School Fund (The Jackson County Times, December 25, 1947, p. 4)

 

 

BINGO Every Wednesday At 8 p.m. DALE’S RESTAURANT First Game Free               21 Games JACKPOTS THIS WEEK $135------$55 BENEFIT BUILDING FUND OCEAN SPRINGS VOLUNTEER FIRE STATION “Help build a modern FIRE STATION.  A big step towards reducing your fire insurance rates!!” If you are unable to attend Bingos, we will appreciate your contributions.  Mail or give them to Arthur Marx, Secretary P.O. Box 427. (The Jackson County Times, December 31, 1948)

 

      On March 25, 1949, The Gulf Coast Times announced that Dale's Restaurant and Lounge, a local landmark, will open on March 28, 1949.  It had been operated by others last year.  As previously mentioned Pete Lowery had moved across the street and opened Pete's Lounge circa June 1949.(The Gulf Coast Times, June 10, 1949).Willy Dale returns

 

It’s fun to done by candlelight at

DALE’S

HIGHWAY 90, OCEAN SPRINGS

Enjoy superb food, at this new and attractive restaurant, always

Reasonable prices

Open 11:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.           4:30 to 10:30 p.m.

Managed by Wm. F. Dale

(The Gulf Coast Times, April 8, 1949, p. 10)

 

 

 

After closing her Porter Street restaurant in Willy Dale’s building, Trilby G. Steimer (1896-1960) relocated in 1955 to the old Gehl place on "new" US 90, today called  Bienville Boulevard.  The ‘new’ U.S. Highway 90 by passed down town Ocean Springs.  E.W. ‘Woody’ Blossman (1913-1990) acquired the property and Trilby name in 1963.  Harold and Jocelyn Seymour Mayfield, who had worked for Trilby, managed the eating affair for Mr. Blossman, until 1982, when they opened Jocelyn's, their own fine restaurant, also on Bienville Boulevard.  Jack Gottsche became manager of Trilby’s in 1983.  In 1993, he changed the name to Germaine’s.  The restaurant became Chandler’s in 2004 and after Katrina (2005), Alberti’s, formerly of Biloxi has operated in the former Trilby’s.

 

Trilby’s

            By January 1952, Willy Dale had a new proprietor in his Porter Street edifice.  She was‘Trilby’ Grenet Steimer (1896-1960).  Trilby had already made a name for herself at Ocean Springs in the fine dining and restaurant business.  She ran the Big Pine Inn on West Porter Street until February 1946, when it was sold to Paul Lewis.  In 1947, Trilby and Ted Steimer with Ray and Juanita Taylor, opened the Alibi, formerly the Clear View Café, on Highway 90 (Government Street) east of Ocean Springs.  Another site for the ubiquitous Trilby was the Bayou Chateau, now Aunt Jenny's Catfish Restaurant.  She opened here on September 4, 1948.  This was the first time that the name “Trilby’s” was used for her business.(The Jackson County Times, August 27, 1948, p. 9)

Lillian “Trilby” G. Welton Steimer (1896-1960) was born at New York City on April 1, 1896, the daughter of Auguste J. Grenet and Lillian Day.   Honore Grenet, Trilby’s grandfather, was born in France and had a background in the restaurant business.  He immigrated to Mexico with his Majorcan born wife between 1864 and 1867, when Ferdinand Maximilian (1832-1867), the Austrian archduke, was being enthroned as Emperor of Mexico by Napoleon III, Louis Napoleon Bonaparte (1808-1873), who ruled France from 1852-1870.  Opposition to the French invasion of Mexico led to anarchy, which swept the country and led Honore Grenet to remove his family to the safe environs of San Antonio, Texas.  Here Monsieur Grenet founded a successful merchandiser.  He owned the Alamo, which he purchased from the Roman Catholic Church for $20,000, and utilized it as a warehouse for his expanding business.  Trilby’s father, Auguste J. Grenet, was sent to Manhattan College in New York City.  Here he became engaged in the chemical business, but was enamored with horse racing.  Auguste, a competent mathematician, devised a system for handicapping race horses and became the first professional handicapper.(Down South, Vol. 9, No. 4, July-August 1959)

 

Walter F. Welton

            In New York circa 1917, Trilby Grenet married Walter F. Welton (1894-1981), the son of Frances Welton, a Manhattan butcher and later hotelier, and Elise Welton, a French immigrant.  Trilby and Walter F. Welton had two children: Francis Welton (1918-pre-1930) and Elise ‘Happy’ W. Fulwiler MendezThomas (1920-1989).  In 1920, Walter F. Welton was in the hotel business with Frances Welton (1867-1918+), his father.  Their resort was called Moheghan Lake and situated in Westchester County, New York.  Adele Grenet Stevenson (1888-1990), Trilby’s sister, was also married to a hotelier and resided in Palm Beach, Florida.(1920 New York Co., New York Federal Census T625_1226, p. 3A, ED 1494)

 

Ted Steimer

In March 1930, Trilby G. Welton, then divorced from Walter F. Welton married Edward C. "Ted" Steimer (1884-1967) in south Florida.  He was an associate of her father's in the horse race handicapping business.  Ted Steimer began visiting Ocean Springs circa 1916, as a fishing destination.  He continued this routine for years, as he would arrive here in the fall to hunt and fish before the racing season began at New Orleans.  Ted and Trilby relocated to Ocean Springs after their wedding.(The Daily Herald, March 14, 1930, p. 9)

 

TRILBY’S [circa 1953]

911 Porter Street

     Trilby's, an Ocean Springs culinary experience and tradition was commenced by Lillian ‘Trilby’ Grenet Welton Steimer (1896-1960) at Ocean Springs in 1948, when she opened in the Bayou Chateau, now Aunt Jenny’s, on Old Fort Bayou.  In 1955, after a several years in the O’Keefe-Dale place on West Porter, she and E.C. ‘Ted” Steimer (1884-1967) opened Trilby’s at present day 1203 Bienville Boulevard.  With Trilby’s demise in Mr. Steimer vended the business to E.W. ‘Woody’ Blossman (1913-1990).  The former Trilby’s has been operated in recent years as: Germaine’s, Chandler’s, and today is called Alberti’s.

 

Dale’s Place

     By January 1952, Trilby G. Steimer had relocated to the W.F. Dale building, formerly the J.J. O’Keefe home on Porter Street.  The Steimer’s lived upstairs in the old O’Keefe mansion.  Burglars broke into their restaurant on New Year’s Day 1952 and stole $4 in pennies from the cash register.(The Gulf Coast Times, January 3, 1952, p. 1)

     In July 1955, Trilby G. Steimer acquired the old Gehl place on "new" US 90, today called  Bienville Boulevard.  This is the Trilby's that most residents of Ocean Springs are familiar and have fond culinary memories.  Here such gourmet dishes as Rock Cornish game hen au parto and  creamed ham and sweetbreads with ripe olives, macaroni loaf, carrot casserole, and rum pie were concocted. 

 

E.W. Blossman

     In June 1963, after the demise of Trilby G. Steimer, Trilby's Restaurant was acquired from her daughter and widower, Elise G. Thomas and E.C. Steimer, by the Alpha Investment Corporation, an E.W.  Blossman (1913-1990) family enterprise.  The name "Trilby's" was sold with the restaurant.   Harold and Jocelyn Seymour Mayfield, who had worked for Trilby, managed the eating affair for Mr. Blossman, until 1982, when they opened Jocelyn's, their own fine restaurant, also on Bienville Boulevard.  Jack Gottsche became manager of Trilby’s in 1983.  In May 1987, Craig Claiborne (1920-2000), food critic for the New York Times, ate at Trilby’s.(Jack Gottsche, February 1, 2008 and The Ocean Springs Record, May 21, 1987, p. 7)

 

Germaine’s-Chandler’s-Alberti’s

     In September 1988, title to the Trilby restaurant property at 1203 Bienville Boulevard was transferred to the Blossman Company.  From 1993 until 2004, the restaurant was called Germaine's for Germaine Gottsche, now Dr. Germaine Gottsche, DDS, and the lovely daughter of the former proprietors, Jack and Jane Dees Gottsche.  In January 2004, Jack Gottsche sold his interest in Germaine’s to Vikki Harlan McElhose and spouse, Wayne McElhose.  The McElhose family changed the name of their eatery from Germaine’s to Chandler’s.  Chandler was Mrs. McElhose’s father, Howard Chandler Harlan.  The McElhose family came to the Mississippi Gulf Coast in 1997.  Vikki had thirty years of restaurant experience and promised to continue with many of Trilby’s original recipes.  She did add Prime Rib, Lobster, Black & Bleu Soup, and Fried Green Tomatoes.  An Express lunch menu was also commenced with meals ranging from $8-$10.  Chandler’s also offered off site catering and private parties.  There was a Champagne brunch on Sunday.(The Ocean Springs Record, January 15, 2004, p. A1 and The Mississippi Press, April 21, 2004, p. 4)

     Chandler’s was short lived as a local culinary venue.  By the time Hurricane Katrina struck in late August 2005, the restaurant was in decline.  After Hurricane Katrina, Alberti’s, an old Biloxi eating tradition which was destroyed by the August 2005 tempest, relocated to the Blossman building on Bienville and continues to operate here today with their specialties of creative Italian cuisine and prime steaks.(Jack Gottsche, February 1, 2008)

 

1959-Perkinston classes

            On August 31, 1959, Perkinston Junior College, commenced classes in the former O’Keefe home and Dale’s Restaurant at 911 Porter Street.  The regional junior college offered seventeen evening classes and one morning class in practical nursing, which included a simulated twelve-bed hospital.  Subjects available for prospective scholars to enroll in the evening curriculum were: English, English literature, algebra, trigonometry; general business, accounting; shorthand, general psychology; sociology, American government, world history, personal health, speech, music appreciation and introduction to teaching.  Admission to the Perkinston classes was open to high school graduates or mature individuals demonstrating the ability to utilize the material offered by the lecturer.(The Ocean Springs News, May 27, 1959, p. 1 and August 27, 1959, p. 1)

The fire      

     On the eve of January 3, 1960, a fire started in the Perkinston Junior College nurses training center in the W.F. Dale building on West Porter.  Firemen from Biloxi were summoned to the conflagration and assisted the OSFD in quickly extinguished the blaze.  Mr. Dale's losses were estimated initially to total about $10,000.  President J.J. Hayden Jr. of the Junior College planned to announce a new location for the nurses training program soon.  The students in Ocean Springs class were to graduate in a month and were sent to the Singing River Hospital to complete their nurse's training.(The Daily Herald, January 4, 1960, p. 8)

1966 liquor petition

          By June 1966, Willy Dale was back in business at 911 Porter operating as Dale’s Lounge.  At this time, the State of Mississippi was planning to charge a fee for an initial liquor license and an additional assessment after a business had reached $5000 in liquor sales.  To demonstrate his ire with this proposal, Mr. Dale began collecting signatures on a petition opposing the proposed liquor taxation.(The Ocean Springs Record, June 30, 1966, p.  )

1970-White Oaks Inn

            In May 1970, the Dale Restaurant and Lounge property on West Porter was renovated extensively.  The main dining room was still situated downstairs, but an upstairs dining area to seat and additional one hundred-seventy patrons was created.  The upstairs dining area of the edifice also featured an additional bar, a piano bar, as well as dining on the balcony.(The Ocean Springs Record, May 21, 1970, p. 7)

            The refurbished building opened for business on October 9, 1970 with Lee Niblo, as proprietor and manager.  Mr. Niblo called his enterprise the “White Oaks Inn”.(The Ocean Springs Record, October 8, 1970, p. 2)

 

WHITE OAKS INN

Formerly Dale’s Restaurant

Under new management by Lee Niblo

Lounge 2 P.M. til 2 A.M.

Dinner 5-11 P.M.

Head Chef L.W. Sampson, formerly Head Chef, Robert E. Lee Hotel, Jackson, Mississippi

CLOSED SUNDAY

(The Ocean Springs Record, October 8, 1970, p. 2)

 

1982-White Oaks Restaurant

By 1982, Willy Dale was operating the White Oaks Restaurant with son, W.F. Dale Jr.  They featured ‘down home cooking’.  Frieda Russell was manager; the chef was Bill Brooks, and Willy Dale greeted customers.  The restaurant had eight-foot tables with five-foot lazy-susans centered in them.  Teddy A. Belesky (1922-1996) of TAD Cabinets and Millwork at Biloxi built the unique serving tables.  They were modeled after those at the Mendenhall Hotel Restaurant at Mendenhall, Mississippi.  Every day at noon, Mr. Dale served: salad; two meats-southern fired chicken or chopped steak; rice, potatoes, corn muffins; biscuits; tea; coffee; and Bundt cake.  Cost for this meal was $3.95.  In the evening, one could get the following for $6.00: shrimp spaghetti; spinach quiche; fruit cobbler; and bread pudding.  Children were fed for ½ price.(The Ocean Springs Record, July 22, 1982, p. 3)

 

Dale children

            Willy and Ethel E. Dale’s were the parents of two children.  Their daughter, Thelma Agnes Dale (1921-2008), married Ensign Standish James Bradford (1914-1992), the son of James S. Bradford (1884-1963) and Sara Bardsley (1891-1973) on August 2, 1942 at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Biloxi.  Father Edmund Mullin officiated at the double ring ceremony held in the parish rectory with immediate members of both clans present.  Thelma A. Dale had graduated from Ocean Springs High School with the Class of 1939.  She attended Perkinston Junior College and worked at Keesler AFB.  Standish J. Bradford also received is education at Ocean Springs High School finishing with the Class of 1933.  Before his enlistment in the U.S. Navy, he was employed at the Bradford Wayside Nursery, his father’s business in Ocean Springs.  (The Jackson County Times, August 1942)

            After Thelma Dale and Standish J. Bradford divorced, she married Henry Christopherson in California.  Thelma was a talented accountant and was employed by the IRS at San Francisco in the late 1940s.  She later was comptroller and co-proprietor of Trans Bay Electronics, Inc. at Richmond, California.  Thelma Dale Christopherson expired in South San Francisco on January 26, 2008.  Her survivors include Henry ‘Hank’ Christopherson, her spouse; Gary W. Christopherson and Stephanie Christopherson, her son and daughter-in-law; and Rachel and Blake Christopherson, her grandchildren.   A memorial service was held for Mrs. Christopherson at Ocean Springs, Mississippi on February 16, 2008 at the Bradford-O'Keefe Funeral Parlor on West Porter Street in the same edifice that Willy Dale, her father, had owned for many years.(The San Francisco Chronicle, February 1, 2008 and The Sun Herald, February 14, 2008, p. A6)

 

William F. Dale Jr.

William F. ‘Bud’ Dale Jr. (1926-1979) was the son of William "Willy" F. Dale Sr. (1899-1990) and Ethel S. Endt (1900- 1978).  He was known in the community by his familial name, Bud or Buddy.  William Dale Jr. matriculated to Ole Miss after finishing Ocean Springs High School in 1944.  He left Oxford shortly thereafter and enlisted in the U.S. Navy.  Buddy Dale completed his education at the University of Pennsylvania earning degrees in Business Administration at the Bachelor’s and Master’s level.  He became a Certified Public Accountant.  The lure of the Far East enticed Buddy Dale to Central Sumatra, Republic of Indonesia where he oversaw the accounting department of CalTex, a U.S. affiliate owned jointly by Chevron and Texaco.  Mr. Dale also was employed by accounting firms in New Orleans and New York.  He joined Ingalls Shipbuilding at Pascagoula in 1967, as a facilities planner.  Buddy Dale was active in politics.  He was elected alderman of Ward Two in 1973.  Mr. Dale was a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the 1699 Historical Committee.  He expired at Ocean Springs on December 20, 1979.  His corporal remains were interred in the Evergreen Cemetery on Old Fort Bayou.(The Ocean Springs Record, December 27, 1979, p. 3 and March 6, 1980, p. 7)

 

                                                                                                                                                

                   Heffner-Cosper-Dale Cottages

                 811 Porter

Situated at 811 Porter Street, these pre-WW II structures were erected in 1941 by Oscar E. Heffner (1893-1988), as rentals for travelers plying U.S. Highway 90, then Porter Street.  Keesler AFB at Biloxi was also under construction at this time and its exponential growth after WW II commenced for America in December 1941would create a serious housing shortage on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  The W.F. Dale family acquired this 2.27 acres parcel and improvements in October 1945.  The Estate of Thelma Dale Christopherson (1921-2008) possesses this valuable property today.  Courtesy of Marshall Heffner and Brian Heffner.

 

Heffner-Cosper-Dale Cottages

The Dale Cottages at 811 Porter Street were erected in the fall of 1941 by Oscar E. Heffner (1893-1988), a native of Chesapeake, Ohio, and his wife Ruth H. Brewster (1894-1972) of Howell County, Missouri.  In August 1941, Oscar E. Heffner acquired 2.37 acres at the northeast corner of Rayburn and Porter from Theo Bechtel Jr. (1909-2003) and Jessica White Bechtel (1869-1946), his mother.  This tract had been the site of ‘Hollywood’, the exquisite home of Thomas A.E. Holcomb and    Holcomb of Chicago.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 78, pp. 24-26.)

Here, Oscar E. Heffner built a home and six rental cottages, which stand today.  The cottages range from about 700 to 900 square feet in area.  The Heffner Courts were built as a family affair with Frank “Kiddo” Galle Jr. (1900-1986), as the local contractor.  Heffner's brothers, Ira Heffner, and nephew, Chester Heffner, of Deer Park, Ohio assisted in the construction.  George Basly did the electrical wiring, while Joe Weider (1877-1960) and Charles Van Court (1877-1984) plumbed the cottages.  Mr. Hefner initially rented his units to military personnel who were pouring into Keesler Field, the new military training base at Biloxi.  Rents ranged from $50-$55 per month.  There may have been some daily rentals.(The Jackson County Times, April 9, 1941, p. 1 and Oscar Heffner, June 1995)

Louis Henry Cosper (1884-1963) a native of Monroe, Louisiana acquired the Hefner property in October 1945.  He was a pioneer in the oil and gas industry in North Louisiana and served as vice-president of the Progressive Oil Company, which drilled the No. 1 Spyker, the discovery well for the Bastrop gas field.  Mr. Cosper was honored in late August 1959, when a monument to Bastrop's pioneer industrialists was unveiled on the courthouse square.(Ms. Land Deed Bk. 89, p. 382-383 and Bk. 91, pp. 392-393 and The Ocean Springs News, September 3, 1959, p. 1)

Upon Louis H. Cosper's death in March 1963, his wife and daughter inherited the Porter Street property.  At this time, the Cosper Courts were managed by B. Nowlin Keener Jr.  In July 1964, Martha S. Cosper and her daughter, Mrs. Eldredge L. Carroll, conveyed the Cosper Courts to William F. Dale Jr. (JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Cause No. 16991-December 1963 and JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 259, p. 366)

Before his demise in 1979, William Dale Jr. legated his estate to his father, W.F. Dale Sr., Thelma Dale Christopherson, and Gary W. Christopherson, his sister and nephew, respectively.  When Willy Dale expired in May 1990, his daughter, Thelma Dale Christopherson, inherited his interest in the Dale Cottages.(JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Cause No. 37,792-October 1986 and JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Cause No. P-2711-Ocotber 1990)

During her nearly two decade ownership of the Dale Cottages, Thelma Dale Christopherson and her local management team during this period, Lee Adams and Jane Frammersburger, has excellently maintained the buildings and grounds of her Porter Street property.  They are a show piece of the city and blend well with the historic homes and buildings in the Old Ocean Springs Historic District which they are an integral part. 

 

The Bud and Willy Dale Oaks

            On February 29, 1980, the Ocean Springs Garden Club planted two Live Oak trees at the White Oaks Inn on West Porter in the memory of W.F. ‘Buddy’ Dale Jr. (1926-1979) and to recognize W.F. Dale Sr. who was still active in the community.  At this time, Miss Florence Morrow (1868-1934), a pioneer teacher in the local public school system, was remembered with a Live Oak placed in the earth at the N.E. Taconi School on Magnolia Street.(The Ocean Springs Record, March 6, 1980, p. 7)

 

Gulfport

In addition to his entrepreneurial activities at Ocean Springs, Willy Dale commenced in April 1945 an automobile agency at neighboring Gulfport.  Here he entered into a two-year lease with Juanita D. Stuard and Ignatius D. Alfonso (1909-1977) on Lot 14 of Block 158.  The rental fee was $150 per month.  Here on the northeast corner of 23rd Avenue at 15th Street, Mr. Dale opened Dale's Motor, Inc., a general auto sales and service agency, with Jules Galle Jr. (1903-1987).  They vended Chrysler-Plymouth motor cars.  Dale Motors also performed body and fender work as well as automobile painting.  (Harrison Co., Mississippi Land Deed Bk. 276, pp. 163-165)

            In April 1946, Willy Dale and James Turan (1917-1986) of Gulfport drove to Detroit stopping at boat and automobile factories on route.  Mr. Dale was enthusiastic about the performance and road handling of his new Plymouth sedan, which carried them through the Midwest.(The Jackson County Times, April 23, 1946, p. 6).

            In March 1947, W.F. dale advertised his Gulfport operation as follows:

 

DALE’S

Motor Company

General Auto Repair

Repairs, Tires, Accessories

USE OUR BUDGET PLAN

10 per cent down

Phone 1508, Gulfport

(The Jackson County Times, March 1, 1947, p. 4)

 

Home and Auto Supply Store

            With his automobile sales business at Gulfport going well, Willy Dale rented his former Dale’s Garage on West Porter to Henry Burkle (b. 1921) in May 1947.  Mr. Burkle had resided at Pittsburgh, Kansas before entering the U.S. Army in June 1942.  Upon discharge, he joined the Biloxi Firestone Store.  Henry Burkle’s store on West Porter was equipped to sell Firestone tires and tubes, electrical appliances, bicycles, automobile accessories including batteries and radios.  He also repaired radios and sold Shell gasoline.(The Jackson Co. Times, May 24, 1947, p. 5)

 

Rescue in the Chandeleurs

While on a day outing to the Chandeleurs in early September 1947, Willy Dale and Dr. R.N. Cahill (1907-1961) of Gulfport, his fishing companion and pilot, had to be rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard.  While landing on the littoral at Coster Island, one of their landing gear broke disabling Dr. Cahill’s converted U.S. Army Air Corps Aeronca L-3 trainer aircraft.  Unperturbed by the situation the two gentlemen adventurers proceeded to catch eight red fish and twelve, large, speckled sea trout.  Naturally, when they didn’t return in the evening their families became concerned and reported them overdue.  The following morning the two men were observed by a U.S. Coast Guard PBY aircraft and soon rescued and flown to U.S. Army Field at Gulfport.  Their only discomfort was the mosquitoes, which forced them to spend five hours in the water during the night to avoid their unrelenting attacks.(The Jackson County Times, September 6, 1947, p.1)

 

Oil and gas exploration

            In his late fifties, Willy Dale began another career in what had been a somewhat diverse life.  The lust for travel and adventure enticed him into the oil exploration business.  One of Willy’s first overseas tours took him to Nicaragua with a seismic crew from Lafayette, Louisiana.  He later spent time in the Middle East with other oil exploration survey teams.(The Ocean Springs News, January 24, 1957, p. 1 and May 31, 1990, p. 3)

911 Porter

           Bradford-O’Keefe Funeral Home-Built in 1909 by Jeremiah J. O’Keefe (1859-1911) as his residence, the O’Keefe family lost it during the Depression.  It was acquired by W.F. ‘Willy’ Dale (1899-1990) in December 1939.  Mr. Dale utilized the structure primarily as a restaurant and lounge for about forty-five years.  Jeremiah J. ‘Jerry’ O’Keefe III (b. 1923), the grandson of the builder, bought the property in July 1986 and had it restored to serve as a funeral parlor for Bradford-O’Keefe Funeral Homes, Inc.  It has served this purpose for the last twenty years.  Image by Ray L. Bellande.

 

Bradford-O’Keefe

After the White Oak Inn closed in the early 1980s, Willy Dale retired to his home at East Porter Street.  In July 1986, the Willy Dale family sold the White Oaks Inn, formerly the Jeremiah J.  O’Keefe mansion to Gulf National Life, an O’Keefe corporation.  A ceremony was held on the grounds and after signing the warranty deed giving title to the O’Keefe family, Willy Dale said, “Folks, the first day [of owning this building] was fun and the last day is fun too.”  (JXCO Land Deed Bk. 863, p. 159 and The Ocean Springs Record, July 3, 1986, p. 2 and July 10, 1986, p. 2)

The O’Keefe Funeral Service began in 1892 evolving from the family business of drayage and undertaking.  J.J. ‘Ben’ O’Keefe II (1894-1954) opened a funeral parlor in Biloxi in March 1923, when he acquired the Frank Voivedich (1861-1930) property at 601 Howard Avenue.  Ben’s sibling bought a ¼ undivided interest in the business in October 1924 O’Keefe paid her $6800 for the lot and improvements.(HARCO Land Deed Bk. 135, pp. 351-352 and Bk. 143, p. 212)

            This commercial venture was related to the public as follows:

 

            Ben O’Keefe, local undertaker and funeral director, has purchased property in Biloxi opposite the Catholic Church (Nativity BVM) and expects to enter into the business in that city about June 1^st.  He is fitting up a modern funeral parlor and will be equipped to do a general undertaking business conducting funerals, etc.  Mr. O’Keefe will of course continue his large business interest in Ocean Springs, having his brother, Joseph O’Keefe to assist him.(The Jackson County Times, on May 19, 1923, p. 5)

 

To check Ben O’Keefe’s undertaking enterprises at Biloxi, the Bradford Company at 119 East Howard Avenue, lead by Lyman Bradford (1863-1944) and his sons, James Floyd Bradford (1890-1963) and Paul S. Bradford (1894-1983) countered almost immediately and opened their own funeral parlor in Ocean Springs.  In June, they leased the McFarland bungalow at present day 317 Washington Avenue.  The Bradfords opened for business in mid-July 1923.(The Daily Herald, June 18, 1923, p. 3 and The Jackson County Times, July 14, 1923, p. 5) 

Upon Ben O’Keefe demise in November 1954, Jeremiah J. ‘Jerry’ O’Keefe III (b. 1923) continued the family funeral and burial insurance company at Biloxi.  In May 1957, Jerry O'Keefe acquired the Bradford Funeral Home at Biloxi with all property, ambulances, etc. and merged the two entities into Bradford-O'Keefe.  In 1962, he built the Ben O'Keefe funeral parlor at present day 1904 Government Street, which formerly housed the New Hope Center dedicated August 3, 1997, and supported by the O’Keefe Foundation, which Jerry O’Keefe and Rose Annette Saxon O’Keefe (1924-1998), his lovely spouse, created in 1996.(The Ocean Springs News, August 6, 1964, p. 3 and The Ocean Springs Record, May 21, 1998, p. 5)

In December 1987, Jerry’ O’Keefe with the competent architectural advice and services of Bruce Tolar completed the restoration of Dale’s White Oaks Inn at 911 Porter.  The refurbished edifice has been used as the Bradford O’Keefe Funeral Home since this time.  Today, Jeffrey H. O'Keefe (b. 1956), Rose and Jerry O'Keefe's son, is the proprietor of Bradford-O'Keefe Funeral Homes, Inc.(The Ocean Springs Record, December 3, 1987, p. 1) 

 

Final days

            After the White Oak Inn closed in the early 1980s, Willy Dale retired to his home at East Porter Street.  Thelma Dale Christopherson (1921-2008), his daughter, came from California in early March 1987 and gave him a family birthday fete to celebrate Willy’s eighty-eighth natal anniversary.(The Ocean Springs Record, March 12, 1987, p. 5)

William Frederick Dale (1899-1990) passed at Ocean Springs, Mississippi on May 25, 1990.  During his ninety-one years at Ocean Springs, Willy Dale witnessed his town grow from a boutique, tourist village on the Bay of Biloxi to a thriving pecan and citrus, agricultural center.  Surviving the Depression, he utilized his boundless energy, mechanical wizardry, and entrepreneurial skills to create wealth.  As a true Pisces, Willy found joy on the water with his boats and the lure of salt water fishing was in his veins.  His corporal ashes were appropriately dispersed on the littoral at Horn Island after cremation.(The Ocean Springs Record, May 31, 1990, p. 3)

 

REFERENCES:

 

 1947 Gulfport City Directory, (Mullins-Kille Co.: Parsons, Kansas-1947), p. 26.

 

Jackson Co., Mississippi Chancery Court Cause No. 37,792,"Estate of W.F. Dale Jr.”, October-1986

Jackson Co., Mississippi Chancery Court Cause No. P-2711, "Estate of W.F. Dale, Sr.", October-1990.

 

Journals

The Chicago Tribune, Woman [Mildred Peacock Hearther] leaves an estate of 2.1 Million”, February 4, 1968.

The Daily Herald, “Ocean Springs man retires”, September 27, 1916.

The Daily Herald?, “Boat Races Thrill Hundreds at Ocean Springs Yesterday”, ??

The Daily Herald, “Ocean Springs”, June 23, 1923.

The Daily Herald, “Building New Boat For Pleasure Service”, April 22, 1938, p. 6.

The Daily Herald, “New excursion boat being completed”, May 25, 1938, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, "Dr. Babendreer Dies at Ocean Springs", June 20, 1938, p. 1.

The Daily Herald, "Dr. Babendreer Buried", June 21, 1938, p. 3.

The Daily Herald, “Dale’s Restaurant and Lounge”, August 2, 1946.

The Daily Herald, “Dale Death”, July 23, 1953.

The Daily Herald, “Harriet Rose Dale”, August 9, 1956.

The Daily Herald, "Dr. Estelle Babendrier", March 12, 1958, p. 2.

The Daily Herald, "Examine Cause of O.S. Fire", August 28, 1960, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, "Mrs. Ethel Sophie Dale", August 28, 1978, p. A-2.

The Gulf Coast Times, March 25, 1949, p. 6.

The Gulf Coast Times, "George W. Dale”, 81, Dies Wednesday", July 30, 1953, p. 1.

The Jackson County Times, “Local News Interest”, May 12, 1917.

The Jackson County Times, “Local News Interest”, January 5, 1918.

The Jackson County Times, “Local News Interest”, June 1, 1918.

The Jackson County Times, "Local News Interest", January 17, 1920.

The Jackson County Times, “Ocean Springs has first woman lawyer”, August 12, 1922.

The Jackson County Times, "local and Personal", May 19, 1923.

The Jackson County Times, "Abraham-Sablich", April 10, 1926.

The Jackson County Times, "Dale Motor Has Modern Garage", June 12, 1926.

The Jackson County Times, "Local Outboard Racer Wins Three Cups", May 12, 1928, p. 2.

The Jackson County Times, "Ocean Springs Speed Boat Wins at Pass Christian", June 16, 1928, p. 3.

The Jackson County Times, "Local boat to enter in outboard races Sunday”, June 23, 1928, p. 3.

The Jackson County Times, "Many attend outboard motor races at Biloxi”, June 30, 1928, p. 3.

The Jackson County Times, "Local and Personal”, July 14, 1928, p. 3.

The Jackson County Times, “Ocean Springs Boat Wins Outboard Motor Race In Two Events”, August 25, 1928.

The Jackson County Times, "Local and Personal", September 22, 1928.

The Jackson County Times, "George Dale's Mother Dies in California", November 10, 1934, p. 3.

The Jackson County Times, "Local and Personal", March 28, 1936.

The Jackson County Times, "William Abraham”, September 13, 1941.

The Jackson County Times, "Bill Dale Opens New Filling Station", October 25, 1941, p. 1.

The Jackson County Times, "Greyhound Bus Station”, April 15, 1944, p. 4.

The Jackson County Times, "Dale’s restaurant And Lounge Leased to Mr. and Mrs. Ancel Thompson”, January 26, 1946.

The Jackson County Times, "Firestone Store in Ocean Springs", May 24, 1947.

The Ocean Springs News, "Local News", January 24, 1957.

The Ocean Springs News, Perk classes beginning here in O’Keefe home”, May 27, 1959.

The Ocean Springs News, “Now a college center”, August 27, 1959.

The Ocean Springs News, "Fire injures city landmark on Porter", January 7, 1960.

The Ocean Springs News, "J. O'Keefe", August 6, 1964.

The Ocean Springs Record, "W.F. Dale and Dr. R.N. Cahill rescued on island”, September 6, 1947.

The Ocean Springs News, “Dale returns from Nicaragua”, January 24, 1957.

The Ocean Springs Record, "Petitions on the way’, June 30, 1966.

The Ocean Springs Record, "Dales Restaurant and Lounge", May 21, 1970, p. 7.

The Ocean Springs Record, “White Oaks Inn”, October 8, 1970, p. 2.

The Ocean Springs Record, "Former Alderman Dies after Illness", December 27, 1979, p. 3.

The Ocean Springs Record, “Oak planted in memory of ‘Bud’ Dale”, March 6, 1980, p. 7.

The Ocean Springs Record, "Down home cooking featured at new White Oaks Restaurant", July 22, 1982, p. 3.

The Ocean Springs Record, "C.F. Gollott celebrates 50 years”, December 2, 1982.

The Ocean Springs News, “Ocean Spring family celebrate home coming”, July 3, 1986, p. 2.          

The Ocean Springs News,  “O’Keefes come home to Ocean Springs”, July 10, 1986, p. 2.          

The Ocean Springs Record, “Birthday”, March 12, 1987, p. 5.

The Ocean Springs Record, “O’Keefes come home”, December 3, 1987, p. 1.

The Ocean Springs Record, "William F. Dale Sr.", May 31, 1990, p. 3.

The Ocean Springs Record, "Rose Annette Saxon O'Keefe", May 21, 1998.

The San Francisco Chronicle, "Thelma Dale Christopherson", February 1, 2008.

The Sun Herald, "Thelma Dale Christopherson", February 14, 2008, p. A6.

 

************************************************************************************************************************

DAVIS FAMILY

The Davis Brothers

The Davis Brothers were George Washington Davis (1842-1914) and Elias Samuel Davis (1859-1925).  They were the sons of Samuel Davis II (1804-1879) and Alvirah Ann Ward (1821-1901) who married in Jackson County, Mississippi on October 18, 1838.  This union created ten additional children:  Harriet A. Davis Bilbo (1840-1898), Sarah A. D. Thompson Carter (1844-1891+), Cynthia M. Davis (1846-1866), Abram James Davis (1849-1921), Eleanor Davis Bradford (1851-1938), Henry Simeon Davis (1853-1917), Alvira E. Davis Ellis (1855-1881), Sherwood E. Davis (1857-1891+), Leonella M. Davis (1862-1864), and Belle Davis Hulburt Boucher (1864-1891+).

           

Plum Bluff on the Pascagoula

            To fully appreciate the lives and accomplishments of the George W. Davis and Elias S. Davis, one must digress to an earlier time.  Even before Jackson County, Mississippi existed as a geopolitical unit with the United States of America, Samuel W.H. Davis, the forbear of their particular Davis family unit had settled here.

In 1811, after being issued a gubernatorial passport to travel through the Creek Indian Territory west of Georgia, Samuel W.H. Davis (1769-ca 1831), a native of North Carolina, his spouse Sarah Balscher (1776-1860+), also a Tar Heel, and their children, Simeon Davis (1795-1858+), Nancy Ann Davis Starks (1799-1860+), George Davis (1802-1853?), Samuel Davis II (1804-1879), Martha Davis Bradford (1806-1892), and Mary Davis Herring (1810-1858+), commenced their journey on the Federal Horse Path from Burke County, Georgia to the Territory of Orleans, formerly Spanish West Florida, on the Southwest Frontier.

            The Federal Horse Path, which became the Federal Road, was commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) in 1806.  It ran from Macon, Georgia to New Orleans and was the last link of the mail route to connect the Crescent City with Washington, D.C. (Genealogy Bulletin, 1995, p. 4) 

            Samuel W.H. Davis settled at Plum Bluff on the Pascagoula River on March 1, 1812. Here he made his livelihood as a farmer on this site approximately four miles west of the present day community of Basin in southern George County, Mississippi.  Samuel W.H. Davis was issued Land Claim No. 69, being Section 9, T3S-R7W, and containing 640 acres. (The American State Papers, 1994, p. 37) 

At the time of the Samuel W.H. Davis occupation of this parcel on the Pascagoula River, his land was in the Parish of Pascagoula of the Louisiana Territory governed from New Orleans, by W.C.C. Claiborne (1775-1817).  In May 1812, this region was made a part of the Mobile District of the Mississippi Territory.  It wasn’t until December 1812, that Jackson County was created within the Mississippi Territory with the courthouse near present day Benndale, George County.  In March 1817, this area of the Mississippi Territory was admitted into the Union as a part of the State of Mississippi.  When George County, Mississippi was created in March 1910, from the two northern townships of Jackson County, Mississippi, the original Samuel Davis homestead at Plum Bluff, became a part of this new division.(The History of JXCO, Ms., 1989, p. 1)

            Here on the banks of the Pascagoula River above Black Creek, the remainder of the Samuel W.H. Davis children were born: Cynthia Davis Bradford (1813-1858+), Sarah (Sally) Davis (b. 1816), Elizabeth Davis (1818-1828+) and Abram B.J.W. Davis (1820-1904).

The Davis family with the Bilbo, Carter, Cates, Cumbest, Ely, Flurry, Goff, Graham, Havens, Holland, Lyons, Roberts, and Ward families were among the earliest White Anglo-Saxon Protestant (WASP) settlers of the non-coastal areas of Jackson-George County.  Obviously, the descendants of French and Spanish Colonials and their Roman Catholic religion had been entrenched on the Mexican Gulf shoreline for over a century before the arrival of these “first Americans”.  Through five centuries, the cultural diversity between these two groups of people has closed, but some differences will probably always exist.  The same could be said of the Afro-American culture, which was interjected into the region by the nefarious slave trade of Colonial times.

 

Moving south-the Davis Bayou settlement

            In February 1829, Samuel Davis II and his brother, George D. Davis (1802-1853?), had acquired Section 34, T7S-R8W from Pierre Ladnier for $300.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 4, pp. 620-621)   Here east of the fishing village of East Biloxi, later called Ocean Springs, they settled on the east bank of a meandering, tidewater stream called Bayou Val de Terre, which in time became known as Davis Bayou.  At this Davis homestead, farming and boat building were the salient means to a livelihood.  It appears that Samuel W.H. Davis and Sarah Balscher Davis abandoned their Plum Bluff settlement and relocated with their sons.

On Davis Bayou, Samuel and Alvira Ann Ward Davis reared their large family in the Baptist faith instilling in them strong family values and Christian morals.  These ethical fundamentals combined with the intensive manual labor of operating a farm and raising live stock rewarded George W. Davis and Elias S. Davis with the intrinsic tools to be successful in their chosen livelihood adventure, merchandising. 

As early as 1860, Samuel Davis II was providing some formal education for his children.  At this time, an educator, L.A. Ward, was residing with his family.(1860 Federal Census  JXCO, Ms.)

            In 1871 and 1872, Elias S. Davis and others received some formal education in a four-month term, common school held by Miss Martha Bradford and Sherwood Bradford (1838-1922) at the Tidewater Baptist Church.(Cain, 1983, v. 2, p. 34) 

           

The Estate of Samuel W.H. Davis

            On February 19, 1828, Samuel W.H. Davis made his oleograph and named his three sons, Simeon Davis, George Davis, and Samuel Davis II, as executors of his estate.  The following devisees and requests were named:  to Simeon Davis-$150; to George Davis-$31; to George Davis, Samuel Davis II, and Abraham Davis-a horse saddle and bridle or at the age of twenty-one years, each $100 in cash; to Mary Davis, Cynthia Davis, and Elizabeth Davis-each a feather bed and furniture when they reach the age of eighteen or at marrage; his executors were to sell his tract of land on the Pascagoula River; and his wife Sally Davis was to receive the remainder of his estate.  The will of Samuel W.H. Davis was witnessed by William Simmons and Daniel M. Webb, early settlers of the Simmons Bayou and Belle Fontaine area.  (JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 11, pp. 347-348)

            It is believed that Samuel W.H. Davis died circa 1831.  This is corroborated by historian Cyril E. Cain when relating the founding of the first Baptist church in this area.  He states: “In 1832, (Elder George) Davis organized a Baptist Church, called the Tidewater Baptist Church, at the home of Sarah Davis, where Deacon Samuel Davis had recently died”.(Cain, 1983, v. 2, p. 25)

It is believed that Samuel W.H. Davis and his spouse Sarah Balscher Davis who died between 1860 and 1870 were both interred in the Davis family cemetery in Gulf Park Estates, east of Ocean Springs.

 

Sale of the Samuel W.H. Davis Pascagoula River homestead

            In late November 1858, Sarah Davis, Simeon Davis, Nancy Ann Starks, Samuel Davis, Mary Herring, A.B. Davis, and Cynthia Bradford conveyed their father’s original land claim of March 1812, Section 9, T3S-R7W, to Will Fairley for $200.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 3, pp. 400-402).  This conveyance deed was later re-recorded, as the original had been destroyed in 1837, by the infamous scoundrel, James Copeland (1823-1857), who torched the courthouse at Americus, then the Jackson County seat of government.

 

Demise of Samuel Davis II

Samuel Davis II passed on in late June or early July of 1879, at his farm about five miles east of Ocean Springs, Mississippi.  His corporal remains were interred in the Davis family cemetery situated in present day Gulf Park Estates in the SE/4 of Section 34, T7S-R8W.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, July 11, 1879, p. 3  and Bellande, 1992, p. 66-68)

            Alvira Ann Ward Davis expired on June 14, 1901, at Ocean Springs.  Her corporal remains were interred in the Evergreen Cemetery at Ocean Springs, Mississippi. 

           

Sale of the Samuel Davis II Homestead on Davis Bayou

In September 1880, the heirs of Samuel Davis II (1804-1879) and their spouses, George W. Davis, Alvira A. Davis, Margaret Davis, Harriet A. Bilbo, A.J. Davis, Josephine T. Davis, Henry S. Davis, Olena P. Davis, Sherwood Bradford, Norah Bradford, William Carter, Sarah A, Carter, G.R. Ellis, E.A. Ellis, W.M. Bilbo, and H.E. Davis, conveyed to John M. Hollingsworth (1814-1891) for $2707.70, all of their right, title and interest in the following lands: SE/4 of Section 24, T7S-R8W; Section 35, T7S-R8W; Lots 2 and 3 in Section 5, T8S-R8W; NW/4 of the SW/4 and the NW/4 of Section 36, T7S-R8W; NW/4 of subdivision in Section 36, T7S-R8W; Lot 4 of Fractional Section 21, T7S-R8W; Lots 1 and 2 of Section 3, T8S-R8W; 30 acres more or less in the NE/4 of Section 34, T7S-R8W.  This sale also included five hundred stock sheep and twenty head of cattle belonging to the late Samuel Davis.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 4, p. 623-624)

 

GEORGE W. DAVIS (1842-1914)

George W. Davis was born on April 17, 1842, on his father’s farm, on the banks of Davis Bayou, east of Ocean Springs.  He was second child and first son of Samuel Davis II (1804-1879) and Alvirah Ann Ward (1821-1901). 

 

The Civil War

Like many of the eligible, patriotic, young men of the Ocean Springs region, teenager, George Washington Davis, left his father’s farm and was mustered into military service to combat invading Federal forces during the Civil War.  Unlike the majority of his Ocean Springs and Vancleave peers, who marched north to war with Company A, the Live Oak Rifles, of the 3^rd Mississippi Regiment, George W. Davis joined the Biloxi Rifle Guards, Company E, of the 3^rd Mississippi Regiment, in 1861.  In February 1864, when the 3^rd Mississippi retreated from a burning Jackson, Mississippi, towards Meridian, under relentless pursuit by 24,000 Union soldiers of General Sherman’s XVI and XVII Corps, an impoverished George W. Davis returned home for clothing and food.  Here he received word from his command not to return to the frontlines.  Davis went to New Orleans until the CSA surrender in April 1865.  During the conflict he rose in rank from private to 2^nd Lieutenant.(Howell, 1991, pp. 265-267 and The Gulf Coast Times, November 4, 1949, p. 4)

 

Marriage

Following the Civil War, George W. Davis married Margaret Bradford (1846-1920), on November 12, 1868.  She was born on December 22, 1846, the daughter of Lyman Bradford (1803-1858), a native of Montville, Connecticut, and Cynthia Davis (1813-1887).  Her grandfather, Stephen Bradford (1771-1825+), a native of Connecticut, was one of the early settlers on the Pascagoula River.  In 1812, he settled in Section 38, T4S-R6W, just southeast of the county seat of Americus on Cedar Creek. 

The blessed union of George W. Davis and Maggie Bradford resulted in six daughters: Cynthia D. Maxwell Gottsche (1869-1951), Jasmine “Jessie” Alvirah Davis (1872-1877), Mae D. Griffin (1874-1917), Sadie D. Young (1878-1950), Mamie D. Bland (1882-1965), and Georgia D. Whittle Weaver (1883-1945).(The Gulf Coast Times, November 11, 1949, p. 7)

 

Vancleave beckons

According to Cynthia Davis Maxwell Gottsche (1869-1951), after her parents marriage, the newly weds settled on Ramsay land in present day Gulf Hills.  At this time, George W. Davis was involved in the timber and charcoal business in the Vancleave section.  He would walk to work at Vancleave on Monday morning and return to his Gulf Hills settlement on Saturday evening.(The Gulf Coast Times, November 11, 1949, p. 7)

  In 1873, George W. Davis commenced a mercantile business at Vancleave.  He remained here until 1882.(The Ocean Springs News, May 30, 1914, p. 1) 

At Vancleve, G.W. Davis acquired almost 700 acres in Section 8 and Section 9, T6S-R7W from Henry C. Havens for $800.(JXCO Land Deed Bk. 31, p. 333)  His brother, E.S. Davis clerked in the store and James Reid (1865-1880+), a Black man assisted.  While at Vancleave, Mr. Davis served as US Postmaster from 1880-1882, succeeding Hector Fairley.  In the early 1880s, mail service reached the Davis Store when William Seymour made weekly deliveries from Postmaster Robert A. VanCleave (1840-1908), at Ocean Springs.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, June 18, 1880, p. 3)

In December 1882, before relocating to Ocean Springs, Mr. Davis had sold his 166 acres in Section 9, T6S-R7W to Willis Broadus (1834-1919) for $1000. (JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 33, pp. 47-48).

 

Ocean Springs

In 1883, George W. Davis relocated to Ocean Springs where he and his brother, Elias S. Davis (1859-1925) started another commercial venture, The Davis Brothers Store, which became a landmark at Ocean Springs.  It was originally situated on the eastside of Washington Avenue near County Road (Government Street), but moved in 1886, to the west side of Washington Avenue.  The Davis Brothers dealt in dry goods, notions, groceries, hardware, tinware, and animal feed.  George W. Davis retired from the mercantile business in October 1910.  E.S. Davis, and his sons, Oscar T. Davis (1894-1963) and Chester S. Davis (1900-1973), continued in the business as E.S. Davis & Sons.(The Ocean Springs News, September 10, 1910, p. 1)

 

The George W. Davis Home

            In March 1888, the Heirs of Cynthia Davis Bradford (1813-1887), Sherwood Bradford (1838-1922); Mary L. “Mamie” Bradford Ramsay (1853-1942), wife of A.W. Ramsay (1830-1916); Miss Sarah Bradford; Lyman N. Bradford (1850-1894); and Mrs. Margaret Bradford Davis (1846-1920), wife of George W. Davis, conveyed a lot on the southwest corner of Bowen and Bellande to George W. Davis and E.S. Davis for $750.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 9, p. 241)   The Davis brothers sold this 106-foot by 216- foot parcel with improvements to Margaret B. Davis in September 1891.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 12, p. 600)

            Here on Bowen Avenue, Mr. and Mrs. George W. Davis remained until their demise.   The G.W. Davis home was sold in February 1923, by Special Commissioner, Fred Taylor, representing the Estate of Mrs. Margaret Davis, for $2450 to H.C. Herring.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 52, pp. 445-446)

 

Politicial-social life

            George W. Davis began his public service when he was Jackson County treasurer from 1876 to 1877.  He was elected to the Jackson County Board of Supervisors in 1884 and 1886.  Davis ran for State Representative in 1891, and won the seat to the Mississippi State Legislature representing his fellow citizens of Jackson County from January 1892 until January 1896.  At Ocean Springs, he was a member of the Ocean Springs Fire Company No. 1, the Knights of Pythias, and a deacon of the Ocean Springs Baptist Church.

(Cain, 1983, V. II, p. 10 and p. 14, and The Ocean Springs News, May 30, 1914, p. 1)

 

Land Donations

            George W. Davis was a most generous and honorable man.  In 1892, he and Frederick Mason Weed (1850-1926), a native of Hinesburg, Vermont, gave land for the construction of a road leading to the Winter Park Lumber Company on Old Fort Bayou.  This thoroughfare was called “Vermont” for the native State of F.M. Weed, who became our “Yankee Mayor” and honorably served the citizens of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, from 1899-1910.  While a resident of Ocean Springs, Mr. Weed was also the L&N station agent, banker, and realtor.  He was buried at Milton, Vermont.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, April 22, 1892, p. 2)

            The old location of the Winter Park Lumber Company is now a portion of the Millsite Subdivision, developed by local architects, William R. Allen III and Maria Bargas, and platted in September 1986.(JXCO, Ms. Land Plat Bk. 17. p. 46)

            In April 1909, Mr. Davis donated a small parcel of land to the Baptist Society of Ocean Springs.  This lot on the northwest corner of Bellande and Porter, which had been given by Davis, became the new Baptist sanctuary replacing the one felled by the Hurricane of 1906.  Burr & Bradford were the building contractors.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 42, p. 203 and The Ocean Springs News, February 13, 1909, p. 1)

 

George W. Davis dies

            George W. Davis’s life ended on May 22, 1914.  His corporal remains were escorted to the Evergreen Cemetery by a large contingent of members of the Ocean Springs Fire Company No. 1.  His pall bearers were: F.M. Weed, E.R. Glasscock, George E. Arndt, J.K. Lemon, F.J.V. LeCand, and George D. Bland (1853-1915).(The Ocean Springs News, May 30, 1914, p. 1)

 

Mrs. Davis expires

Mrs. Margaret B. Davis expired at her Bowen Avenue residence on December 30, 1920.  Her funeral was conducted by the Reverend J.M. Boyd of the First Baptist Church of Biloxi at the Davis home with burial in the Evergreen Cemetery at Ocean Springs.(The Jackson County Times, January 8, 1921)

 

A biographical sketch of the children of George W. Davis and Margaret Bradford Davis follows:

 

Cynthia D. Maxwell Gottsche

Cynthia “Cinnie” Davis (1869-1951) was born October 13, 1869 in the present day area popularly called Gulf Hills, north of Old Fort Bayou.  She grew up along Bluff Creek in Vancleave and in her senior years could reminiscence of her childhood acquaintance with the captain’s of trading schooners that loaded charcoal for New Orleans and of the families return to Ocean Springs in an ox cart with the store safe and their personal possessions.(The Gulf Coast Times, November 11, 1949, p. 7)

 

                                                                                                                           

                                                                                                                           James S. Maxwell

Cinnie Davis married James S. Maxwell at Ocean Springs on August 4, 1887.  They had three sons: George Davis Maxwell (1888-1951), Charles Richmond Maxwell (1891-1967), and Karl Case Maxwell (1893-1958).  The Maxwell marriage ended in a divorce suit on August 16, 1895.(JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Cause No. 647, July 1895)  

 

George Davis Maxwell

George Davis Maxwell (1888-1951) was born at Pachuta, Mississippi on September 6, 1888.  He was named for his grandfather, George W. Davis.  Circa 1912, George D. Maxwell married Floi Porter of Mobile.  Their children were: George Porter Maxwell (1913-1914), Wallace B. Maxwell (1916-1991) of Mobile, Rozier Maxwell, Sidney R. Maxwell (1917-1992), Ellie M. Klein, the spouse of Ralph D. Klein (1916-1995), and Mary Maxwell. 

Ellie Maxwell married Ralph Kline in January 1942, in the Nativity BVM at Biloxi.  Only immediate family members present.(The Daily Herald, January 5, 1942, p. 2)

 

            George D. Maxwell operated a seafood market at the foot of Jackson Avenue in the mid-1920s.  In early March 1929, the Maxwell oyster and fish house was struck by a storm and partially destroyed.  After closing his seafood business, he became employed with the L&N Railroad in its shops at Mobile and Birmingham, Alabama.  Maxwell returned to Ocean Springs and became employed with the A.C. Gottsche Store on Washington Avenue.  George Davis Maxwell expired at his mother’s residence in Ocean Springs on March 21, 1951.  His corporal remains were interred in the Evergreen Cemetery.(The Jackson County Times, February 23, 1924, p. 8, The Daily Herald, February 23, 1924, p. 2, The Gulf Coast Times, March 29, 1951, p. 8)

 

Charles Richmond Maxwell

            Charles R. Maxwell (1891-1967) was born at Ocean Springs, Mississippi on January 6, 1891.  He lived most of his life at Brooklyn, Forrest County, Mississippi.  Charles R. Maxwell expired in February 1967.  It is believed that Mr. Maxwell was the father of: Albert Maxwell (1915-1986) and Karl Maxwell (1919-1986). 

            Local manager of the  I.H. Bass Nursery of Lumberton, Mississippi.  Left in January 1923 for Lumberton.(The Jackson County Times, February 3,1923, p. 5)

 

Karl Case Maxwell

Karl Case Maxwell (1893-1958) was born on April 6, 1893, at Ocean Springs, Mississippi.  In June 1919, he married Nellie Myrtle Morris (1893-1970), the daughter of Englishman Ernest Alford Morris (1860-1946) and Chicago native, Lydia Meyers (1870-1933).  Mr. E.A. Morris built the Pines Hotel on the southwest corner of Washington Avenue.  It opened for guests in October 1915.  Unfortunately, the attractive hostel was the victim of a consuming conflagration on May 5, 1932.(Bellande, 1994, pp. 134-139)

Karl C. Maxwell was educated at Ocean Springs and subsequently attended Draughan’s Business College at New Orleans.  He worked in J.O. Whittle’s pharmacy until the Bailey family consolidated with Mr. Whittle in August-September 1917.(The Ocean Springs News, July 3, 1958, p. 1 and The Jackson County Times, September15, 1917)

In May 1923, Karl and Myrtle M. Maxwell moved into their new residence at present day 525 Jackson Avenue, used today principally as the meeting place for BSA Troop 210, and other functions of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, the owner.  Here they reared their two sons: Robert Lynd Maxwell (b. April 1920) and Albert Cecil Maxwell (1926-1981).(The Jackson County Times, May 19, 1923)

 At the time of his accidental death, on June 29, 1958, in an automobile accident on US Highway 80, near Clinton, Mississippi, Karl C. Maxwell was manager of the Gottsche Store.  He had returned from New Orleans to work in the business with his step-father, Albert C. Gottsche.  After Mr. Gottsche’s death in 1949, Karl C. Maxwell became manager of the Gottsche Store.  Mrs. Dena Atkinson Talbott (1886-1958) of Ocean Springs was also killed in the car with Karl C. Maxwell.(The Ocean Springs News, July 3, 1958, p. 1 and The Daily Herald, July 5, 1958, p. 2)

 

Albert Cecil Gottche

On September 30, 1896, Cynthia Davis Maxwell married Albert C. Gottsche (1873-1949), a salesman in her father’s mercantile business.  Albert and Cinnie Gottsche had one son, Albert Lynd Gottsche (1902-1974). 

Albert C. Gottsche resigned from the Davis Brothers Store on October 1, 1910.  This is also the date that his father-in-law and senior partner of the firm, George W. Davis, retired.  The former Davis Brothers business continued on as E.S. Davis & Sons under the ownership of Elias S. Davis (1859-1925) in conjunction with his sons, Elliot Davis (1892-1936) and Oscar T. Davis (1894-1936).

            In late 1910, Mr. Gottsche began selling animal feed on Washington Avenue and Desoto in the present day Catchot-Lemon Building.  He erected the Gottsche Store building across the street in 1912, and ran a first class grocery and market here until his death in March 1949.  The old Gottsche Store is now corporate headquarters for Blossman Gas, Inc.  They acquired the property from A.L. Gottsche in November 1962.(Jackson County Land Deed Book 232, p. 382)

            Albert C. Gottsche expired on March 17, 1949.  His wife, Cynthia Davis Maxwell Gottsche passed on September 18, 1951.  They both rest in eternal peace at the Evergreen Cemetery in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.

 

Albert Lynd Gottsche

Albert Lynd Gottsche (1902-1974), called Lynd, was born at Ocean Springs, Mississippi on November 22, 1902.  He attended the local public school and matriculated to Mississippi A&M College where he studied electrical engineering, graduating with the Class of 1923.  Departing Starkville, Mississippi, Lynd Gottsche was employed at Atlanta, Georgia with the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Co.  He was transferred to South Bend, Indiana and came home for Christmas in 1924.  By October 1926, Lynd was at Tampa, Florida working in the organizations street lighting division.( Jack Gottsche, December 17, 2001 and The Jackson County Times, December 27, 1924, p. 3 and October 2, 1926)

 Lynd Gottsche married Mae Kettles (1907-2001), on March 31, 1928.  She was a native of Alberta Province, Canada and resident of Macon, Georgia.  Their children are: Albert Lynd Gottsche, Jr. (b. 1933) and John H. “Jack” Gottsche.(The Jackson County Times, April 21, 1928 and November 11, 1933, p. 3)

Mr. and Mrs.Lynd Gottsche were in residence at Baltimore, Maryland in March 1931.(The Daily Herald, March 18, 1931, p. 3)

Patricia Field (b. 1939), the daughter of Alden Waterbury Field (1900-1969) and Evelyn Smith (1926-1960) of Watervliet, Michigan married Albert Lynd Gottsche II in the Plymouth Congregational Church of Waverliet, Michigan in August 1958.(The Ocean Springs News, July 31, 1958, p. 5 and August 21, 1958, p. 5)

Mr. Gottsche returned to Jackson County in 1932, and commenced a career in commercial banking until his retirement in late 1971.  He was inducted into the Rotary Club in November 1933, and became associated with the Ocean Springs State Bank in 1934.  In 1941, Lynd Gottsche became employed with the First National Bank of Biloxi becoming its president.  At retirement he was the executive vice president and a director of the First National Bank of Mississippi.(The Jackson County Times, November 11, 1933, p. 3, The Ocean Springs News, April 25, 1957, p. 1 and The Daily Herald, January 22, 1974, p. 2)

            The Lynd Gottsche family home, Lynwood, was erected in 1946, at present day 915 Ocean Avenue.  It is now owned by the Reverend Andy Wells of the First Presbyterian Church.  The floors and other wooden structural components of the house were built from salvaged materials from the H.F. Russell (1858-1940) home on Washington Avenue, which partially burned in February 1933.(J.K. Lemon, 1996)

 

Mae D. Griffin

            Mae M. Davis (1875-1917) was born at Ocean Springs on January 27, 1875.  On March 10, 1903, she married Joseph C. Griffin (1864-1919), the son of W.C. Griffin and Mary Ann Byrd.  Mr. Griffin was a businessman from Brooklyn, Forrest County, Mississippi. Their nuptials were held in the Davis home at Ocean Springs with the Reverend L.E. Hall in attendance.  They had a daughter, Margaret Griffin Ingalls (1907-1989), who eventually settled at Twentynine Palms, San Bernardo County, California.(Jack Gottsche, December 17, 2001, The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, February 27, 1903, p. 3, and The Jackson County Times, December 2, 1933, p. 3)

                                                                                                                                             

                                                                                                                                                 

       Margaret Griffin

Margaret Griffin Ingalls*

            After the death of her parents, Margaret Griffin lived with the A.C. Gottsches?  She was very talented in the fine arts.  In 1924, she attended Whitworth College at Brookhaven, Mississippi, where in October 1926, she was named “most talented” in the annual “Who’s Who” contest.(The Jackson County Times, October 16, 1926, p. 1)

            Margaret Griffin later became art director at Whitworth College.  In 1930, she went abroad and studied art in Paris, where she met her future husband, Frederick Henry Ingalls (1908-1989).  In France, Mr. Ingalls worked for The Paris Tribune and the American Express Company.   His home was at St. Louis, Missouri.  Ingalls had attended the dramatic workshop at Yale University.  The young couple were married at the Ingalls home at University City, a neighborhood of St. Louis.  Miss Griffin was an art student at Washington University in St. Louis, at the time of her wedding.(The Jackson County Times, December 2, 1933, p. 3, December 27, 1924, p. 3, and July 14, 1934, p. 3)

            *(SSDI has a Margaret Ingalls born June 15, 1907, died at Los Angeles on March 11, 1989 and Frederick Ingalls born May 17, 1908, died October 15, 1989, at Los Angeles)            

 

Griffin home

              The Griffins acquired the Thomas W. Grayson (1825-1904) home on Washington Avenue in July 1906, for $4000.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 31, p. 432)  The domicile was just north of the Davis Brothers Store and south of the E.M. Westbrook (1858-1913) home.

              In early April 1915, a large conflagration destroyed the Griffin home.  At the time, it was being utilized by Dr. O.L. Bailey (1870-1938), as a sanitarium.  The loss of the Griffin home and Dr. Bailey’s equipment, books, and records was estimated at $4000.  Arson was suspected and a $100 reward was posted for information leading to the capture and conviction of the alleged incendiaries.(The Ocean Springs News, January 7, 1915, p. 1)

             At the time of the fire, the Griffins were residents of Brooklyn, Forrest County, Mississippi.  Here J.C. Griffin made his livelihood as a farmer and landowner.  Mae Davis Griffin died at Brooklyn on November 19, 1917.  She was followed to the grave by her spouse, on April 3, 1919.  Their corporal remains were interred in the Evergreen Cemetery.(The Jackson County Times, November 24, 1917, p. 5 and April 5, 1919, p. 5)

            H.C. Herring of Forrest County, Mississippi was appointed guardian of Margaret Griffin after her parent’s demise.  In September 1924, she sold the Griffin lot on Washington Avenue to H.F. Russell (1858-1940) for $4250.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 54, pp. 371-372)  Here in October 1926, the Bailey Building was completed by Kean & Company of Gulfport for Dr. O.L. Bailey.  He operated his drug store and medical practice from the new structure.  Today, this edifice is known as Lovelace’s Drugs. 

 

Sadie D. Young

            Sadie Davis (1878-1950) was born at Ocean Springs on April 10, 1878.  She married Edward Young (1880-1959), a native of New Orleans.  They had two daughters, Cynthia E.  Young (1916-1925) and Florence Belle Young Robinson (1922-2001).

            In March 1904, Alice Young (1888-1904), Mr. Young’s sister, died at New Orleans of Bright’s disease.  He went to her funeral in the Crescent City.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, March 19, 1904, p. 4)

Edward Young stoked the coal furnaces for the steam heat at OSHS.  Circa 1954, when the heating system changed he became custodian of the building.  Mr. Young would take a break and sit in a broom closet doing class changes.  The student body referred to Mr. Young's cubby hole as 'Mr. Young's Office'.(Larry Galle, January 26, 2009)

Florence Belle Young married Vesper Robinson.  They had no children.  Florence Belle Young died at Ocean Springs on November 4, 2001.  Her remains were sent to the Southern Memorial Park Cemetery at Biloxi for internment.(The Sun Herald, November 9, 2001, p. A-10)

Sadie D. Young was a member of the Ocean Springs Baptist Church.  She expired at Biloxi, Mississippi, on October 27, 1950.  Edward Young died on September 5, 1959.  Their corporal remains were interred in the Evergreen Cemetery at Ocean Springs.(The Daily Herald, October 27, 1950, p. 11 and The Daily Herald, September 7, 1959, p. 2 )

 

Mamie E. D. Bland

On November 17, 1904, Mamie Edwina Davis (1882-1965) married Roy Livingston Bland (1878-1970) at Ocean Springs.  He was born at Pelahatchie, Mississippi on December 22, 1878, the son of George Duncan Bland (1853-1915) and Addie Spann (d. ca 1885).  His siblings were: George Hall Bland (1882-1981) of Shreveport, La.; Irene B. Hilsman (1889-1987) of Orange, Texas; Estelle B. Cruthirds (1893-1986) of Longville, La.; Bessie B. Barnes (1898-1917+) of Bond, Mississippi, and Albert Davis Bland (1903-1919) of Longville, La.(letter from Sam Kinney, January 9, 1997)

Roy L. Bland’s uncle, was Dr. Jasper J. Bland (1850-1932), the founder of a magnificent resort, The Beach-New Beach Hotel, on the Front Beach at Ocean Springs, which existed from 1900 until about 1921. 

In their young married life between 1904 and circa 1912, the R.L. Blands were peripatetic as he worked as a station agent for the Mobile, Jackson and KC Railroad and the Frisco Railroad at several Mississippi and Arkansas locations.(The Biloxi Herald, November 18, 1904, p. 5, c. 4., The Ocean Springs News ,July 23, 1910 and July 30, 1910)

Before leaving for Alexandria, Louisiana circa 1918, R.L. Bland made his livelihood at Ocean Springs, raising poultry and dairy cattle.  Mr. Bland was the proprietor of Bland's Sanitary Dairy.  He advertised in The Jackson County Times on October 13, 1917 as follows:

 

BLAND'S SANITARY DAIRY

Sweet Milk 12c Quart; 6c a Pint

Delivered Morning and Evening

PHONE 57             R.L. BLAND

 

Roy L. Bland took many photographs of Ocean Springs during his tenure here.  Many of these black and white images were made into postal cards and survive to the present.  Bland's postcards can be easily identified from his handwriting, which is usually written at the base of the card describing the scene.  Sometimes, he autographed his postals. 

            The Roy and Mamie D. Bland children were: Roy Lamar Bland (1905-1971), Davis Duncan Bland (1908-1990), Tyler Hutchinson Bland (1912-1991+), and Margaret W. B. McConathy (1918-1997+). 

            Mr. R.L. Bland expired at Alexandria, Louisiana in December 1970.  Mrs. Bland died there on January 25, 1965.

 

Georgia D. Whittle

            Georgia Davis (1883-1945) married Joseph Otto Whittle (1880-1925) in 1904.  They had a daughter, Margaret Virginia Whittle (1908-1909).  J.O. Whittle’s brother, Floyd F. Whittle, a resident of Ashland, Oregon, also had a daughter named Virginia.  His wife and child visited Ocean Springs in December 1911.  They were en route to Greensboro, Alabama.(The Ocean Springs News, December 9, 1911)

 J.O. Whittle made his livelihood at Ocean Springs, as a druggist, initially with the People Drug Company.  In August 1917, he consolidated his business, The Whittle Drug Store with Dr. O.L. Bailey’s Ocean Springs Drug Store and managed the new organization.  Apparently this relationship failed, as in August 1918, he resigned his position with the Ocean Springs Drug Store and relocated to Lake Charles, Louisiana.  Here Mr. Whittle became general manager and pharmacist for J.H. Mathieu.  The family later moved to Texas where J.O. Whittle expired from pneumonia at Dallas, Texas on February 5,1925.(The Jackson County Times, August 11, 1917,  September 7, 1918, p. 5, and February 7, 1925)

            Georgia Davis Whittle then married Karl K. Weaver and lived in Durham, California.  She was killed in an automobile accident at Chico, California in late December 1945.(The Jackson County Times, January 5, 1946, p. 1)

 

ELIAS SAMUEL DAVIS (1859-1925)

            Elias S. Davis (1859-1925) was the junior partner in the Davis Brothers firm.  He was born east of Ocean Springs on May 17, 1859.  He married Louise A. Friar (1874-1952), the daughter of Thomas R. Friar (1845-1916) and Marie L. Dolbear (1846-1914), on April 6, 1891.  Their children were: George Elliott Davis (1892-1936), Oscar T. Davis (1894-1963), L. Gladys D. Quinn (1897-1990) and Samuel Chester Davis (1900-1973).

            In August 1911, E.S. Davis acquired the one-half interest of his brother, George W. Davis (1842-1914), in the store and land known as the Davis Brothers Store on Washington Avenue for $2500. The new business was called E.S. Davis & Sons.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 37, pp. 197-198 and The Ocean Springs News, September 2, 1911) 

            Mr. E.S. Davis was the first Treasurer of the Town of Ocean Springs, serving his fellow citizens from December 1892 until 1910, when the office was eliminated, as a result of the opening of the Ocean Springs State Bank.(Schmidt, 1972, pp. 133-134)

            Elias S. Davis was known for his “rugged honesty” and devotion to his business.  His avocations were fishing and boating.  In addition to his mercantile business, E.S. Davis was a director of the Farmers & Merchants State Bank, a stockholder in the Ocean Springs State Bank, and a stockholder in the Builders Supply Company, which he sold to B.F. Joachim in July 1920.  He was elected president of the Farmers & Merchants State Bank in 1920.  Elias Samuel Davis expired on June 13, 1925.  His corporal remains interred in the Evergreen Cemetery at Ocean Springs.(Dabney, 1974, p. 19 and The Jackson County Times, June 20, 1925, p. 1 and July 24, 1920, p. 3)

            Mrs. Louise F. Davis was active in social circles and a stalwart member of the local Baptist Church.  Among her many good deed was the care of Evergreen Cemetery.  In November 1933, Mrs. Davis with the assistance of welfare workers refurbished the Evergreen Cemetery to a state not seen in many years.  She passed on April 1, 1952 at Biloxi and her remains interred at the Evergreen Cemetery.(The Jackson County Times, November 11, 1933, p. 3 and The Gulf Coast Times, April 3, 1952, p. 3)

 

George Elliot Davis

            George Elliot Davis (1892-1936), called Elliott, was born in the year in which Ocean Springs became incorporated.  On August 25, 1929, he married Vera Small, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W.G. Small at the home of the Reverend L.A. Darsey (1849-1929) of the Methodist Church.  Before their marriage, Miss Small was employed in the telephone exchange of the Cumberland Telephone Company at Birmingham, Alabama.(The Jackson County Times, July 18, 1925, p. 3 and August 31, 1929, p. 3)

            Elliott Davis worked in his father’s store and was admired for his “easy going” personality, which endeared him to store customers.  He became ill several years before his demise at the family home on Bowen Avenue, the 19^th day of November 19, 1936.    

Vera S. Davis was in Birmingham at the fatal hour.  Burial was in the E.S. Davis family plot at Evergreen Cemetery in Ocean Springs.(The Jackson County Times, November 26, 1936)

 

Oscar T. Davis

            In late January 1925, Oscar T. Davis (1894-1963) married Cecelia Wieder (1902-1956), the daughter of Joseph A. Wieder (1877-1960) and Mathilda Endt (1875-1964).  The Catholic wedding took place in Biloxi.  Mr. Davis was employed in the family business, E.S. Davis & Sons at Ocean Springs.  The newlyweds took an apartment in the Eglin House on Washington Avenue.(The Jackson County Times, January 31, 1925)

Cecelia was born at Ocean Springs on March 1, 1902 and expired at New Orleans on September 26, 1956.  They resided at 8 Middle Avenue, now 1008 Joseph Street, which was named for her brother, Joseph C. Wieder (1905-1990).  Mrs. Davis was passed through St. Alphonsus Roman Catholic Church with burial in the Southern Memorial Park Cemetery at Biloxi.(The Daily Herald, September 26, 1956)

            After an April 1943 nomination, President F.D. Roosevelt (1882-1945) named Oscar T, Davis as US Postmaster at Ocean Springs, on August 1, 1943.  He succeeded L. Morris McClure (1884-1940).  Mr. Davis remained at his post until March 15, 1963, when he retired and was replaced by Orwin J. Scharr.  At the time of his postmastership, Oscar T. Davis was manager of the E.S. Davis & Sons general store.(The Jackson County Times, April 10, 1943, p. 1)

In June 1957, after the death of Cecilia W. Davis, Oscar T. Davis married Birdine Perry Morgan (1896-1990), the daughter of L.H. Perry and Elizabeth Ireland.  They resided at 1008 Middle Avenue.(JXCO, Ms. MRB 92, p. 314)      

Oscar T. Davis was a veteran of WW I and attained the rank of Corporal in the U.S. Army.  He was a member of the V.F.W., American Legion, World War I Veterans, and the Masons.  His death came on October 9, 1963, only a few months post-retirement.  The corporal remains of Oscar T. Davis were interred in the Evergreen Cemetery.(The Daily Herald, October 9, 1963, p. 2)

            Mrs. Birdine P. M. Davis passed on June 16, 1990, at St Petersburg, Florida.  She was survived by two children, Roscoe C. Morgan and Joyce M. Neal. Her remains were also interred in the Evergreen Cemetery.(The Ocean Springs Record, July 5, 1990, p. 3)

 

Lillian Gladys Davis Quinn

            Lillian Gladys Davis (1897-1990), called Gladys, was born at Ocean Springs on December 24, 1897.  She graduated from the Ocean Springs Public School with the Class of 1914.  Miss Davis went to New Orleans post-graduation and studied shorthand, typing and business methods at Soule’s Business College.  In July 1915, Gladys graduated first from that Crescent City educational facility in her class of sixty students.  In addition to her keen mathematical mind and interest in business, she was an exceptional musician.  Gladys Davis commenced her career in her father’s Washington Avenue mercantile store in July 1915.(The Ocean Springs News, July 8, 1915, p. 1)

            In November 1920, Gladys Davis married Charles Gordon Quinn (1893-1970) of Anniston, Alabama at the Baptist Church in Gulfport, Mississippi.  Mr. Quinn was manager of the C.C. Snyder Tobacco Company at Sheffield, Alabama.  After a wedding trip to Birmingham and Anniston, the Quinns were at home in Sheffield.(The Jackson County Times, November 13, 1920)

            Gladys Davis Quinn expired at Gulfport on August 5, 1990.  Mr. Quinn died on August 4, 1970.  Both were interred in the Southern Memorial Park at Biloxi.(The Daily Herald, August 5, 1970, p. 2 and The Sun Herald, August 6, 1990, p. C-2)

 

Samuel Chester Davis

            Samuel Chester Davis (1900-1973) was known as Chester Davis.  He was born at Ocean Springs on August 28, 1900, and attended the public school graduating as valedictorian of the 1918 Class.  He married Eleanor May Baker (1903-1947), the daughter of Orion Stroud Baker (1898-1951) and Escambia McClure Baker Pabst (1880-1947) in the Methodist Church on November 8, 1929.(The Jackson County Times, June 8, 1918, p. 5 and October 19, 1929, p. 2)

Chester Davis was a soldier in WW I.  Shortly after returning to Ocean Springs, he was elected as Ward 1 alderman and was in office from 1923-1924.  In July 1925, he was the assistant cashier of the Farmers and Merchants State Bank and vacationed on an annual basis at Hot Springs, Arkansas.(Schmidt,1972, p. 135 and The Jackson County Times, July 18, 1925, p. 3)

            During the Depression, Chester worked in Jackson, Mississippi for ERA.(The Jackson County Times, January 18, 1936, p. 3)

Eleanor May Baker was born at Ocean Springs on January 23, 1903.  She was killed with her mother and Martha Anne Baker (1936-1947) in a fiery automobile crash at Biloxi on July 30, 1947.(The Daily Herald, July 31, 1947, p. 1)

            Chester Davis married Evelyn Moody and moved to Mississippi City.  He made his livelihood as a tax agent for the Mississippi State Tax Commission and was active in the Methodist Church, United Fund, and Masons and Shriners.   S. Chester Davis passed on February 4, 1973 at Mississippi City.  His body was sent to Ocean Springs for burial at the Evergreen Cemetery.(The Daily Herald, February 5, 1973, p. 2)  

Davis Brothers Store

The Davis Brothers Store, a large 19^th Century wood-framed, structure, was situated at Ocean Springs, Mississippi on a portion of Lot 2 and Lot 8 of Block 27, in Section 37, T7S-R8W.  More familiarly, its site was on the west side of Washington Avenue between the present day structure formerly housing Martha’s Tea Room and the Manhattan Grill and Steakhouse.  In 1883, George W. Davis (1842-1914) and Elias S. Davis (1859-1925) established a mercantile business on the southeast corner of County Road, now Government Street, and Washington Avenue.  In 1888, they built a large building on the west side of Washington Avenue to house their merchandise.  For over seventy years, it stood as a landmark on the streetscape of the central business district of Ocean Springs, until it was demolished by Clarence E. Galle (1912-1986) for the salvage of its valuable, heart pine, lumber.

 

Davis Brothers Store

            In the 1870s, George W. Davis (1842-1914) and E.S. Davis (1859-1925), the Davis brothers, began their careers as merchants in the piney woods of Vancleve, an active charcoal and timber producing community on Bluff Creek situated northeast of Ocean Springs.  By the early 1880s, they had returned to Ocean Springs and opened a store on the southeast corner of Washington Avenue and County Road, which later became know as Lundy’s Corner, after Franklin J. Lundy (1863-1912), a local merchant.  In July 1888, the Davis brothers began acquiring land in Lot 8 of Block 27 (Culmseig Map of 1854) situated on the west side of Washington Avenue.  At this time, Thomas W. Grayson (1825-1904) and Ann Hyde Grayson (1832-1906) sold their portion of Lot 8 in Block 27 to George W. Davis and Elias S. Davis for $400.  The parcel had a fifty-foot front on Washington Avenue and ran to the west for two hundred feet.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 15, p. 611)

Prior to April 1867, Lot 8 of Block 27 had belonged to the A.F. Ramsay (1828-1864) Estate.  It was conveyed by Enoch N. Ramsay (1832-1916) to A.W. Ramsay (1830-1916) on April 1, 1867, for $10.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 29, p. 430)

            It is assumed that the Davis Brothers General Merchandise Store, that would become a landmark in Ocean Springs until the late 1950s, was erected in the summer of 1888, after the land acquisition from Mayor Thomas W. Grayson and spouse.  The Davis brothers acquired the remainder of Lot 8-Block 27 in June 1894, as local druggist, Herman Nill (1863-1904) and spouse, Caroline Vahle Nill (1862-1949), sold them a part of Lot 8, described as forty-five feet on Washington Avenue and 200 feet deep, for $600.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 15, p. 611)

            By August 1911, Lot 2-Block 27, which was contiguous and west of Lot 8-Block 27, was in the possession of George W. Davis, as at this time, he conveyed an undivided one-half interest in it and Lot 8 to E.S. Davis, for $2500.  This final land acquisition gave the Davis Brothers a lot with 105 feet fronting on both Washington and Jackson Avenues.  The parcel contained 1.08 acres and was 450 deep from east to west.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 37, pp. 197-198)

           

Town bankers

            Prior to March 1903, when the Merchants and Marine Bank of Scranton opened a branch in the Davis Brothers Store with E.S. Davis as cashier, Ocean Springs relied on some of its merchants to function as banks.  The Davis Brothers appear to have been the leaders of these “town bankers”.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, March 20, 1903)    

As early as 1891, the Fortnightly Guild of St. John’s Episcopal Church proposed and accepted that the Davis Brothers General Merchandise Store be the repository for their building funds.(Schmidt, 1972, p.119) 

From the J.K. Lemon Collection at the Jackson County, Mississippi Chancery Court Archives in Pascagoula, the following examples of information concerning some business transactions performed at the Davis Brothers Store were:

 

Julia E. Brown-Elk Lodge

            In January 1898, Julia E. Brown of “Elk Lodge”, an East Beach estate, asked the Davis Brothers to pay Georgia Randolph $12 and charge it to her account.

            In November 1898, she requested the Davis Brothers to pay Mr. Weider (sic) $23.  Other requests by Mrs. Brown for the Davis Brothers was to pay Mr. Nill (the druggist) $6.55 and to place two stamps on a letter.

 

The Earle Farm

            In February 1898, W.W. Cowly, manager of the Earle Farm (Rose Farm) asked the Davis Brothers to pay the following laborers for their toil on the Earle Farm:

George Caldwell at $.90 per day for six days work-$5.40; Joseph Scarbrough (1849-1928) at $.90 per day for six days labor-$5.40; Daniel Ramsay(1875-1939) at $.90 per day for three days work-$2.70; and Albert Scarbrough (1880-1963)  for clearing ten acres of underbrush $4.00.

           

Elizabeth McCauley Stuart             

Elizabeth McCauley Stuart (1840-1925) also utilized the Davis Brothers as her banker.  In February 1899, she asked them to pay E.A. Clark $75 for the stock of pecan trees on the Evans Place near Ocean Springs and charge this sum to her account.

 

            The Scranton State Bank and the Ocean Springs State Bank were both established here in January 1905.  Unfortunately, the Scranton State Bank failed in1906, which allowed the Ocean Springs State Bank, which was organized by Dr. O.L. Bailey (1870-1938) and F.M. Weed (1852-1926), who served as president and vice president respectively, with Alfred L. Staples (1881-1969) serving as cashier, to become the town’s chief financial institution until it merged with the Pascagoula-Moss Pont Bank in 1953.  The first board of directors of the Ocean Springs State Bank were: G.E. Arndt (1857-1945), Hugh C. Seymour (1876-1913), Sidney J. Anderson (1867-1917), Alfred L. Staples, F.M. Weed, O.L. Bailey, and H.F. Russell (1858-1940). 

 

Wool buyers

As early as 1890, the Davis Brothers were among the primary buyers and brokers of wool from stockmen, primarily situated in the Latimer and Vancleave regions.  Some of the leading wool producers were: Sardin G. Ramsay (1837-1920), H.C. Havens (1831-1912), Thomas E. Ramsay (1845-1934), George W. Tootle (1841-1915), George Byrd (1824-1899)  J.M. Breeland, T.C. Ruble, and Mary Doyle Krohn (1860-1944).

The merchantable wool was brought to Ocean Springs in large wagons drawn by oxen from a radius of about twenty-five miles of town.  The spring clip market was usually held on Washington Avenue in front of the Davis Brothers Store.  Some of the wool buying organizations represented by the Davis Brothers were: H. Piser & Company and the Metzker Brothers of Mobile, and William Mehle and William E. Vouchel & Son of New Orleans.  A company representative was usually present at the sale.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, June 7, 1895, p. 3 and The Ocean Springs News, June 17, 1911, p. 1)

In 1891, nearly 63,000 pounds of wool were vended at Ocean Springs by local wool farmers, as compared to about 49,000 pounds in 1890.  The Davis Brothers were acquiring large lots of wool for $.24 per pound while smaller lots were bought for a penny or two less.  In 1890, prices were better.(The Biloxi Herald, June 27, 1891, p. 1 and The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, June 12, 1891, p. 2)

In June 1892, after the shearing season had closed, the Davis Brothers had shipped over 60,000 pounds for which they paid about $14,000 ($.23 per pound).

In June 1895, William Mehle of New Orleans acquired the entire clip of 26,000 pounds at the rate of $.12 per pound.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, June 7, 1895, p. 3)

In June 1897, Sardin G. Ramsay vended 6,000 pounds of wool to the Davis Brothers at Ocean Springs at the rate of $.15 per pound.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, June 4. 1897, p. 3)

            In June 1909, the Davis Brothers of Ocean Springs shipped about 1200 pounds of wool to the H. Piser & Co. of Mobile.  They expected about 20,000 pounds to be marketed in the next week and consigned to the Mobile firm.  This was the remainder of the remarkable wool purchase made by H. Piser & Co. sometime ago at the top notch price of 31 1/2 cents per pound.(The Ocean Springs News, June 5, 1909)

 

1897 expansion

            In 1897, the Davis Brothers enterprises at Ocean Springs continued to grow.  Business had increased, which in the spring of 1897, necessitated the erection of a larger office to process grocery, hardware, and mercantile orders.  The additional space also provided comfortable quarters for the management, as well as suitable place for record and asset storage.  More personnel and equipment were integrated into the already efficient system as a clerk and fourth delivery wagon was now in service.  Their bakery was vending on the average about six hundred loaves of bread to the community each week.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, July 9, 1897, p. 3)

 

Sportsmen-Fishermen and Catboat racers

The Davis Brothers enjoyed the outdoors and competition.  In the 1890s, fishing at Ocean Springs was a competitive sport as well as an avocation.  Two fishing clubs, the Kingfishers and Rod and Reel Club, were organized and supported by the town’s crème de la crème.  George W. Davis (1842-1914) was a prominent member of the Rod and Reel Club.  Some of his cohorts were: R.A. VanCleave (1840-1908), Edward Reneau Bragg (1862-1916), W.S. VanCleave, (1871-1938), J.D. Minor (1863-1920), Augustus von Rosambeau (1849-1912), Joseph Kotzum (1842-1915), Ross A. Switzer (1875-1945), B.F. Joachim (1853-1925), E.W. Illing (1870-1947), and Thornton A. Vaughn (1868-1933).   The opposition Kingfishers had a membership consisting of D.D. Cowan (1850-1929), William H. Casey (1875-1960), Orey A. Young (1868-1938), Antonio P. Kotzum (1871-1916), Samuel T. Haviland (1845-1911), Robert A. Friar (1878-1948), and William Lorenzen (1844-pre 1910).(Ellison, 1991, pp. 111-112)

The Davis Brothers also had a keen interest in catboat racing.  The catboat, that little gaff-rigged, workhorse of the local fishing fleet before mechanized vessels replaced   them, became a favorite one-design boat to compete with at local regattas.  Racing classes were established by the hull length of the craft.  

One of the great match races ever sailed off Ocean Springs in Biloxi Bay occurred on August 21, 1901, when Orey Young’s Royal Flush, Davis Brothers, and Josephine competed for a $700 cash prize.  Local merchants financed the jackpot.  The exciting, three-cornered race was won by the Royal Flush over her nearest rival, Davis Brothers, by two minutes and one second.  In a rematch in early September 1901, the Davis Brothers defeated the Royal Flush by twelve seconds.  The People’s Brass Band was on hand to celebrate the occasion.( (The Biloxi Daily Herald, August 22, 1901, The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, September 6, 1901, p. 3 and Boating, November 1924)  

            Another race of record involved the Mamie M. owned by the Davis brothers.  In June 1921, it sailed a match race in Pascagoula waters against the de St. Ferol, the catboat of W.E. Frederic.(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, June 17, 1921, p.   )

 

1903 Fire

            Just before dawn on December 28, 1903, a large fire commenced in the millinery shop of Miss Jennie C. Fullem, (1865-1926), just south of the Davis Brother Store.  Miss Fullem and her sister lived in an apartment on the second floor of the building.  The structure was totaling consumed by the conflagration.  The women escaped with their lives, although they lost their personal effects and store merchandise.  The homestead of Mrs. Amelia Krohn Eglin (1855-1916), which was adjacent to the millinery shop, was also a total loss.  Her rental building, south of her residence and occupied by attorney, Edwin A. Clark (1853-1936), was also destroyed with his law library.  The merchandise of the Davis Brothers Store was severely damaged by heat and smoke.  Only the valiant efforts of the volunteer fire companies saved their mercantile business from consumption.  The Davis Brothers were the only property owners with fire insurance.(The Biloxi Daily Herald, December 28, 1903, p. 6)

            In appreciation for their services on the morning of the December 1903 fire, which threatened their store building and merchandise, the Davis Brothers donated $25 to the Ocean Springs Volunteer Hook and Ladder Company No. 1.  The local fire company was thankful for the money as it afforded them financial resources to further improve and equip its volunteer service.(The Progress, January 23, 1904, p. 4)

            Miss Jennie C. Fullem was a native of New York and the daughter of Irish immigrant, Edward Fullem, and Alice Mitchell, who was born in England.  She had two old maid sisters, Mary Alice Fullem (d. 1921) and Agnes E. Fullem (1876-1931).  Another sister, Elizabeth F. Gillespie (1875-1910+), the spouse of Francis J. Gillespie (1870-1910+), resided on Government Street.  When her health began to fail, Miss Fullem reluctantly retired from the millinery business in October 1910, and planned to remain at Ocean Springs.(The Ocean Springs News, October 7, 1910)

 

“Fire” Sale

            By mid- January 1904, the Davis Brothers store was operating efficiently.  A special sale was held to dispose some of the fire damaged goods.  The business advertised as follows:

 

SPECIAL DELIVERY

Shoe : Sale

One Hundred pairs of Shoes slightly soiled and marked in the recent fire are offered at 35 to 50 per cent below usual price to close out.  Mostly ladies and children’s sizes.  Ask Albert about it.

DAVIS BROTHERS

Telephone No. 3

(The Progress, January 16, 1904, p. 1)

 

E.S Davis & Sons

George W. Davis retires

            In August 1911, George W. Davis sold his undivided half interest in the Davis Brothers Store and land which included all of Lot No. 2 and Lot No. 8 of Block 27, to his brother, Elias Samuel Davis, for $2500.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 37, pp. 197-198)

            The name of the business was changed to E.S. Davis & Sons.  Almost immediately, the new proprietors effected repairs on the old structure.  Salient among the improvements was the addition of a metal awning along the entire façade in order to shield the building from the intense summer sun and other unfavorable meteorological events.(The Ocean Springs News, September 2, 1911)

  

Robbery

            The quite of the village was interrupted in the early hours of a cool January morning in 1915, when cat burglars entered the E.S. Davis & Sons store through a transom above the rear door.  Approximately $100 in merchandise was pilfered.  Marshall E.L. Tardy (1863-1943) was on alert and pursuing the thieves at last report.(The Ocean Springs News, January 14, 1915, p. 1)

 

Passing of E.S. Davis

            With the death of Elias S. Davis in mid-June 1925, the E.S. Davis & Sons mercantile store remained in family hands.  Josephine Friar (1883-1958), the sister of Mrs. E.S. Davis, worked in the business for many years.

In February 1940, Oscar Davis conveyed to Cecelia W. Davis, his spouse, all of his rights, title and interest in the mercantile business known as E.S. Davis & Sons. (JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 74, pp. 162-163)

            By September 1944, Louise Friar Davis, the widow of E.S. Davis, had acquired for $2000, all the assets including the entire contents of the E.S. Davis & Sons store building and all accounts receivable from her sons, Oscar T. Davis and S. Chester Davis.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 87  , pp. 221-222)

            When Louise Friar Davis passed on April 1, 1952.  She legated all of her real and personal property to S. Chester Davis, her son.(JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Cause No. 11,722-April 1952)

 

Drop advertisement

            See The Jackson County Times, 1-5-1935, p. 3

 

The M & M Supply Company

In 1944, the M & M (Murphy & McPhearson) Supply Company began its occupancy of the old E.S. Davis & Sons building on Washington Avenue, with the catchphrase, “We sell everything, but groceries”.  This enterprise, which vended dry goods, hardware, appliances, and farm implements, was owned originally by Palmer G. Murphy (1916-1990) of Vancleave and Chester M. McPhearson Sr. (1883-1969) from Wayne County and Jones County, Mississippi.  P.G. Murphy and his brother, T.L. Murphy Jr. (1914-1996), were well-known entrepreneurs involved in seafood and cat food processing, timber and pulpwood, general merchandising, pharmaceuticals, and food vending. 

In 1947, the two sons of Chester M. McPhearson Sr., William M. McPhearson (1913-1963) and Chester M. McPhearson Jr. (b. 1924), acquired the interest of Palmer G. Murphy.  William M. McPhearson left the business in 1952, to go to Brewton, Alabama and Everett Eglin Busby (1912-1987) bought his stock.(C.M. McPhearson Jr., January 14, 2002) 

In 1953, while managing M & M Supply, Chester M. McPhearson Jr. entered politics at Ocean Springs. He was elected and served his loyal constituents in Ward IV from 1953 until 1961.  Chester was elected Mayor in 1981 and served two consecutive terms leaving office in 1989.  Mayor McPhearson was the last Democratic Party candidate to win this distinguished position.  His management philosophy, as applied to city business, was based on the pragmatic experiences that he had gained as a successful businessman, i.e. administer the city's business in a fair and dignified manner and bring good business management with a sound fiscal policy to the position.  After M & M Supply liquidated its merchandise in December 1955, Chester M.  McPhearson Jr. was named manager of Crestlawn Cemetery.  In 1958, He founded McPhearson's Mens Wear, which he operated until 1982.(History of JXCO, Ms., 1989, pp. 285-286)

           

Family agreement

            In March 1953, S. Chester Davis conveyed a 2/3rd interest in the E.S. Davis & Sons business and land on Washington Avenue to his sister, Gladys D. Quinn.  They agreed that S. Chester Davis would manage the property until sold.  At the end of each calendar year, net income from the business would be divided equally.  In addition, the manager was required to consult with his partner before leasing or making repairs or remodeling requiring substantial costs.  The property could be sold only by mutual agreement and the building would be insured for a minimum of $5000 in fire insurance.

(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 132, pp. 138-140)

 

McPhearson lease

In February 1954, Chester Davis and Gladys Davis Quinn granted a 30-month lease to the M & M Supply Company.  The Davis lease ran from March 1, 1954 until August 31, 1956.  The rent was $150 per month unless 2% of the gross sales exceeded the rental rate.  In this scenario, M & M Supply was required to pay a monthly rental equal to the amount by which 2% of the gross sales exceeded $150 per month.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 137, pp. 410-411)

 

Final Sale

In January 1956, S. Chester Davis and his sister, Gladys D. Quinn sold their aging family property to Julius J. Strayham (1912-1991) and Annie Lang Strayham (1909-1997) for $15,000.  The sale was subject to the lease to M & M Supply Company.  Mr. Strayham conveyed the property to the Ocean Springs Lumber Company, a partnership held by A.P. “Fred” Moran (1897-1967), J. Duncan Moran (1925-1995), and A. Russell Moran (1930-1981), in March 1963.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 164, pp. 160-161 and Bk. 236, p. 316)

           

Demolition

            In December 1957, Clarence Galle (1912-1986) and his son, Larry Galle (b. 1939), were contracted to demolish what should have become an architectural shrine on Washington Avenue, the Davis Brothers Store building.  They were assisted by a crew of high school students who were paid $1.00 per hour for their manual labor.  Among them were: R.F. ‘Bobby’ Schrieber, David Scharr, and Benny Spicer.  Mr. Galle’s compensation for the task was the valuable lumber that was salvaged.  Larry Galle remembers the high quality and large size of the pine boards used in the store’s construction.  The joists were 2” x 12”, the sills were 8”x 8”, and the flooring was 1” by 6” tongue and groove.  The building had ten-foot ceilings.  Much of the recovered lumber was stacked and sold from the site.(Larry Galle, January 27, 2002 and R.F. ‘Bobby Schrieber, January 6, 2007)

 

From the ruins

            In the late 1960s, the Moran family erected two buildings on the former Davis Brothers Store site at present day 705 Washington Avenue, known as the Mississippi Power Company building, and a smaller structure at 711 Washington Avenue.  Today, they are rented to proprietors of two restaurants, the Manhattan Grill & Steakhouse and Southern Traditions.(Susie R. Moran, January 22, 2002)

 

Pepper Cottage-1201 Porter

Some of the lumber from the Davis Brothers Store building was utilized by Clarence Galle to erect a home for Coach Hugh Pepper, his son-in-law.  In September 1958, Hugh Lauren Pepper acquired parts of Lot 8 and Lot 11 of the Kotzum Addition on the northeast corner of Porter and Kotzum from Inez A. Galle.  The former Pepper cottage is situated at 1201 Porter and is now owned by Daniel K. Dubaz.(Larry Galle, December 12, 2001 and JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 181, p. 176)    

 

Standish Bradford home-1314 Bowen

            The Standish Bradford home at 1314 Bowen Avenue was also erected with some of the Davis Brothers salvaged lumber.(Larry Galle, January 27, 2002 and R.F. ‘Bobby Schrieber, January 6, 2007)

 

Post-mortem

The Davis Brothers Store is but a dim memory in the minds of all who remember this former architectural landmark on Washington Avenue.  Like most of its 19^th Century brethren, the Davis Brothers Store came down in the demolition decades, the 1950s-1970s. Unfortunately, other than the Catchot-Lemon building at Washington Avenue four surviving structures, the only records remaining of this interesting historical era are photographs, land records, Sanborn insurance maps, some promotional pamphlets, and the memories of older citizens.  The loss of such architectural treasures is certainly a valid affirmation for historical preservation in this city.

 

REFERENCES:

 

Melba Goff Allen, 1850 Census of Jackson County, Mississippi, (Allen: Pascagoula, Mississippi-1988).

 

American State Papers (1815-1824, Volume 3, (Southern Historical Press: Greenville, South Carolina-1994).

 

Ray L. Bellande, Cemeteries Near Ocean Springs, Jackson County, Mississippi, (Bellande: Ocean Springs, Mississippi-1992).

 

 

Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Mississippi, (The Reprint Company: Spartanburg, South Carolina-1978-Originally published in 1891).

 

Thomas E. Dabney, Ocean Springs: The Land Where Dreams Come True, (reprinted by The 1699 Historical Committee: Ocean Springs, Mississippi-1974).

 

Genealogy Bulletin, “Roads to the Old Southwest”, No. 28, July-August 1995.

 

Jackson County, Mississippi Chancery Court Cause No. 4526, “Last Will of E.S. Davis”,

Journals

The Biloxi Daily Herald, “Fire At Ocean Springs”, December 28, 1903.

The Daily Herald, “Ocean Springs News”, March 18, 1931.

The Daily Herald, Klein-Maxwell”, January 5, 1942.

The Daily Herald, “Three Burned to Death in 3-Way Crash at Biloxi”, July 31, 1947.

The Daily Herald, “Injuries Fatal To Resident of Ocean Springs”, July 4, 1958.

The Daily Herald, “Edward Young”, September 7, 1959.

The Daily Herald, "Ocean Springs", March 16, 1929.

The Jackson County Times, “Death of Mrs. Mae M. Griffin”, November 24, 1917.

The Jackson County Times, “Local News Items”, September 7, 1918.

The Jackson County Times, “Joseph C. Griffin Passed Away Tuesday”, April 5, 1919.

The Jackson County Times, “Local News Items”, November 13, 1920.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, May 19, 1923.

The Jackson County Times, "G.D. Maxwell Advertisement", February 23, 1924.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, January 18, 1936.

The Gulf Coast Times, “Funeral Services Held For G.D. Maxwell”, March 29, 1951.

The Ocean Springs News, "Local News", June 5, 1909.

The Ocean Springs News, “Geo. W. Davis Retires From Business Oct. 1^st.”, September 10, 1910.

The Ocean Springs News, “Wool Clip Is Marketed”, June 17, 1911.

The Ocean Springs News, “Local News”, September 2, 1911.

The Ocean Springs News, “Local News”, October 7, 1911.

The Ocean Springs News, “Local News”, December 9, 1911.

The Ocean Springs News, “Griffin Place Burns.  Thought To Be Work Of Incendiaries”, January 7, 1915.

The Ocean Springs News, “Store of Davis & Sons Robbed”, January 14, 1915.

The Ocean Springs News, “Old Landmark To Be Torn Down; M & M Supply Co. Building Is Sold”, December 5, 1957.

The Ocean Springs News, “Karl Maxwell Dies In Auto Crash…”, July 3, 1958.

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, “Ocean Springs News”, June 12, 1891.

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, “Ocean Springs Locals”, June 7, 1895.

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, “Ocean Springs Locals”, June 4, 1897.

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, “Ocean Springs Locals”, July 9, 1897.

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, “Ocean Springs Locals”, February 27, 1903.

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, June 17, 1921.

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, “Ocean Springs Local News”, October 19, 1924.

The Progress, “Special-Shoe: Sale!”, January 16, 1904.

The Progress, “Card of Thanks”, January 16, 1904.

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, “Ocean Springs Locals”, May 18, 1900.

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EGAN FAMILY

John J. Egan (1827-1875), an Irish immigrant, arrived at America in 1849, probably entering at the port of New Orleans with his family.  The Catholic Church records of the Diocese of Biloxi indicate that Egan was the son of Dennis Egan (died 1872) and Catherine Malony.  He had a sister, Margaret Egan (1833-1871) who is interred at the Bellande Cemetery. 

            Young John Egan settled at Biloxi finding employment as a drayman.  He came to Ocean Springs about 1853 eventually settling at the foot of Jackson Avenue east of the Ocean Springs Hotel tract.  Here the industrious Irishman ran a mercantile store and barroom, served as Postmaster (1856-1866) and Justice of the Peace (1866), and was wharf master on the steamboat landing at the foot of Jackson Avenue.

            John Egan was married to Julia Bridgit Elward ? (1833-1907), also Irish born.  The Egan's had seven children, but only three survived into adulthood.  They were:  John J., Jr. (1856-1916), Richard (1858-1896), and Jefferson Davis (1864-1907).

            John J. Egan. Jr. (1856-1916) worked as a clerk in the family store on Jackson Avenue.  He moved to New Orleans before 1900, and died there on September 13, 1916.  Egan owned the family home in 1903.

            Richard Egan (1858-1896) resided at Ocean Springs and married Mary Helen Murray of New Orleans.  He made his livelihood in the livery business and was a partner with Caspar Vahle (1869-1922) from March 1894 until his death in 1896.  Their stable, Vahle & Egan, was located on the White House property on Robinson Avenue just east of the Frye Hotel (behind the Salmagundi Gift Shop). 

            After the death of her husband, Richard, on February 10, 1896, Mary Egan moved her rather large family to Biloxi.  She had six minor children:  Julia Agnes (married Frank J. Gillen on July 8, 1907), Richard Francis (married Irene Nielsen of Mobile on April 11, 1921), Louisa (LuLu) (married Frederic Frank of Baton Rouge on July 15, 1913), William James, Arthur Raymond (1896-1944)(married Elise Zimmerman on June 10, 1920), Agnes Loretta (b. 1895 and married Arthur Duvic on November 15, 1922).

                 Jefferson Davis Egan (1864-1907) was a skilled craftsman especially with wood.  He constructed the cut glass doors for his friends, Jeremiah Joseph O'Keefe (1860-1911) and Alice Cahill O' Keefe (1864-1921), which that family has prized through the years.  Today they grace the portal of the O'Keefe Funeral Home on Porter Avenue.

            Jeff Egan was well liked in the Ocean Springs community.  When the Knights of Pythias Lodge No. 66 installed officers in 1892, Egan served a master of ceremonies at that ritual.  In the early months of 1900, Jeff Egan was residing at Ocean Springs with his mother and working as a cotton clerk.  Later in 1900, he was caught in the killer hurricane, which struck Galveston, Texas.  Egan survived this tempest to die later at New Orleans in February 1907.

            After John Egan passed away on September 28, 1875, Julia Egan continued to run the family store on lower Jackson Avenue.  As commercial activity at Ocean Springs shifted from lower Jackson Avenue to Washington Avenue due to the railroad, she may have closed the store and began to accept guests at her home.  In 1894, Mrs. Julia Egan

advertised:

 

EGAN COTTAGE

Mrs. J. Egan, proprietress

Open during the summer for a limited number of guests

at reasonable rates.  Fronting the beach.

 

Mrs. Egan continued her tourist home business into the Twentieth Century.  Her son, John Egan, sold the Egan Cottage to Jeremiah O' Keefe (1859-1911) in September 1903 for $1600.  Ray and Maureen Hudachek occupy the Egan Cottage today at 314 Jackson Avenue.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 37, pp. 28-29)

     Julia Egan died at New Orleans on December 4, 1907.  Her body was sent to Ocean Springs for burial.

**********************************************************************************************************************************

CLARENCE W. GORMLY

Founder of Gulf Hills

           

Clarence W. Gormly Family

[top l-r: Eleanor Meredith Gormly and Clarence W. Gormly; bottom l-r: Robert M. Gormly, Elizabeth Gormly, and Donald G. Gormly] - Courtesy of Martha Gormly Clement Wilcoxen, March 2006.

 

             Clarence Wallace Gormly (1882-1957) was a land developer and resort builder from New York State.  Presently little is known about his life prior to arriving on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, but in the 1920 Federal Census, he and his family were residents of Mount Vernon, Westchester County, New York.  At this time, Mr. Gormly practiced law.(1920 NY Federal Census, Roll 625-1277, p. 6A)

It is known that C.W. Gormly was married to Eleanor Meredith (1883-1962) probably a native of Larchmont, New York, and that they had three children: Robert Meredith Gormly (1909-1969), Donald G. Gormly (1910-1980), and Elizabeth Gormly (1914-1996).  Before arriving on the Mississippi coast, they may have resided in Oklahoma, as their oldest child, Robert M. Gormly was born here.  The two younger children were New York natives.(Richard Gormly, June 21, 2000 and 1920 NY Federal Census, Roll 625-1277, p. 6A)

            Mr. Gormly’s first project in coastal Mississippi was in western Harrison County near Bay St. Louis, called Shell Beach-on-the-Bay.  It was commenced in May 1922.  Between 1925 and 1930, Mr. and Mrs. Gormly worked diligently on Gulf Hills, Belle Fontaine, and Pointe aux Chene.  These projects were situated near Ocean Springs, Mississippi in Jackson County. 

 

Shell Beach-on-the-Bay/Pine Hills

           

             

Shell Beach, Hancock County, Ms. and C.W. Gormly House, Benn-she-Wah, at Shell Beach

[Courtesy of Martha Gormly Clement Wilcoxen-March 2006)

 

             Shell Beach-on-the Bay was located on the north shore of St. Louis Bay about 2 ½ miles as the crow flies from the town of Bay St. Louis, in Section 5, T8S-R13W, Harrison County, Mississippi.  In May 1922, the Perkins Land Company sold to Clarence W. Gormly tracts of land situated in Section 31, 32, and 33, T7S-R13W and Section 5, T7S-R8W of Harrison County.  In addition lands in Section 36, T7S-R14W and Section 1, T8S-R14W of Hancock County were part of this sale to C.W. Gormly.  The consideration was $5000.(HARCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 134, pp. 276-277)

            In October 1922, Mr. Gormly sold these lands north of the Bay of St. Louis to Shell Beach Properties for $10,000.  His wife, Eleanor M. Gormly, was vice-president and acting president of this corporation at the time of the sale.  J.F. Galloway, a Gulfport, Mississippi engineer, was the secretary of Shell Beach Properties.(HARCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 135, p. 585 and Bk. 137, pp. 620)

            In 1923-1924, at Shell Beach on-the-Bay, C.W. Gormly’s company built the Mexican Gulf Country Club, an eighteen-hole course with country club, for about $125,000.  Root & Hollister, landscape architects from Chicago, designed and landscaped the course and environs.  They would later participate in the construction of Gulf Hills at Ocean Springs.  In May 1925, this 2000-acre picturesque, elevated tract was sold to a New Orleans syndicate represented by Latter and Blum for a sum in excess of $300,000.  The Mexican Gulf Country Club, a 6500-yard par 73, golf course was included in the sale.  It was anticipated that a movie studio to rival Hollywood would be located on the premises.(The Jackson County Times, May 23, 1925, p. 1 and The Daily Herald, May 19, 1925, p. 1 and February 14, 1933, p. 6)

            The new owners, primarily entrepreneurs from New Orleans, named their development Pine Hills.  A large hotel of approximately two hundred rooms was constructed for $1,350,000.  It had characteristics of both Spanish and Italian Renaissance architecture. The furnishing of the Pine Hills Hotel amounted to about $200,000.  It was opened for business in late December 1926.(The Daily Herald, December 18, 1926, p. 1)

In June 1925, Frank Adams, golf professional at the Mexican Gulf Country Club, began litigation against the Shell Beach Development Company, C.W. Gormly, and trustee, D. Allen Johnson.  He alleged in the Harrison County Circuit Court that his three-year contract with the organization was abrogated.  He sought $14,500 for wages, expenses, and other perquisites promised to himself, his family, and Jack Brown, assistant golf professional.  Frank Adams had come to the Bay St. Louis links from the Westward-Ho Golf Club situated in Chicago.(The Daily Herald, June 8, 1925, p. 1)

            In December 1926, Mr. Gormly entertained the Biloxi High School football squad at “Benn-she-Wah” on the Bay of St. Louis.  They were crowned State gridiron champions, having tied the undefeated Sunflower County Agricultural High School from Moorehead at Greenville, Mississippi on December 6, 1926, by a score of 7-7.  The game went five quarters, although the Indians were outweighed 24-pounds per man.  Athletes from Ocean Springs on this squad were: Dan Newcomb (1906-1967), Morris McClure “Babe” Baker (1907-1994), and Louis A. Lundy Jr.  My uncle, Marcel J. Bellande (1909-1982), was the starting right half back on this team.  He weighed 135-pounds. In later life, M.J. Bellande (1909-1982) was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame of Spring Hill College (1974), the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame (1975), and also the Gulf Coast Chapter of the National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame (1979).(The Jackson County Times, December 11, 1926, February 5, 1927, p. 1,  The Daily Herald, December 7, 1926 and The Sun Herald, March 5, 1982)        

 

Gulf Hills

Gulf Hills is a resort and real estate development with an eighteen-hole golf course located just north of Ocean Springs, Mississippi.  In April 1925, land acquisition activity began here with land purchases in Section 13, T7S-R9W by Eleanor M. Gormly and W.E. Applegate, Jr. (1876-1948).  Mrs. Gormly bought parts of Lot 6 and Lot 7 from H.F. Russell (1858-1940). She also acquired 15 acres in Lot 7 from David Ramsay (1873-1947).  Also in April 1925, Mr. Applegate acquired 16 1/2 acres from H.F. Russell.(Jackson County Land Deed Book 55, pp. 147-148, pp. 378-379 and p. 146) 

            In April 1925, The Jackson County Times related that “C.W. Gormley (sic) has acquired additional acreage across the bayou adjoining the Applegare (sic) place for the proposed country club and golf links.”   Mr. Gormly also acquired about sixteen acres from H.F. Russell and son across Old Fort Bayou adjacent to the Andrew Olson place.(The Jackson County Times, April 25, 1925, p. 3)

Prior to the incorporation of Gulf Hills, Clarence and Eleanor Gormly acquired several hundred acres in the area north of Old Fort bayou, which would become a part of the development.  They appear to have been working with Allan B. Crowder in assembling about 700-acres of rolling pine lands bordered by Bayou Puerto on the west and Old Fort Bayou to the south.

           

Incorporation

Gulf Hills was incorporated in the State of Mississippi in mid-September 1925, by Allan B. Crowder, Pass Christian, Mississippi; William E. Applegate, Ocean Springs, Mississippi; Clarence W. Gormly, Ocean Springs, Mississippi; Ralph R. Root, Chicago, Illinois; and Harvey W. Branigar (1875-1953), Chicago, Illinois.(The Jackson County Times, September 19, 1925, p. 2)

     

Development

            In October 1925, Clarence W. Gormly and W.E. Applegate Jr. (1876-1948) went to Chicago to meet with the other incorporators of Gulf Hills to perfect plans for the future development of the property.(The Jackson County Times, October 10, 1925, p. 5)

Construction at Gulf Hills began in May 1925.  At this time, a labor crew was using dynamite to clear the topography in order that erection of the clubhouse and golf course could be commenced.  By late September of that year, over one hundred workers were employed constructing the golf course, club house, and other improvements.(The Jackson County Times, May 16, 1925, p. 3 and September 9, 1925, p. 5)

 

The Golf Course

            By June 1925, the first nine fairways of the planned eighteen-hole golf course at Gulf Hills had been cleared of trees and underbrush.  Golf course architect, Jack Daray (1881-1958) of Olympia Fields, Chicago, Illinois, was in charge of the operation.  Root & Hollister of Chicago, landscape architects, planned the roads, parks, and clubhouse grounds.  In addition, waterfront and golf course, residential lots were surveyed and platted.  Building covenants were established regarding use and cost.  Homeowners had golf course privileges for themselves, their families, and houseguests.(The Jackson County Times, June 20, 1925, p. 1)

 

Vacation

In July 1926, the Gormly family drove to New York in their Lincoln roadster and planned to visit Canada and return in the fall.  They also went to Bretton Woods, New Hampshire.  The Gormlys returned to the Mississippi coast in August and took residency in the White House Hotel at Biloxi.  Mr. Gormly was employed in the development of a large project near Bay St. Louis and was connected with the Gulf Hills development near Ocean Springs.(The Jackson County Times, July 10, 1926, p. 3 and August 21, 1926, p. 1)

 

Opening Day-January 15, 1927

            Prior to and preceding the formal opening of The Gulf Hills Country Club on January 15, 1927, the Mississippi Gulf Coast was the scene of several other grand events.  The Edgewater Hotel opened on January 10, 1927, followed by the formal opening of the Biloxi-D’Iberville bridge on January 12, 1927.  The Tivoli Hotel designed by Carl Mathes opened on February 19, 1927.

At Gulf Hills, several thousand people were invited to the ceremony.  A 36-hole medal play golf tournament was held.(The Jackson County Times, January 15, 1927, p. 5)

 

Gormly lauded           

In March 1927, Clarence W. Gormly was praised as follows:

           

            Most credit for the success of the Mississippi Gulf Coast is due to C.W. Gormly, the genius behind Pine Hills, Gulf Hills and other developments.  And now Mr. Gormly is developing Point aux Chenes, which mean Point of Oaks.  This will soon be a development of first importance.  No one appreciative of natural beauty and a sloping white sand beach overlooking the broad expanse of the waters of the Mississippi Sound, can doubt.

            Mr. Gormly, inspired by the vision of this 2,000 acres in Point aux Chenes future is fired with a pioneer spirit that has built America, is creating an earthly paradise along the white beach shores and rolling land among the stately pines, oaks, and magnolia trees.(The Jackson County Times, March 5, 1927, p. 2)

 

Gormly and Belle Fontaine

            In March 1925, it was rumored that Robert W. Hamill (1863-1943), a resident of Clarendon Hills, Illinois, a small village situated in DuPage County, some 17 miles southwest of Chicago, would establish a town on the beach at Belle Fontaine south of the village of Fontainebleau.  Belle Fontaine is part of the “Isle of Belle Fontaine” and situated on the Mississippi Sound between Ocean Springs and Gautier, Mississippi.  It affords an excellent view of Horn Island, which is only six miles south.  The seashore here has the only natural sand beach in Jackson County, Mississippi.  Mr. Hamill’s plan called for a road to the beach and a modern hotel to be erected there.  This dream was reminiscent of the 1890s “New Chicago” of his late father-in-law, John Bacon Lyon (1829-1904).(The Jackson County Times, March 28, 1925, p. 1)

Financing for the Hamill project at Belle Fontaine came in mid-year 1928, when R.W. Hamill placed a five-year, $300,000 bond issue with Dangler, Lapham Company of Chicago, which was bought by the Illinois Merchants Trust Company.  The bonds paid 6% interest and were secured by 9,000 acres of Hamill land valued at $1,660,000.(The Jackson County, August 18, 1928, p. 1.)

            In July 1928, the construction of a road system for the Hamill project at Belle Fontaine Beach began, when the four-mile section from the Old Spanish Trail, US 90, to Graveline Lake, was commenced.  Lynn Watson and Fred Ryan (1886-1969) with road building equipment and a crew of fifteen men were assigned the task.  At this time, R.W. Hamill was planning for a golf course, airport, and an elaborate road network as ancillary developments to his beach hotel project.(The Jackson County Times, July 14, 1928, p. 3)

            In November 1928, Clarence W. Gormly (1882-1957) and Albert E. Lee (1874-1936), the editor of The Jackson County Times, set out to view the 9,000-acre Belle Fontaine tract of Mr. Hamill.  Mr. Gormly had been placed in charge of the Hamill project and had traversed the tangle undergrowth of the pine forest on foot to layout the road to Graveline Lake and others in order that the Hamill tract could be open for viewing and development.(The Jackson County Times, November 24, 1928, p. 1)

In March 1929, Clarence W. Gormley continued the supervision of an extensive road building and other developmental projects on the Hamill tract.  He opened two new roads.  One called the East Shore Road extended along the shoreline of the Mississippi Sound east of the Hamill home at Belle Fontaine Beach.  The other went westward to Pointe-aux-Chenes.  Both were considered excellent thoroughfares.(The Jackson County Times, March 2, 1929, p. 5)

In April 1929, a deepwater pier was erected on the Hamill property.  There were eight to ten feet of water at the pier head.  Fred Ryan (1886-1969) constructed the wharf with the F.H. McGowen firm providing the civil engineering studies.  Mr. McGowen (1894-1985) was active in the area having supervised the construction of the sea wall at Ocean Springs and the 1929 Fort Bayou Bridge.(The Jackson County Times, April 7, 1929)

The Depression halted the Hamill development at Belle Fontaine.  In 1935, H.P. Flateau (1888-1955) was named receiver of the Hamill Corporation by Federal Court Judge, F.R. Holmes.  Mr.  Flateau came to the area in 1933, and resided on Pointe-aux-Chenes at “Holly Lodge” near the Leavells.(The Jackson County Times, March 2, 1935, p. 1 and JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Cause No. 5520-August 1933)

 

Pointe-aux-Chenes and "The Oaks"

            Pointe-aux-Chenes, “Point of the Oaks”, is a real estate development situated on the Mississippi Sound just east of Ocean Springs, Mississippi.  It is the western terminus of the “Isle of Belle Fontaine” and situated in the Jean-Baptiste Baudrau Claim of T 8S-R8W.  The approximately 1000-acre land development, also the traditional homestead of the Daniel Huey Ramsay (1814-1867) clan, was founded and platted by the Pointe aux Chenes Corporation headed by Clarence W. Gormly and Eleanor M. Gormly in April 1930.  The Gormlys had acquired a large tract in the J.B. Baudrau Claim from Walter E. White and John T. White of Harrison County in December 1929.( JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Land Plat Bk. 1, p. 120 and The Daily Herald, January 27, 1927) 

            The Continental Illinois Bank and Trust Company of Chicago headed by James R. Leavell (1885-1974) financed the project.  Mr. Leavell and his wife, Lorna Carr (1892-1976), were among the first of wealthy Midwesterners to buy one of the ten large lots with a 450-foot front on the Mississippi Sound, in the Gormly development.  Circa 1935, they built “Doonegate”, their retirement home.  Other affluent individuals to acquire property here were: L.L. Cooke, Abner J. Stillwell, Samuel C. Witting, Mabel Stompe, Carl Asa Birdsall (18-1956) and Francis Deneen Birdsall, who built “Oaknolia”, and Joe Jones.

            In January 1927, Jack Daray (1881-1958), the professional instructor at the Biloxi Golf Club and summer teaching golf professional at the Olympia Fields Country Club at Chicago, began laying out an eighteen-hole golf course at Pointe-aux-Chenes, to be called “The Oaks”.  Mr. Gormly expected his course to be open for play in early 1928.  The project was to include a hotel, riding paths and tourist attractions.  (The Daily Herald, January 18, 1927, p. 3 and January 27, 1927)

 

Road and bridge

By early February 1927, C.W. Gormly had completed a dirt road into Pointe-aux-Chenes and was awaiting the placement of a suitable sized culvert before placing gravel aggregate on this temporary road.  At this time over 150 motorcars, transporting interested parties from along the Mississippi Gulf Coast were viewing his large project.  The salient natural feature of Pointe-aux-Chenes was its 1800-foot quartz sand beach.  Gormly planned a bridge to span Davis Bayou from the west end of Point-aux-Chenes to reduce travel time to Ocean Springs to only ten minutes.(The Jackson County Times, February 5, 1927, p. 1)

 

Gormly camp

In 1927, the Gormley family was domiciled on West Beach Boulevard near McDonald Avenue in Biloxi.  At this time, Clarence W. Gormly was erecting a weekend camp on the west end of Pointe-aux-Chenes.  He had built a similar structure at Shell Beach-on-the-Bay, which he called “Benn-she-Wah”.  A.O. Bourdon was the keeper of the Gormly camp.(Polk’s Coast Cities Directory, 1927, p. 97 and The Jackson County Times, January 25, 1927, p. 2 and January 27, 1927) 

In February 1927, C.W. Gormly at Pointe-aux-Chenes, hosted a fish dinner prepared by one of Biloxi’s finest cooks, Arsene O. Bourdon (1868-1959).  Honored guests were: W.E. Applegate, John T. Connery, president of the Edgewater Hotel; Matt Winn, a renown horseman; and the venerable golf professional and course architect, Jack Daray.(The Jackson County Times, February 21, 1927)

In July 1930, the Gormley’s were living on Pointe-aux-Chenes in 1930, as they gave a party for Miss Mary Helen Fain from Chicago at their home here.  The Carron Orchestra from Biloxi played dance music for the approximate thirty young folks from Biloxi and Ocean Springs.(The Daily Herald, July 22, 1930, p. 2)

 

1934-The Biloxi Country Club

            In January 1934, Clarence W. Gormly leased the Biloxi Golf Club and planned to incorporate it as the Biloxi Country Club.  The Biloxi Golf Club had been founded in May 1918, by a group of wealthy Biloxi citizens led by Edward Brady (1867-1939), John J. Kennedy (1875-1949), and Elbert L. Dukate.  Its membership included such local notables as: John W. Apperson (1862-1939), Byrd Enochs (1875-1940), Lyman Bradford (1863-1944), Walter E. White (1891-1940), Louis B. Joyner (1889-1926), and James C. Elmer (1888-1920).  The Biloxi Golf Club had a capital stock of $30,000, which was increased to $50,000 in March 1925.(HARCO, Ms. Charter Bk. 18, p. 253 and Bk. 34, p. 518)

            The Biloxi Golf Club was situated on a 110-acre tract acquired from Cora E. White (1864-1934) in northwest Biloxi.  Construction of the golf course commenced in mid-March 1918, under the supervision of golf professional, Jack Daray (1881-1958) of Grand Rapids, Michigan.  In 1941, the course and clubhouse became integrated into the new Army Air Corps training school, which was later named Keesler Air Force Base. (The Daily Herald, January 9, 1934, p. 6 and March 23, 1918, p. 1, and Husley, 1996, p. 134)

 

South Florida

Clarence W. Gormly and family departed the Mississippi Gulf Coast circa 1935 for south Florida.  He settled at 2783 SW 14^th Street Kendall, Florida where he worked as a salesman for the Keys Realty Company and raised fruit trees as an avocation.  C.W. Gormly expired on October 3, 1957.  His corporal remains were interred in the Miami Memorial Park Cemetery.  Mrs. Eleanor M. Gormly lived until February 1962.  She rests eternally besides Mr. Gormly.(Richard Gormly, June 21, 2000 and The Miami Herald, October 4, 1957 and February 8, 1962, p. 9c)

 

The Gormly Children

            Elizabeth W. Gormly (1908-1996) never married.  She was born February 22, 1908 and graduated with brother, Donald G. Gormly, in the Class of 1932 at Biloxi High School.  In June 1930, Elizabeth visited her aunt at Louchman, New York before going to camp in Maine for July and August.  In May 1934, Elizabeth left Ocean Springs to visit relatives at Larchmont, New York and then went on to Camp Coaquan? at Belgrade, Maine where she was a camp counselor.  Miss Gormly served as an Army nurse during the Korean War  She expired at Miami, Dade County, Florida on February 25, 1996.(Richard Gormly, June 20, 2000 and The Daily Herald, June 21, 1930, p. 3 and The Jackson County Times, May 12, 1934, p. 3)

        

Robert M. Gormly

Robert Meredith Gormly (1909-1969), called Bob, was a native of Oklahoma.  He was born there about 1909.  While a resident of the Mexican Gulf Coast, Bob Gormly developed into a champion amateur golfer and created much ink for the local press.  It’s a shame that they never learned to spell “Gormly” correctly.  In the many sports page articles about Bob Gormly’s golf skills, his name was invariably spelled “Gormley”. 

As a teen, Bob Gormly competed in major amateur events throughout Mississippi during his families’ tenure at Shell Beach, Gulf Hills, and Biloxi.  As one can imagine golf at Ocean Springs in the1920s, was a novelty.  There was a nine-hole, 4000-yard, golf course established in 1914, appropriately called The Ocean Springs Country Club.  A Canadian born physician, Dr. Henry Bradford Powell (1867-1948), was the prime organizer of the club, which was situated on a sixty-five acre tract leased from proprietors of the Rose-Money Farm, two miles north of Ocean Springs. 

 

 Bob Gormly (June 1927)

 

 Some of the members of the Ocean Springs Country Club were: Albert E. Lee (1874-1936), George E. Arndt (1857-1945), J.O. Whittle (1880-1925), Albert C. Gottsche (1873-1949), E.R. Glasscock, Hernando DeVeaux Money (1869-1936), M.R. Hicks, Theo Bechtel (1863-1931), J.H. Behrens (1848-1918), and Charles B. Ver Nooy (1860-1921).(The Ocean Springs Record, March 28, 1996, p. 24) 

At the time of Bob Gormly’s rise to local golf prominence, The Jackson County Times in June 1927, related that there was serious competition here between Dr. Henry B. Powell (1867-1948), Stewart C. Spencer (1867-1959), George W. Anderson (1861-1937), and Chester Davis (1900-1973).  As one can observe, these men with the exception of Chester Davis were in there sixties and well past their athletic prime.  It must have been difficult for Bob Gormly to find a competitive golf game from the local links talent.

(The Jackson County Times, June 27, 1927, p. 3) 

            Bob Gormly reached manhood with a lightly built frame, but he able to generate power with his golf swing and drive the ball a long distance.  His short game was very accurate and he was good with the flat stick.(The Daily Herald, June 9, 1931)

In addition, Gormly younger brother Don, was also a fine golfer.  In 1928, the Gormly brothers were lauded as follows:

 

Bob Gormly is recognized as one of the states’ best golf stars and has won the state championship twice.  His younger brother, Don, is almost as good….

(The Jackson County Times, June 23, 1928, p. 3)

 

By the end of 1931, Bob Gormly had won many local links tournaments and had claimed the Mississippi State Amateur Golf Championship three times.  He vanquished the competition in 1926 at Laurel, in 1929 at Biloxi, and in 1930, also at Laurel.  Gormly was runner-up in this tournament in 1928 at Gulf Hills.

 

 

A chronology of Bob Gormly’s local golf career follows:

 

1924

The 1924 Mississippi Golf Association championship was held at the Biloxi Golf Club.  Bob Gormly, a resident of Shell Beach, lost to E.L. Enochs of Fernwood 2-1, in the 2^nd Flight.(The Daily Herald, June 6, 1924, p. 1)

 

1925

The Gulf States Championship held in late March 1925, at the Biloxi Golf saw young Bob Gormly of Pass Christian lose in the championship flight to Don Hamilton of Chicago 2 up.  Fred Lamphrect, a student at Tulane and playing out of the Audubon Country Club of New Orleans was the winner.(The Daily Herald, March 20, 1925, p. 3 and March 25, 1925, p. 1)

At the age of fourteen, Bob Gormly defeated a veteran player from New Orleans, Al Reuning, in the 1st flight of the Mid-Summer tournament held at the Biloxi Golf Club.  Don Gormly only twelve beat Phil Parker, also from New Orleans, for the 2^nd flight.  The format was match play.(The Daily Herald, June 13, 1925, p. 8)

In June 1925, Bob Gormly traveled to Jackson, Mississippi to compete in the annual tournament of the Mississippi Golf Association.  After the opening round, he faced medallist, Oren Williams (b. 1900) of Biloxi.  He lost to Williams, the eventual champion, but won a trophy for his finish in the First Flight of the links contest.(The Daily Herald, June 22, 1925, p. 5)

In mid-July 1925, Bob Gormly and younger brother Don Gormly won the first and second flights of the mid-summer golf tournament held at the Biloxi Golf Club.  Both teens defeated older gentlemen, Al Reuning (1908-1974) and Phil Parker, from New Orleans.  Their father presented them their awards.(The Jackson County Times, July 18, 1925, p. 3)

 

1926-State Champion-11^th Mississippi State Championship

In early June 1926, Clarence and Bob Gormly attended a celebration in the Crescent City honoring Marion Turpie, Southern Woman’s Golf Champion.  Miss Turpie was a close family friend.(The Jackson County Times, June 12, 1926, p. 3)

In late June 1926, Bob Gormly defeated Al Welch of Biloxi for the Mississippi State Amateur Golf Championship on the Laurel Country Club links at Laurel, Mississippi.  Gormly was accompanied to Laurel by Mark Lee of Ocean Springs.  Lee had won tournaments in Arkansas and Mississippi.  Gormly competed in the National Junior golf championships at Chicago in August 1926.(The Jackson County Times, June 19, 1926 and Way Down South, July 17, 1926, p. 6)

 

1927

March 1927 was a busy month in the amateur golf career of young Bob Gormly.  His first match was an annual competition between a team of Mississippi Gulf Coast amateur golfers and the New Orleans Golf Association.  The Crescent City links squad of thirty players was recruited from the five New Orleans country clubs in the association.  Only Bob Gormly and Mark E. Lee (1898-1990) of Ocean Springs were invited to participate in the inaugural contest, which was held at Gulf Hills.(The Daily Herald, March 3, 1917, p. 5)

 

Mark Enos Lee

 Mark E. Lee, the son of Albert E. Lee (1874-1936), editor and publisher of The Jackson County Times, was a natural athlete.  He excelled in all sports, especially baseball and golf.  Young Mark E. Lee attended Mississippi A&M College (now Mississippi State University) where he played shortstop on the 1916 state college championship team.  He was presented a gold watch fob which was in the shape of a baseball with the inscription, "State Champions, 1916".  His team defeated some of the strongest university teams in the South and split a series with the University of Illinois, the champions of the Midwest.  Mark E. Lee led the team in batting and fielding.

In late summer 1916, young Lee was traveling weekly to Bay St. Louis to baseball with the Tosa Stars.(The Daily Herald, September 2, 1916, p. 2)

 After a few years in minor league baseball, Lee’s peripatetic career had brought him to northeast Texas.  He played second base for the Texarkana Twins in the 1923-1924 baseball seasons.  Lee left baseball at Texarkana, Texas in May 1925, to manage the Texarkana Country Club.  The Daily Texarkanian spoke highly of Mark E. Lee and wrote, "on account of his attractive and genial personality, and the fact that he is a first class golf player, he is peculiarly adapted to the country club work".(The Jackson County Times, May 16, 1925, p. 4)

Later in early March 1927, Bob Gormly, then a student at Biloxi High School, ran roughshod over F.L. Binford of Indianapolis, Indiana winning the Mississippi Coast Amateur Championship 7 and 5 on the Great Southern course at Gulfport.  In late March, he teamed up with professional, Matt Matteson, of Chicago to play in a 36-hole, best ball format, Pro-Am event held at the Biloxi links.  W.P. Conley of Chicago and Eddie Murphy, the Gulf Hills pro, won the event by three strokes over Gunnar Nelson of the Biloxi Golf Club and Dr. A.L. Henning of Chicago.  Gormly-Matteson team tied for fifth, while Don Gormly and his playing partner, Frank Florence, were sixth.(The Daily Herald, June 26, 1926, p. 3 and March 4, 1927, p. 5 and March 29, 1927, p. 9)

Bob Gormly ended the month as medalist of the 5th Annual Gulf States Championship held at the Biloxi Golf Club.  He shot a 75 on March 29^th while Don Gormly carded an 82, which was the fifth best round played on the opening day of the tournament.  Three time champion and former inter-collegiate champion, Fred Lamprecht of Tulane University chose not to defend his title.  Don Armstrong (b. 1905) of Aurora, Illinois won the tournament in an exciting 37 hole final match conquering Bob Gormly one up.(The Daily Herald, March 29, 1927, p. 9, April 2, 1927, p.10, and April 4, 1927, p. 3)

            Prior to the 1926, Mississippi Amateur Golf Championships, which were to be held in Jackson, Gar Moore of The Item-Tribune related the following about Gormly:

 

            “Bob Gormley (sic) defends his Mississippi state championship this week and Bob isn’t likely to be beaten.  He will be a much better golfer this season than last and a big part of his progress can be attributed to the defeat Don Armstrong handed him in the Gulf States finals.” (The Daily Herald, June 7, 1927, p. 8)

 

            Mr. Moore’s prediction was like a gim’me putt that lipped out for a bogie, as link prodigy, Bob Gormly, failed to defend his 1926 Mississippi Amateur Golf at Jackson in mid-June 1927.  He lost to Charles Ratcliffe, a native of Natchez and former Ole Miss golf star.  However, Gormly’s personality and tenacity on the golf links captured the hearts of those who were fortunate to have observed his shot making.(The Daily Herald, June 15, 1927, p. 8)

            At Jackson, Oren Williams, the Biloxi realtor, lost in the finals to Charles W. Kittleman of Greenville in the 36-hole match by the score of 5 and 3.(The Daily Herald, June 18,1927, p. 8)

 

1928

            Bob Gormly started his 1928 links competition at Gulf Hills playing in the Riviera Championship.  After defeating several opponents, Gormly met Oren Williams of Biloxi in the 36-hole finals.  The match went the distance with Gormly losing on the last hole as a result of poor play.  Eddie Murphy, Gulf Hills pro, presented Williams with a silver trophy while young Gormly was awarded a dressing case for his second place effort.(The Jackson County Times, January 28, 1928, p. 3)

In late February 1928, Bob Gormly, a student at Biloxi High School, defending his Mississippi Coast Amateur Championship at the Great Southern Golf Course, defeated Al Welch of Biloxi in the 18-hole finals by a score of 2 and 1.  He had routed L.K. Vaughn of Hamilton, Ohio in the semi-finals, while Welch upset Oren Williams of Biloxi also by a 5 and 4 score.(The Daily Herald, February 24, 1928, p. 12 and February 25, 1928, p. 3)

            In mid-March 1928, Bob Gormly participated in the 36-hole Pan American Golf Tournament at the Edgewater course in Biloxi.  He was knocked out of the event by Glenn Crissman, former Southern Amateur champion.(The Daily Herald, March 23, 1928, p. 14)

The St. John’s Golf Club of New Orleans defeated a squad from the Biloxi Golf Club in mid-March 1928.  The Biloxians were defending their crown.  Willis Carvin (1908-1928+) was medalist on the first day with a 71.  Bob Gormly played one match with Dr. Henning of Chicago against Harry Turpie and Mr. Vernon.(The Daily Herald, March 26, 1928, p. 3)

Also in mid-March, Bob and Don Gormly qualified for the 5^th Annual Gulf States Championship held at the Biloxi Golf Club.  Leading contenders for the title were: Don Armstrong, Oren Williams, Frank Thomas, Bob Gormly, and Gus Navotny.  Although young Bob Gomly was medalist, he lost in the semi-finals.  Don Gormly won the championship consolation flight.  Glenn Crissman (b. 1906) of Selma, Alabama won the tournament. (The Daily Herald, March 26, 1928, p. 3)

The 1928 Mississippi State Golf Championship was played at Gulf Hills in Ocean Springs in late June.  Bob Gormly met Oren Williams, the 1925 State Champion, in the finals.  Williams led Gormly 3 up at the completion of the first 18 holes of the 36 hole finals and he went on to defeat Gormly.(The Daily Herald, June 30, 1928, p. 7)

 

1929-State Champion-14^th Mississippi State Championship

In March 1929, Bob Gormly, a student at Biloxi High School, repeated as low medalist in the qualifying round of the seventh annual Gulf States Championship held at the Biloxi Golf Course.  He shot a 75 on the par 70 course to lead Don Armstrong of Aurora, Illinois and Al Welsh of Biloxi.  Young Gormly was eliminated by eventual champion, Don Hamilton of the Olympia Fields golf club at Chicago in the semi-finals 1 up in 19 holes.  Don Hamilton beat Don Armstrong 1 up after 37 holes in the finals.(The Daily Herald, March 18, 1929, p. 8, March 21, 1929, p. 8 and March 23, 1929, p. 8)

In late March 1929, the Gulf Hills golf team faced their Crescent City rivals for the third time in their annual links competition.  Bob Gormly was again chosen as a part of this team competition to be held at the Gulf Hills Country Club near Ocean Springs.(The Jackson County Times, March 30, 1929, p. 3)

In June 1929, brothers, Bob and Don Gormly along with fellow Biloxi linksters, W.V. Joyce, John E. Breaux, Al Wambsgan, and Al Welch, went to Greenwood, Mississippi to play in the State amateur golf tournament.  Bob Gormly was low medalist and went on to win his second State golf championship in a very convincing manner over W.E. Ware of Greenwood, 8 and 7 in the 36 hole finals.  In the semi-finals, he had defeated Will Miner of Meridian by the same score.  Gormly was driving the ball 300-yards from the tee against Miner.  Don Gormly won the second flight consolation match.(The Daily Herald, June 7, 1929, p. 10, June 8, 1929, p. 5, and June 10, 1929, p. 5)

In late August 1929, Bob Gormly went to Greenwood, Mississippi to play in a Labor Day invitational golf match composed of the best Mississippi linksters.  He played well enough to place second and tied for first place in the special Labor Day contest.  (The Jackson County Times, September 14, 1929, p.2)

 

1930-State Champion-15^th Mississippi State Championship

            Bob Gormly won his third Mississippi State Golf Championship at Laurel, Mississippi in June 1930.  In the 36-hole semi-finals, he beat medalist, Eugene Vinson of Meridian, 4 and 3.  In the 36-hole finals, Gormly bested his teammate, A.D. Warner, 5 and 4.  The Biloxi Golf Club Team composed of Bob and Don Gormly, Al Welch, W.V. Joyce, W.E. Beasley, Al H. Wambsgan, John E. Breaux, Irwin Cowie Jr., and A.D. Warner won the Griffith Trophy for shooting the low medal score in the team competition.(The Daily Herald, June 14, 1930, p. 3 and June 16, 1930, p. 6)

           

Robert M. Gormly

Image made at Tuscaloosa, Alabama.  Courtesy of Martha Gormly Clement Wilcoxen-March 2006.

 

             In the fall of 1930, Bob Gormly matriculated to the University of Alabama.  By the spring of 1931, he was Captain of the Crimson Tide gold squad.(The Daily Herald, June 9,1931)  

 

1931

            In June 1931, Bob Gormly did not defend his Mississippi State Golf Championship title at Jackson.  He chose to remain at Biloxi to practice for the Southern Amateur, which was to be held in Chattanooga, Tennessee.  Gormly was paired against Chasteen Harris of Memphis who soundly whipped the young Biloxian by the score of 5 and 4..

(The Daily Herald, June 8, 1931, p. 8 and June 9, 1931)

            In September 1931, Bob Gormly of Biloxi went to Canton to play in the Mississippi Open Championship.  He didn’t play well and finished in a tie for sixth place.  Gene Vinson of Meridian, the 1931 State Amateur Champion defeated Nelson Giddens, a golf professional from Tupelo, to win the contest.(The Daily Herald, September 10, 1931, p. 3)

           

1932

            In April 1932, Bob Gormly defeated Al Welsh 4 and 3 to add the first annual Edgewater Gulf Country Club championship to his long list of golfing titles.(The Daily Herald, April 18, 1932, p. 3)

            In June 1932, Bob Gormly did not compete in the 17^th Mississippi State Golf Championships, which were held at the National Park course in Vicksburg.  Eugene Vinson of Meridian, Mississippi bested Harry Prichett of Columbus for the crown.(The Daily Herald, June 10, 1932, p. 3 and June 11, 1932, p. 3)

 

1933   

            In mid-June 1933, Bob Gormly made an appearance at Laurel in the 18^th Mississippi State Amateur Championships.  He lost a semi-final match to Robert E. Mulloy of Laurel by the score of 3 and 2.  Mulloy lost in the finals to perennial champion, Eugene Vinson of Meridian.(The Daily Herald, June 10, 1933, p. 3)

 

1934

            Bob Gormly and Eugene Vinson did not compete in the 1934 Mississippi State Amateur Golf Championships were held in June at Meridian, Mississippi.  This opened the doors for an eighteen-year old lad from Tupelo, Jim Patrick, to win the crown over L.L. McAllister of Jackson.(The Daily Herald, June 6, 1934)

 

1935

            In 1935, Bob Gormly left the Mississippi Gulf Coast with his family for south Florida.  He settled in the Miami area and was the proprietor of an appliance store in North Miami.  Bob Gormly and his spouse were the parents of two daughters.(George Gormly, July 18, 2000)

 

1969

            Robert M. Gormley expired in Dade County, Florida in February 1969.

 

Donald G. Gormly

Donald G. 'Don' Gormly (1910-1980) was born on September 7, 1910 in Ithaca, New York.  Like his older brother, Bob, Donald was an excellent amateur golfer.  He was a member of the Biloxi Golf Club and participated with the team in the State Amateur Championship and club matches.  In March 1931, Don Gormly went to Meridian to play a high school golf match.  His team Biloxi High team mates were: Bob Daray, Ernest Carvin, and John Breaux Jr.  Al Bellande did not make the journey.(The Daily Herald, March 20, 1931, p. 5)

Don Gormly received lacerations and contusions on present day Le Moyne Boulevard in early May 1930, when his motor car struck a cow near the St. Martin school.  He was taken to the Biloxi Hospital and returned to his domicile the next day.  Young Gormly said that he was blinded by the headlamps of an on coming vehicle.(The Daily Herald, May 5, 1930, p. 2)

In April 1932, Don was a member of the Biloxi High School golf team.  He shot a 76 in a match against Murphy High School of Mobile in April 1932.  Other members of this links team were: John E. Breaux Jr., Alton L. Bellande (1912-1970), my father, and John Lee.(The Daily Herald, April 2, 1932, p. 10 and Social Security Death Index)

It appears that Don Gormly was a student in the Ocean Springs Public School system in 1928, as there was a running back named Gormly on the 1928 Ocean Springs football team, which interestingly was the first to be called “The Greyhounds”.  Donald G. Gormly graduated from Biloxi High School with the Class of 1932 on May 27, 1932.

In the mid-1930s, Donald Gormly relocated from coastal Mississippi with his family to south Florida.  He made his livelihood in the nursery business at south Dade County, Florida.  During WW II, Mr. Gormly supervised German and Italian POWS in the Key lime groves of the region.  He had married Edna Gormly (d. 1981) and was the father of: George Gormly (b. 1943) and Richard Gormly (b. 1945).  Don Gormly expired on January 18, 1980, in Miami, Florida.  His remains were interred in the Miami Memorial Park Cemetery.(George Gormly, July 18, 2000)

 

Epilogue

            Clarence W. Gormly and his family lived on the Mississippi Gulf Coast from Bay St. Louis to Ocean Springs-Biloxi for about a dozen years.  A lawyer by training, Mr. Gormly made his livelihood here promoting and developing resorts and golf courses.  Pine Hills on the Bay of St. Louis, Gulf Hills at Ocean Springs, and Pointe-aux-Chenes east of Ocean Springs were the direct result of his planning and execution.  Like many entrepreneurs of this era, Gormly’s sails were emptied by the foul financial winds of the Depression.  By 1936, the Gormly family had abandoned Mississippi for brighter lights on the southeast Florida coast.  The Gormlys spent the remainder of their lives in the Miami area. 

            Clarence W. Gormly’s son, Robert M. “Bob” Gormly, while a seventeen-year old lad, won the first of his three Mississippi State Amateur Golf Championships.  Younger brother, Don Gormly, was also a fine amateur golfer, but not quite in the same league with Bob.  Both young men were successful at Miami and reared fine children. 

            May those who live and play at Gulf Hills today, long remember that Clarence W. Gormly placed them on the map.  The Branigar Brother from Chicago came later.

 

 

REFERENCES:

 

F. Val Husley, Keesler Air Force Base: A history of the site and its environs to 1941, (Office of History, 81^st Training Wing: KAFB-1996).

 

The Mississippi Gulf Coast Yesterday and Today, (WPA-1939), p. 108.

 

Stephen M. Oivanki (editor), Belle Fontaine, Jackson County, Mississippi: Human History, Geology, and Shoreline Erosion, Mississippi Office of Geology, Bulletin 130, (Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality: Jackson, Mississippi-1994), pp.

 

Polk’s Coast Cities Directory 1927, (R.L. Polk: Richmond, Virginia-1927).

 

Way Down South, “Golfers Of Note”, Vol. 3, No. 2, July 17, 1926.

 

Court Cases

Jackson County, Mississippi Chancery Court Cause No. 9911, “Will of L.L. Cooke”-February 1944.

 

Journals

The Daily Herald, “Work On Biloxi Golf Club Course Will Begin On Monday Morning”, March 23, 1918.

The Daily Herald, “Browns Well Tournament”, June 20, 1923.

The Daily Herald, “Golfers Go To Jackson Next”, June 7, 1924.

The Daily Herald, “Gulf States Championship Draws To Successful Close”, March 20, 1925.

The Daily Herald, “Fred Lamphrect Wins Gulf States Championship”, March 25, 1925.

The Daily Herald, “Shell-Beach-On The-Bay Reported Sold At $300,000, May 19, 1925.

The Daily Herald, “Shell Beach Sued For $14,500”, June 8, 1925.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormly Wins Flight”, June 13, 1925.

The Daily Herald, “Williams Paired Off With Gormley (sic) in Match Play”, June 17, 1925.

The Daily Herald, “Williams New State Champ”, June 22, 1925.

The Daily Herald, “Welch Leads Bob Gormley (sic) at Noon; Mrs. Hervig Wins”, June 26, 1926, p. 3.

The Daily Herald, “Pine Hills to be Name of New Hotel”, October 10, 1925.

The Daily Herald, “Daray Begins Work on Course”, January 18, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Establishing Camp Site", January 20, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Ocean Springs”, January 25, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Visit Point Aux Chenes", January 27, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Gormley (sic) and Binford Meet Today in Titular Match”, March 3, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Coast Golf Team Match With New Orleans Sunday”, March 3, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormley (sic) Triumphs In Finals of Great Southern (photo)”, March 4, 1927, p. 5.

The Daily Herald, “Murphy-Conley Win Amateur-Pro Event”, March 29, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormley (sic) Cards Lowest Score in Qualifying Round”, March 29, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Gormley (sic) 2 up in finals for Gulf States", April 2, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Gormly loses on last hole", April 4, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Will Defend Mississippi Title”, June 7, 1927, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, “Biloxi in Golf”, June 7, 1927, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, “Oren Williams Beaten in Finals at State Match”, June 18, 1927.

The Daily Herald, “Golf in the Gulf”, June 18, 1927, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, “Gormley (sic) Beaten at Golf Tourney”, June 15, 1927, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, “Oren Williams Beaten in Finals at State Match”, June 18, 1927, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, “Gormley (sic) and Welch Meet In Finals Of Coast Golf Tourney”, February 24, 1928.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormley (sic) Wins Coast Golf Crown Again This Year”, February 25, 1928.

The Daily Herald, “Lamprecht trailing Armstrong at half of 36-hole grind”, March 23, 1928, p. 14.

The Daily Herald, “Qualify Today in Fifth Annual Gulf States Play”, March 26, 1928, p. 3.

The Daily Herald, “St. John’s Club Defeats Biloxi”, March 26, 1928, p. 3.

The Daily Herald, “Crissman six up on Sweet at turn of Biloxi finals”, March 30, 1928, p. 14.

The Daily Herald, “Gormley (sic) Defeats Reunning Today In Second Round”, June 28,1928, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, “Williams Eliminates Champ Today While Gormley (sic) Wins”, June 29, 1928, p. 12.

The Daily Herald, “Williams leading Gormley (sic) at Turn of 36-Hole Finals”, June 30, 1928.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormley (sic) Medalist In Qualifying Round at Biloxi”, March 18, 1929, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormley (sic), Welsh defeated in semi-finals”, March 21, 1929, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, “Hamilton wins Gulf States”, March 23, 1929, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, “Welsh and Gormley (sic) To Bid Strong For State Golf Title”, May 31, 1929.

The Daily Herald, “50 Graduate at Biloxi High”, June 1, 1929.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormley Plays Against Will Minet (sic) in Golf Semi-Finals”, June 7, 1929.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormley Leads Opponent in Final Match of Tourney”, June 8, 1929.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormley (sic) Wins State Golf Title”, June 10, 1929.

The Daily Herald, “Don Gormly injured", May 5, 1930.

The Daily Herald, “Gormley (sic), Warner Leading at End of Eighteen Holes”, June 13, 1930.

The Daily Herald, “Gormley (sic), Warner In Semi-Finals”, June 13, 1930, p. 13.

The Daily Herald, “Two Biloxians in Finals at Laurel Golf Tournament”, June 14, 1930.

The Daily Herald, “Gormley (sic) Beats Warner to Keep State Golf Cup”, June 16, 1930.

The Daily Herald, “Gormley (sic) Visitor Complimented”, July 22,1930.

The Daily Herald, “Biloxi Golfers to Play Meridian”, March 20, 1931, p. 5.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormley (sic) Out of Southern Golf Test of Amateurs”, June 8, 1931, p. 8.

The Daily Herald, “Covering the Coast”, June 9, 1931.

The Daily Herald, “High School Boy of Meridian Golf Champ of State”, June 15, 1931, p. 3.

The Daily Herald, “Gormley (sic) Fourth in State Open Golf Tourney at Canton”, September 8, 1931.

The Daily Herald, “Gene Vinson and Pro are Tied For State Open Title”, September 9, 1931.

The Daily Herald, “Biloxi Hi Golf Team Selected By School”, April 1, 1932.

The Daily Herald, “Biloxi Leads in Tennis-Golf Meet”, April 2, 1932.

The Daily Herald, “Bob Gormley (sic) Wins First Annual Title at Edgewater Gulf”, April 18, 1932, p. 3.

The Daily Herald, “Meridian Hi Youth In Golf Semi-Finals”, June 10, 1932.

The Daily Herald, “Vinson-Pritchett Playing Today in State Golf Final”, June 11, 1932, p. 3.

The Daily Herald, “Ocean Springs”, December 29, 1932.

The Daily Herald, “Vinson in Finals, Bob Gormley (sic) Loses to Robert Mulloy”, June 10, 1933, p. 3.

The Daily Herald, “Pine Hills Golf Club Reopens with Dedeaux in Charge”, January 9,1934.

The Daily Herald, “Formal Opening of Biloxi Country Club”, January 9, 1934.

The Daily Herald, “Coast Golfer in State Running”, June 6,1934, p. 6.

The Daily Herald, “Young Tupelo Golfer Triumphs In Finals”, June 9, 1934, p. 3.

The Daily Herald, “James R. Leavell”, July 12, 1974.

The Miami Herald, “Clarence W. Gormly”, October 4, 1957.

The Miami Herald, “Eleanor M. Gormly”, February 8, 1962.

The Jackson County Times, “Talk Of A New Town At Fontainebleau”, March 28, 1925.

The Jackson County Times, “Gulf Coast Resort Brings Huge Sum”, May 23, 1925.

The Jackson County Times, “Ocean Springs Boys Winners At Biloxi Golf Tournament”, July 18, 1925.

The Jackson County Times, “Charter of Incorporation of Gulf Hills”, September 19, 1925.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, October 10, 1925.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, June 12, 1926.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, June 19, 1926.

The Jackson County Times, “Local Golfer May Win State Championship”, June 26, 1926.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, July 10, 1926, p. 3.

The Jackson County Times, “Mr. and Mrs. Gormly Return”, August 21, 1926.

The Jackson County Times, “Point Aux Chenes To Be Made Beauty Spot”, October 2, 1926.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, December 11, 1926.

The Jackson County Times, “Point Aux Chenes”, February 5, 1927.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, February 21, 1927.

The Jackson County Times, “Now The Facts About Ocean Springs, Mississippi”, March 5, 1927.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, June 8, 1927.

The Jackson County Times, “Bob Gormley (sic) Loses To Oren Williams in Finals”, January 28, 1928

The Jackson County Times, “Golf Tournament At Gulf Hills”, June 23, 1928.

The Jackson County Times, “Bob Gormley (sic) Loses to Oren Williams in Finals”, January 28,1928.

The Jackson County Times, “Bob Gormley (sic) Playing For State Golf Title”, June 30, 1928.

The Jackson County Times, “300,000 bond issue”?, July 7, 1928.

The Jackson County Times, “Work Starts Monday on Hamill Property”, July 14, 1928.

The Jackson County Times, “Hamill Co. Owns Miles of Beach Front”, August 18, 1928.

The Jackson County Times, “See Belle Fontaine, A Major Development”, November 24, 1928.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, March 2, 1929.

The Jackson County Times, “Another Golf Match At Gulf Hills”, March 30, 1929.

The Jackson County Times, Local and Personal”, March 2, 1929.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, April 7, 1929.

The Jackson County Times, Local and Personal”, August 3, 1929.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, September 14, 1929.

The Jackson County Times, “Local and Personal”, May 12, 1934.

The Jackson County Times, “Flateau Names Receiver for Hamill Corp.”, March 2, 1935.

The Mississippi Press, “Family wants name spelled right”, February 29, 1988.

The Ocean Springs News, “The Weekly Roundup”, January 16, 1909.

The Ocean Springs News, “Local News”, January 22, 1910.

The Ocean Springs News, “Golf Records”, November 4, 1915.

The Ocean Springs Record, “Sous Les Chenes”, March 28, 1996.

*******************************************************

DANIEL JUDSON GAY FAMILY

Daniel Judson Gay (1870-1949), the son of John W. Gay and Salida Lanier, was born in Emanuel County, Georgia, which is governed from Swainsboro.  He came to Biloxi in 1902, from turpentine operations in Florida.  Gay married Lee B. Champlin (1884-1964) on December 8, 1903.  She was the daughter of Judge Zachary Taylor Champlin (1847-1924) and Virginia White Champlin of Handsboro.  Their other children were: William Henry Champlin (1870-1931), Maggie Champlin, Nellie Champlin, and Walter Champlin. 

The children of D.J. Gay and Lee B. Champlin were: Louise G. Dantzler Duncan (1904-1975+), Daniel J. Gay Jr. (1906-1964+), John Champlin 'Champ' Gay (1909-1975), Edna G. Jenkins (1910-1975+), and Katherine G. Farrar (1915-1975+).  D.J. Gay taught school and was in the naval stores, banking, and realty business.  In 1905, Gay organized and was president of the Harrison County Bank of Biloxi.  It merged with the Peoples Bank in 1914.  Mr. Gay was president of the Peoples Bank for a number of years.

             Daniel J. Gay built the Gay Building on the southeast corner of Lameuse and Howard Avenue in 1910.  The Jett Brothers of Mobile made the lowest construction bid of $18,274.  The Harrison County Bank occupied the ground floor. The Peoples Bank acquired the Gay Building and occupied it in 1924.(The Daily Herald, August 2, 1910, p. 4)

            The Gay family resided at Biloxi on the Beach east of the Dantzler House.  They later lived on the Tchoutacabouffa River and at Ocean Springs, Mississippi. 

 

Naval stores

            D.J. Gay was locally involved in the naval stores business operating turpentine operations in Harrison and Jackson Counties.  His first partner was fellow Georgian, Charles B. Elarbee (1861-1917).  Gay later worked with George L. Robinson (1848-1919+) and Robert W. Hamill (1863-1943) of Chicago.  His son, J. Champlin Gay, and brother, Edward C. Gay, also were associated with Gay in the turpentine business.  It is believed that E.C. Gay residing at San Antonio, Texas ran the family turpentine operation near Durango, Mexico between 1927 and 1932.    

The Gay Turpentine Company was incorporated in 1911, and domiciled at Larue, Mississippi.  Robert W. Hamill was the president and Daniel J. Gay, the secretary-treasurer.  Stockholders were:  Lyon Company-60 shares; D.J. Gay-20 shares; R.W. Hamill-15 shares; Frank Matlock-3 shares; and W.G. Beasley of Leesville, Louisiana-2 shares.  The Daily Herald of August 21, 1920, related in an article, "Daisy and Vestry Thriving", that "the Gay Turpentine is doing a fine business with O.J. Cuevas as manager.  The company was dissolved in May 1921.(Ex parte-Gay Turpentine Company, JXCO Chancery Court-Cause No. 4187)

D.J. Gay was a philanthropist.  In December 1926, he donated land for the erection of the public high school on Government Street at Ocean Springs.

In March 1945, Gay also donated ground for the Triumph Church west of Denny.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 88, pp. 495-496).

            In May 1926, D.J. Gay platted the Forest Hills Subdivision at Ocean Springs.  It is located in the NE/4 of Section 30, T7S-R8W, and include the home of Mrs. W.R. Stuart.(Plat Book 1, p. 92).

            Daniel J. Gay like most Americans lost his fortune during the Depression.  He never declared bankruptcy and paid his creditors.  In 1945, Mr. Gay moved to Tampa, Florida where his daughter, Louise Dantzler, resided.  He passed on here in early December 1949.  Mrs. Gay expired at Inverness, Mississippi in February 1964.  They are both interred in the Southern Memorial Park Cemetery at Biloxi.(The Daily Herald, December 5, 1949 and The Daily Herald, February 11, 1964, p. 2)

 

REFERENCES:

 

The Daily Herald, Biloxi Farms Co. organized; will develop county, June 17, 1916.

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ROBERT WALBRIDGE HAMILL FAMILY

            As early as 1905, Robert W. Hamill (1863-1943), treasurer of the Lyon Company at Chicago, Illinois, began sojourns to Jackson County, Mississippi to manage the properties of his recently deceased father-in-law, John Bacon Lyon (1829-1904).  Mr. Lyon had passed on December 20, 1904.  Hamill had married Katharine Bacon Lyon (1864-1964) on June 23, 1892, in the Lyon home at 262 Michigan Avenue in Chicago.  The Sheraton-Blackstone Hotel is located here today.(The Chicago Sun Times, August 27, 1964) 

Katharine B. Lyon was the daughter of John B. Lyon and Emily Wright (1833-1892+).  After the nuptial celebrations, the young couple departed Chicago for New York where they embarked on an ocean liner for Europe.  They planned to be in Switzerland during the summer.(The Chicago Tribune, June 26, 1892)

            Robert W. Hamill’s father-in-law, John B. Lyon, was a very successful grain trader at Chicago.  He was born April 15, 1829, at Canandaigua, in western New York.  Lyon married Emily Wright.  They had four children: William Lyon (b. 1853), Mrs. Calvin (Fannie) Cobb (b. 1856) of Boise, Idaho, Mrs. William P. (Emily) Conger (b.1861), John B. Lyon Jr. (1864-1929), and Mrs. Robert W. (Katharine) Hamill (1869-1964).  In addition to his wheat and corn trading and real estate holdings at Chicago, Mr. Lyon managed sugar plantations in Louisiana, oyster production in Mississippi, and had timber and turpentine operations in Florida, Alabama, and Mississippi.(The Chicago Daily Tribune, 1904) 

Mr. Lyon’s son, John B. Lyon Jr. (1864-1929), resided at Harbor Oaks, Florida where he managed the Lyon Pine Company at Odessa, Florida.  Mr. Lyon was married to Mary Horrie.  He was also a director of The Idaho Daily Statesman of Boise, Idaho.(The Clearwater Sun, February 4, 1929). 

             Mr. Lyon expired in Pinellas County, Florida on February 3, 1929.  In addition to his wife, Lyon siblings and the children of Robert W. Hamill, John B. Lyon Jr. legated some of his vast estate to: Cornelia Conger, Margaret Cobb (Boise, Idaho), Courtney J. Northrop Jr. (Boise, Idaho), and Agnes W. Lyon (Tacoma, Washington).(Jackson County, Mississippi Chancery Court Cause No. 5315-January 1931)

Prior to employment with the Lyon Company, Robert W. Hamill was employed with his father, Charles Davisson Hamill (1839-1905).  The elder Hamill was a native of Bloomington, Indiana and had come to Chicago in 1851, with his parents, Dr. Robert C. Hamill (1808-1886) and Eliza Davisson (b. 1809-1893+).  His uncle, a Mr. Davisson, was a Lake Street Chicago Banker and he employed his young nephew in his financial institution.  Charles D. Hamill later joined the Marine Bank at Chicago.  He rose to the position of teller before resigning in 1864, to become an operator on the board of trade with the Howard Priestly organization.  A brother of Charles D. Hamill, Ernest A. Hamill, was also in banking.  Ernest Hamill later became the president of the Corn Exchange National Bank at Chicago.(The Chicago Tribune, January 12, 1905, p. 5)

            Bright and ambitious, Charles D. Hamill commenced his own firm, Van Inwagen & Hamill, in 1873.  By 1887, Charles D. Hamill began to trade in the Chicago markets under his own name.  After the 1882 dissolution of Van Inwagen & Hamill, he became associated with George Brine.(Ibid.)

            In 1862, Charles D. Hamill had married Susan F. Walbridge, the daughter of Judge Henry Waldbridge of Ithaca, New York.  In addition to Robert W. Hamill, their children were: Paul Hamill (Montreal); Charles H. Hamill, Philip W. Hamill, Laurence Hamill (New York-Cleveland); and Mrs. Edward (Fanny) J. Phelps.  Charles H. Hamill, was a lawyer and business associate of Governor Deneen of Illinois.(Ibid.) 

            Robert W. Hamill matriculated to Yale University at New Haven, Connecticut and graduated in 1884.  He was a charter member of the University Club.  Returning to Chicago from Yale, Robert W. Hamill took employment with his father as a commercial merchant.  Their office was in the Board of Trade Building.  The Hamills resided at 2126 Prairie Avenue in Chicago.

           

Clarendon Hills

            In 1898, the Hamill family relocated to Clarendon Hills, Illinois, a small village in DuPage County, some 17 miles southwest of Chicago.  Mr. Hamill chose this locale since it was in proximity to the hub of the railroads which he used extensively in his business travels.(The Surburban Post, August 8, 1992)  He did not believe in the automobile and did not acquire one, a Model T Ford, until 1921, when his future daughter-in-law, Katharine Porter, who was visiting her fiancé, Robert Lyon Hamill, at Clarendon Hill’s suggested that the Hamill family acquire one.(unpublished notes of Katharine F. Hamill)  Aubrey “Bill” Webb drove Mr. Hamill while on the Hamill  Estate at Belle Fontaine Beach in Jackson County, Mississippi.(Genevieve B. Webb, November 1997)

            At Clarendon Hills, Robert W. Hamill rented before buying a 40-acre farm.  The Hamill Farm at Clarendon Hills consisted of a large two-story house, three-story stable, windmill, and peat bogs.  There was an indoor basketball court inside the stable.  Their address was 48 Harris Avenue.(The Suburban Times, August 18, 1992)

           

The Hamill Children

            It was at Hinsdale, Illinois, a small community near Clarendon Hills, that the children of Robert W. Hamill and Katharine B. Lyon came into the world.  They were: Robert Lyon Hamill (1899-1974), Katharine Frances Hamill (1901-1980), Emily H. Workum (1902-1979), and Frances Hamill (1904-1987).  A brief biography of each child follows:

 

Robert L. Hamill

            Robert Lyon Hamill was born on April 4, 1899.  He grew to be a tall man reaching approximately six feet four inches in height and of good physical strength.  Young Hamill would spend his summers on the Hamill Farm in south Mississippi.  In September 1917, The Jackson County Times reported that he and John Bryant of Chicago and Gus Stuart of Baltimore returned to school.  In later years, Robert L. Hamill would come to the farm when the stockmen were branding cattle.  He enjoyed the rugged sport of bull dogging the young calves before the hot iron marked them.(Elvin O. Ramsay, October 1996)            Before his betrothal, young Robert L. Hamill served in the U.S. Navy, during WW I.  Like his father, he graduated from Yale University (1920).(letter of Ann Hamill Koehne-May 1998).  On October 9, 1920, at Hewlitt, Long Island, Robert Lyon Hamill married Katherine Delano Porter (d. 1973), the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. H. Hobart Porter, of Lawrence, Long Island, New York.  His best man was B. Brewster Jennings.(The Jackson County Times, October 23, 1920) 

The newly weds traveled to Fontainebleau and made their home with his parents at Belle Fontaine Beach until 1927.  Their first child, Katharine Delano Hamill Garde (1921-1975), was born in 1921.  Another daughter, Ann Hamill Koehne, followed in 1923.  She was born at New Orleans.  In 1927, the Robert Lyon Hamill family relocated to Cedarhurst, Long Island, New York.  Two additional Hamill children were born at Long Island: Joan Hamill Atwater Porter (b. 1930) and Robert Lyon Hamill Jr. (b. 1940).  The family wintered at Belle Fontaine until 1932.(letter of Ann Hamill Koehne-May 1998)

Robert L. Hamill followed in the career path of his father.  He became president of the Lyon Company and ran it for several decades from New York City.  After the death of his father-in-law, Mr. R.L. Hamill was involved in the electrical engineering contracting business in the New York City area.  Robert Lyon Hamill expired in April 1974.          

 

Katharine F. Hamill

            Katharine Frances Hamill was born on January 9, 1901.  She was educated in local Illinois schools and at Farmington, Connecticut in Miss Porter’s School.  Before working as a reporter for The Chicago Herald and Examiner in 1928-1929, Miss Hamill was secretary for a Women’s Republican club at Chicago (1920-1924) and was political secretary to Ruth Hanna McCormick (1924-1928).  She returned to the employ of Mrs. McCormick in 1929, and remained until 1931, when she became a researcher and contributor to Fortune Magazine.(JXCO, Ms., WPA, p. 398)          

           In August 1965, the Peter Anderson family of Ocean Springs received Miss Hamill for a brief visit.  She was in the area to research an article for Fortune magazine.(The Ocean Springs News, July 29, 1965, p. 1)

           In the early 1930s, Katherine Hamill wrote Swamp Shadow (Knopf-1936).  It was written from her child experiences on the Mississippi Gulf coast.  There is a copy of her book in the reference section of the Jackson County Regional Library at Pascagoula, Mississippi.  Several families at Belle Fontaine Beach and Ocean Springs also have copies of Swamp Shadow.  Katharine Hamill resided at Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania and expired at Newtown, Pennsylvania in April 1980.

 

Emily L. Hamill Workum

            Emily Lyon Hamill was born November 8, 1902.  She also attended Miss Porter’s School in Connecticut.  Before her marriage in February 1931, to Fifield Workum (1899-1989), the son of Mrs. Julius F. Workum of New York City, Emily Hamill was an actress.   Among her acting credits was the New York production of  “Street Scene” and “The First Mrs. Fraser” at Chicago. 

The Workums resided on Hook Road at Bedford, Westchester County, New York.  Here they reared their two sons: Robert Workum and Peter Workum.  Mrs. Workum was an active Democrat in politics at Bedford.  She assisted in the formation of the Bedford Democratic Club and ran unsuccessfully for Town Board. 

            Emily H. Workum worked as a volunteer for nearly fifty years in the Planned Parenthood movement.  In 1935, she was one of the founders of the Northern Westchester clinic at Mount Kisko, New York.  In 1976, the Mount Kisko unit of Planned Parenthood was renamed in her honor.  Emily H. Workum was also active in the International Planned Parenthood Federation, Planned Parenthood of America and Planned Parenthood of New York City.  She was the guiding force to build the Margaret Sanger Center, an international training facility for family planning personnel in fields of human reproduction and development, at New York City.

            Alfred Moran, vice president of Planned Parenthood of New York City and a work companion of Mrs. Workum, said of her:

           

“a thoroughly remarkable woman committed to the principle that every individual has the right to their own fertility.  I never met anyone who, upon meeting Em, didn’t respond to her immediately”

 

            Emily Hamill Workum was killed in late February 1979, when she was thrown from a horse at the La Osa Ranch, about 70 miles south of Tuscon, Arizona.  She was vacationing with her husband.  The remains of Emily H. Workum were interred in the St. Matthew’s Episcopal Cemetery at Bedford, New York.(The Patent Trader, March 1, 1979).

           

Frances Hamill

            Frances Hamill was born March 30, 1904.  In the 1920s, she worked in a retail bookstore at Chicago owned by Fanny Butcher, literary editor of the Chicago Tribune.  In 1928, Frances Hamill formed a partnership with Marjorie Barker.  They established Hamill & Barker, a firm dealing in rare books and manuscripts, in the Wrigley Building. (The Chicago Tribune, October 24, 1987)

            The two women often went to Europe to collect manuscripts and rare journals.  In August 1960, Frances and Marjorie journeyed to London to visit Vita Sackville-West (1892-1962), a poet and novelist of the Bloomsbury Group and friend of Virginia Woolf (1882-1941), the English novelist and critic.  They offered Mrs. Sackville-West 600 English pounds for the manuscript of Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway.  The tender was rejected.  Hamill and Barker had bought other manuscripts of Virginia Woolf from her husband, Leonard Woolf.  In 1962, Vita Sackville-West sold Frances Hamill eight of her manuscripts for 1500 English pounds.  The remuneration paid for her fifth cruise to the Caribbean.(Glendining, 1983, pp. 396-397 and p. 402)

            Hamill & Barker sold rare books to the Harvard and Yale libraries as well as other major repositories.  They vended a copy of The Guttenburg Bible to the Lilly Library at Indiana University.  Frances Hamill was the first woman president of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America.  She expired at Hinsdale, Illinois on October 21, 1987.  Hamill & Barker is extant at 400 North Michigan Avenue.(The Chicago Tribune, October 24, 1987). 

 

New Chicago

            In May 1890, John B. Lyon (1829-1904) was appointed trustee for a Chicago syndicate composed of: Emily C. Lyon (42%), Sidney A. Kent (8%), C.R. Cumings (8%), John B. Carson (8%), S.E. Gross (8%), William J. Watson (8%), E.F. Cragin (4%), Addison Ballard (4%), Henry Baleford (4%), Morton B. Hull (3.2%), Mrs. Solomon Thatcher Jr. (2%), and J.C. Aldus (.008%).  These Chicago investors had committed a maximum of $125,000, and authorized John B. Lyon to purchase the Alfred E. Lewis Estate tract, which was located in southern Jackson County, Mississippi between Ocean Springs and Gautier.  Although the land lay on the Mississippi Sound, the price was not to exceed $5.75 per acre.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Book 11, p. 301)

            The A.E. Lewis tract, which consisted of approximately 16,000 acres of timberland, was a portion of the lands formerly granted to French Colonial adventurer, Jean Baptisite Baudreau (1671-1762), dit Graveline.  His great granddaughter, Margaret  Baudreau (1785-1863), had married Edwin Lewis (1782-1830) in 1811.  Lewis was a Virginian, who had practiced law at Mobile before arriving at Pascagoula circa 1810. 

            In June 1890, the heirs of Alfred E. Lewis (1812-1885), who was the son of Edwin Lewis and Margaret Baudreau, sold the Lewis tract to H.J. Russell for $80,000. The heirs of Alfred E. Lewis were his widow, Ann Farrington Lewis (1821-1901), his surviving children, Eugenie Lewis Orrell (1850-1932), Kate Lewis Staples (1859-1930), A.E. Lewis Jr. (1862-1933), and Frank H. Lewis (1865-1930), and Mathilde A. Staples (1858-1928+), the widow of his son, Robert Walter Lewis (1857-1886).(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 68, pp. 562-564)   

            In June 1890, H.J. Russell, a land speculator from Iowa who resided at Ocean Springs at this time, sold the large Lewis parcel to John B. Lyon for the same amount of money.  On October 24, 1890, Trustee, John B. Lyon, conveyed the Lewis tract to the Gulf of Mexico Land and Improvement Company for $1,000,000.( JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 11, pp. 205-208 and Bk. 12, pp. 41-45) 

The Pascagoula Democrat-Star reported this event on January 2, 1891, as follows:

       The site now known as New Chicago, at West Pascagoula (formerly the Colonel A.E. Lewis tract), was sold by John B. Lyon, trustee to The Gulf of Mexico Land and Improvement Company, of Chicago, for one million dollars.  This is, up to date, the largest real estate transfer ever made in any of the southern or piney woods counties.(p. 3, c. 3)

      John B. Lyon,, John B. Carson, and Addison Ballard were respectively, president, vice-president, and secretary of The Gulf of Mexico Land and Improvement Company, a Mississippi corporation.   Mr. Lyon envisioned that this company would erect a large resort and hotel on the Mississippi Sound.  It was to be called Belle Fontaine Park.  The resort area was surveyed and platted by E.W. Morrill in December 1890.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Book 12, pp. 158-161)

In 1892, litigation in the Chancery Court of Jackson County, Mississippi was filed following the conveyance of the 16,000- acre, A.E. Lewis tract to John Bacon Lyon (1829-1904) of Chicago, when William R. Snyder (1864-1918) sued H.J. Russell and Dr. D.P. Russell.  The lawsuit was known as Chancery Court Cause No. 413, Snyder v. Russell.  Colonel Snyder, a Virginia transplant, alleged that he had been a partner with the Russells to sell the Lewis lands to John B. Lyon.  In a deposition given at Chicago on August 20, 1892, Mr. Lyon stated that, “I was first approached by a man named Carson, who proposed that a lot of us go in together and purchase the land at $150,000”.

 

John B. Carson

            Probably the first structure built on the newly acquired Gulf of Mexico Land & Improvement parcel was erecteby its vice-president and investor, John B. Carson.  Mr. Carson was a prominent railroad manger of the Midwest.  During his career, he had been affiliated with the following rail lines: Michigan Southern Railway; New York Central; Wabash & Western; Hannibal & St. Joseph; Chicago, Burlington, & Quincy; Louisville, New Albany, & Chicago; Chicago & Western Indiana; and the Chicago Belt Line.

            John B. Carson was an extremely affluent gentleman.  He was associated with the construction of the Express Building at Chicago.  It was a multi-storied structure with rental totaling $90,000 annually.  Mr. Carson also owned and erected the Columbia Theatre in the Windy City.  He and his spouse, Jennie E. Carson, often wintered at Biloxi, Mississippi.(The Biloxi Herald, January 9, 1892)

            Mr. Carson purchased two hundred-twenty acres of land at Belle Fontaine Beach from the Gulf of Mexico Land & Improvement Company in April 1891.  Unfortunately, he expired on January 4,1892, while at the Hotel Metropole in Chicago.  The grounds were being cleared for his winter home at Belle Fontaine when Carson expired.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Book 12, pp. 409-410)

The Carson edifice at Belle Fontaine, was designed and built by John R. Harkness & Sons of Biloxi.  John .Rankin Harkness (1827-1903), a native of Amherst, Massachusetts, had commenced his contracting business at Biloxi in 1868.  The two-story residence cost $5000 and was shingled from the ground to the cone.  Mr. Harkness and his family and friends occasionally sailed to the construction site, often referred to as “New Chicago”, for a days outing.  J.R. Harkness & Sons completed the Carson home in October 1892.(Dyer, 1895, “Biloxi”, The Biloxi Herald, April 9, 1892, p. 4, July 30, 1892, p. 4, and September 28, 1892, p. 4)

Mrs. Jennie E. Carson resided in her Belle Fontaine home until it was destroyed by a large conflagration on April 14, 1899.  Mrs. Parker Earle and Mrs. Farmer were visiting her when the fire occurred.  After the blaze, Mrs. Carson relocated to Ocean Springs where she was a houseguest of Mrs. Parker Helmuth Earle (1862-1919), the future grandmother of Mrs. Peter Anderson (1906-1973) and Mrs. Walter I. Anderson (1909-1991).(The Pascagoula Democrat-Star, April 21, 1899.

Genevieve Byrd Webb (1910-2003), the wife of Aubrey Webb (1910-1995), the former caretaker of the Hamill place at Belle Fontaine Beach, relates that the remains of the charred and scorched Carson home were removed when the Hamill’s built their tennis court northeast of their edifice.  Mrs. Webb was told that the rooms in the Carson home were named for their colors, i.e. blue room, silver room, pink room, etc. (personal communication, November 1997.

 

Enter Robert W. Hamill

            Robert W. Hamill in the employ of the Lyon Company of Chicago, began coming South from Chicago to manage their properties as early as 1905.  He and his family usually came to the area in January and remained until summer thereby eluding the harsh Midwest winters.  The Pascagoula-Democrat Star reported of February 4, 1905, that the Hamills were vacationing at “Lake View Villa”.  This was the retreat of New Orleanian, Charles W. Ziegler.  The Ziegler cottage was located on Front Beach at Ocean Springs where D.V. Purington (1841-1914) of Chicago would later retire.  At this time, the parents of Robert W. Hamill were here also.  The two Hamill men, with Dr. Henry B. Powell (1867-1949), a Chicago transplant by way of Canada, went bird hunting at Fontainebleau and killed 32 snipe, 10 quail, and 2 rabbits.

            Shortly after returning to Chicago from his Mississippi coast winter sojourn, Charles D. Hamill expired on June 11, 1905.  In addition to his business acumen in the markets of Chicago, he was remembered by the cultured at Chicago for his work in developing the Chicago orchestra.  In this regard, Mr. Hamill brought Theodore Thomas from New York in 1891.  He was a force in getting Orchestra Hall built on Michigan Avenue, as well as President of the Apollo Club, another musical organization. (The Chicago Tribune, June 12, 1905)

Until they built a home at Belle Fontaine Beach in 1915, the Robert W. Hamill family generally rented an estate home at Ocean Springs.  In January 1909 and 1910, Robert W. Hamill let the DePass Place.(The Ocean Springs News, January 16, 1909 and January 22, 1910) 

This became the “Fairhaven” of George Walter Anderson (1861-1937) and Annette McConnell Anderson (1867-1964), in 1918.  We know this property as “Shearwater” today.  In February 1914, Hamill leased “Lyndhurst”, the Thomas B. Lynd (1862-1915) place on Front Beach, now owned by Alice B. Austin.  1915 saw the Hamills settle for the season in the Christian Hanson home on Biloxi Bay.  This property, now known as “Shadowlawn” and owned by Nancy White Wilson, is our premier bed and breakfast inn.(The Ocean Springs News, Local News, February 4, 1915)

 

Turpentine and Timber

In the longleaf pine belt of coastal Mississippi and southern Alabama, Robert W. Hamill was a prominent businessman.  He was involved in several companies that produced naval stores and timber in this region.  In 1910, 1911, and 1912, the Lyon Turpentine Company, Gay Turpentine Company, and Hamill Turpentine Company were organized at Gautier, Larue, and Latimer respectively.  Larue and Latimer, both small communities, are located in western Jackson County, Mississippi, just north of Ocean Springs. 

Robert W. Hamill was president of the Lyon Turpentine Company.  D.J. Gay of Biloxi served the organization as secretary-treasurer.  Stock holders were: The Gulf of Mexico Land & Improvement Company-40 shares; Daniel J. Gay-40 shares; Robert W, Hamill-17 ½ shares; and Frank Matlock of Irvington, Alabama-2 ½ shares.(Jackson County Chancery Court Cause No. 4188, May 1921).  This outfit probably operated the Hilda camp west of Gautier, Mississippi in Section 34 or 35, T7S-R7W.  It was taken over by the Gay-Hamill Company and abandoned in June 1924.(The Jackson County Times, June 27, 1924)

R.W. Hamill was the president of the Gay Turpentine Company while Daniel J. Gay (1870-1949) served the organization as secretary-treasurer.  Mr. Gay was a native of Emanuel County, Georgia.  He came to Biloxi in 1902, probably from the pine belt of northwest Florida.  Here Mr. Gay, in addition to his naval stores enterprises, became involved in real estate and banking.  In 1905, he organized the Harrison County Bank of Biloxi, which merged with the Peoples Bank in 1914.  Daniel J. Gay will always be remembered at Ocean Springs for his donation of a tract of land to build the 1927 Ocean Springs High School on Government Street.(Bellande-unpublished)   

The largest stockholder of the Gay Turpentine Company was the Lyon Company of Chicago, which held sixty shares of the one hundred shares of stock issued.  Other owners were: Daniel J. Gay (20 shares); R.W. Hamill (15 shares); Frank Matlock of Irvington, Alabama (3 shares); and W.G. Beasley of Leesville, Louisiana (2 shares).(Jackson County, Mississippi Chancery Court Cause No. 4187, May 1921)

R.W. Hamill was also president of the Hamill Turpentine Company.  Its stock holders were: Katherine Lyon Hamill (51 shares); Daniel J. Gay (30 shares); R.W. Hamill (12 shares); the Lyon Company (4 shares); and Frank Matlock (3 shares).(Jackson County, Mississippi Chancery Court Cause No. 4186, May 1921) 

In May 1921, the Lyon Turpentine Company, Gay Turpentine Company and Hamill Turpentine Company dissolved their charters.   It is very probable that the Gay-Hamill Turpentine Company formed after these organizations were dissolved.  Gay-Hamill maintained their corporate office at Biloxi, in the Gay Building (now Peoples Bank building) on Lameuse Street and Howard Avenue. 

Gay-Hamill had a large turpentine still and commissary at Hilda, which may have been situated in the SW/4 of Section 35, T7S-R7W.  In 1920, Roswell S. Kimball (1886-1948), a native of Scriven County, Georgia, was the manager of this operation.  After the naval stores operation ceased at Hilda, Mr. Kimball bought the general store of Horace Hinds at Gautier.  The R.S. Kimball Store was located near the L&N depot and U.S. Post Office.  The L&N Railroad owned the land and building.  In the early 1940s, Roswell S. Kimball sold the store to P.J. Ziegler, and relocated to present day 227 Front Beach, the W.B. Schmidt Home, at Ocean Springs with his family, Elva Stiglets (1888-1980) and Roswell S. Kimball II (1923-1995).  Here he was employed as a pulp wood agent with theInternational Paper Company.(The Jackson County Times, October 8, 1948)

In June 1924, the naval stores operation at Hilda was discontinued.  Gay-Hamill transferred their personnel and equipment to their other camps.  The Cedar Creek Camp near Americus was their most recent venture.  The company originally had about 90,000 acres of land in Jackson County from which to harvest pine gum for their stills.(The Jackson County Times, June 7, 1924)

Gay-Hamill had other operations in Mississippi at McHenry, Louin (near Soso), and near D’Iberville, west of Ocean Springs.  Between 1927 and 1932, Edward C. Gay, the brother of Daniel J. Gay, managed a naval stores facility near Durango, Mexico for the partnership.  Mr. Gay resided at San Antonio, Texas.(Dick Gay, 1995)

In the late 1930s, The company also operated a twenty-five barrel turpentine still at Ocean Springs which was financed by the Taylor, Lowenstein & Company of Mobile.(JXCO, Ms. Deed of Trust Book 19, pp. 184-198).

In addition to their naval stores enterprises, the Hamill family was involved in the timber business at the small community of Hilda, west of Gautier.  The Hilda Lumber Company was operated by Robert Lyon Hamill from New York City.  His partner, Jerry Oliver, resided at Hilda.

 

Hilda School

The Lyon Consolidated School at Hilda opened in February 1919.  Joseph A. Wieder (1877-1960) of Ocean Springs constructed the school building from indigenous lumber.  Leonard B. Fuller states that, “a site of ten acres was offered by Mr. Beasley, the owner of the turpentine plant”.  Hilda was the name of Mr. Beasley’s wife.(The Jackson County Times, February 22, 1919 and The History of Jackson County, Mississippi,1989, p. 49)  

In February 1923, R.W. Hamill representing the Gulf of Mexico Land & Improvement Company, donated ten acres of land situated in the SW/4 of the NW/4 of the SW/4 of Section 35, T7S-R7W to the Jackson County, Mississippi Board of Supervisors. It appears that the Hilda School was built before title to the land was acquired by the citizens of Jackson County.  The school was apparently named for John B. Lyon, the father of Mrs. R.W. Hamill.  Mr. Beasley was probably in the employ of Mr. Hamill who was the proprietor of the turpentine still.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 61, p. 413)

In 1940, a modern masonry school building and cafeteria were erected at Gautier negating the Lyon Consolidated School.  In the 1950s, the old wooden structure was demolished and materials from it were utilized to build several houses in the immediate area of the former Lyon School.(The History of Jackson County, Mississippi-1989)  In May 1941, the Jackson County Board of Supervisors sold the Lyon Consolidated School and ten acres of land to Anthony Joseph Zigenfelder (1882-1967) for $1150.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Book 81, pp. 195-196)  

 

Hamill House-Belle Fontaine Beach

(before and after destruction by erosion of bluff circa late 1960s)

 Courtesy of Genevieve Byrd Webb

 

 

The Hamill Home

The Robert W. Hamill home was built on a high bluff at Belle Fontaine Beach in the summer and fall of 1915.  It faced Horn Island to the south.  The two-story, wood framed structure was probably erected by the Wieder brothers, Joseph A. Wieder (1877-1960) and Philip Jacob Wieder (1887-1985), of Ocean Springs.  The Ocean Springs News of February 24, 1916 announced that, “they (the Hamills) are occupying their new house at Fountainbleau (sic).  Mr. Hamill is conducting some elaborate experiments with tile drainage, and a success will mean a great deal to this community.  On the Hamill grounds is a concrete tennis court”.  It is interesting to note that the Hamill tennis court is extant on the former Hamill grounds. 

Although their new structure was not built until 1915, there is evidence that Hamills’ had a habitation at Fontainebleau as early as May 1914.  The Ocean Springs News reported in late May 1914, that “Ed Shelton, a negro servant and yardman employed as a caretaker on the Hamill place, whipped out a pistol and shot his wife twice through the head and then turned the weapon on himself, with fatal effect in both instances”.  Edward Shelton (1884-1914), a mulatto, had a prior conviction for wife beating and had served a thirty-day sentence working on the county road.  His wife, Ella Bradford (1887-1914), was also a mulatto and the mother of three children.  Two them were: Orrell Shelton (b. 1904) and Helen Shelton (b. 1908).(The Ocean Springs News, May 30, 1914, p. 5, c. 5 and 1910 Census)

Riley Webb (1878-1925) and his wife, Columbia Spradley (1880-1958), were the caretakers of the Hamill property when they were away at Clarendon Hills, Illinois.  The Webb cottage was east of the large Hamill home.  Clarence Gridley later resided on this site.  He was a piano repair technician and maintained a piano “warehouse” on the property.

After Riley Webb passed on, his son, Aubrey “Bill” Webb, inherited his duties.  The 1947 September Storm partially destroyed the Hamill residence.  The Aubrey Webb family resided here until they moved about a mile north off the beach, to 6600 Center Street, in 1968.  Ken Webb, a son of Aubrey, lived in the derelict Hamill place until it was completely destroyed by Hurricane Camille in August 1969.     

            Genevieve B. Webb (1910-2003), wife of Aubrey Webb (1910-1995), remembers that the Hamill home was horseshoe shaped in plan view.  A patio and fountain were enclosed on three sides by the home, which consisted of a living room, dining room, five bedrooms, and five fireplaces.  The master bedroom was on the west and the dining room to the east.  An extant, cedar tree, lined driveway approached the house from the north.  There was a small guest quarter structure several hundred feet northwest of the home.  Mr. Hamill kept a cow and horse in the barn, which was located north of the guest quarter.    Mrs. Webb also recalls that some of the domestic help utilized by the Hamills were: Bella Jacobs, cook; Wilda Mayfield (1912-1996), dining room; and Buddy Roberts. 

            In July 1993, The Tanglewood Bluff Subdivision at Belle Fontaine Beach was platted.  Five water front lots ranging in size from 2.54 acres to 3.68 acres were created from a portion of the former R.W. Hamill estate.  Lot 5 of this development, now owned by Dr. J.E. Dodd Jr. of Jackson, Mississippi, is the former site of the Hamill home.  Dr. Dodd has done a remarkable job landscaping the property and erecting bulkheads to negate the marine erosional processes active along the shoreface here.  In 1996-1997, Dr. Barat Sangani constructed a large home designed by Gerald Rembowski, an architect, from Fairlawn-Elyria, Ohio, on Lots 1 and 2, west of Dodd.(JXCO, Ms. Plat Book 149, p. 22) 

 

Some Hamill Family deja vu

            It is remarkable that we have several people living who were contemporaries of the Hamill children.  I have spoken with several of them and report their observations as follows:

 

Elvin O. Ramsay

Elvin O. Ramsay (1907-2000), the son of Oscar Ramsay (1852-1929) and Sue Cooper (1852-1936), was reared in the Pointe-aux-Chenes area where the Ramsay family were well known stockmen.  As a young man, Elvin Ramsay ran cattle on the Hamill Farm.  When the Hamill children were on their father’s Fontainebleau Farm from Illinois, young Ramsay would often take them on night excursions into the pine forests to “tree possums”.  Being somewhat urban children, the Hamills were thrilled by the “wild animals” of the area.  Mr. Ramsay also recalls how Katharine Hamill, called Kitty, ran off the road and hit a tree with her father’s automobile while rounding a curve north of the Hamill house.  Old timers of the Fontainebleau area still refer to this place as the “Kitty curve”.(E.O. Ramsay, October 1996)

 

Genevieve Byrd Webb

            Genevieve Byrd Webb (1910-2003) is the daughter of Hessey Carl Byrd (1889-1959) and Almeda Tillman (1892-1958).  In 1926, she married Aubrey “Bill” Webb (1910-1995), the son of Riley Webb (1878-1925) and Columbia Spradley (1880-1958).  Riley and Columbia Webb married in 1897 and had sixteen children.  Some of them were:  Florian “Bud” Webb (b. 1901), Benton Webb (b. 1903), Theresa Webb Ott (b. 1907), Catherine Webb Garland (b. 1916), and R.C. Webb (b. 1918).  Riley Webb expired from tuberculosis.  

            Bill and Genevieve Webb had six children of which four survived: Aubrey Webb Jr. (1929-1989), Ronald Webb (b. 1930), Kenneth Webb (b. 1942), and Sheila Webb (b. 1945).

            Genevieve B. Webb recalls that the Hamill family came to their Belle Fontaine retreat in February and left the area after Easter to return to Clarendon Hills, Illinois.  Mr. Hamill was involved in the Gay-Hamill turpentine operations and sawmill at Hilda near Gautier.  Her husband, Bill, drove Mr. Hamill as he had an aversion to automobiles.  The George W. Anderson family of Ocean Springs and the Robert W. Hamill family were friends.  Their children sailed and fished the sparkling waters of the Mississippi Sound.

            Mrs. Webb remembers the following about the R.W. Hamill children:

 

Katharine Hamill-rode horses and participated in dressage.  When she wrote Swamp Shadow (1936) at Belle Fontaine Beach, her wastebasket was filled with rewrites. 

 

Emily Hamill-married Fifield Workum of Bedford, New York.  They had two sons, Robert Hamill and Peter Hamill.  Emily played the violin while her mother was a pianist.   Emily’s death resulted from falling from a horse.

 

Robert Lyon Hamill-his wife may have been called Sissy?  Her parents were water works owners in the New York City area.  She preceded him in death.

 

The Hamill Farm

            The Hamill farm, called Fontainebleau Farm, was located primarily in Section 31,  T7S-R7W and Section 6, T8S-R7W.  The only buildings extant are the foreman’s house, barn, and machine shop, which are located in the N/2 of Section 31, T7S-R7W, south of the Old Spanish Trail (old US 90) where Mississippi State Highway 57 intersects it.  Here the Hamill Corporation also had a store and offices for their timber and naval stores operations.  The offices were erected and the store enlarged in February 1929.(The Daily Herald, February 4, 1929, p. 2)

The Fontainebleau Farm primarily raised cattle and pecans.  Brahma cattle roamed the open range in summer and foraged in the vast marshes surrounding the Isle of Belle Fontaine in winter.  There were several hundred acres of pecan orchards.(Elvin O. Ramsay, October 1996)

The large Hamill barn was utilized to stable mules and oxen, and to shelter hay feed, and ancillary farm equipment.  Natural fertilizer, which was purchased at New Orleans stockyards and shipped by rail to Fontainebleau, was also stored here.  The L&N had officially opened a combination freight-passenger station at Fontainebleau just north of the Hamill Farm in May 1905.  Charles Richter (1878-1945), a native of Iowa, was the first station agent.(LaChaussee, p. 12)

Prior to 1928, the Hamills had built a number of modern cottages on the west side of Hamill Farm Road for their farm laborers.  There were six or seven families who resided here and worked about five acres of land.  Some of these structures are extant.  During the shipbuilding boom at Pascagoula during WW I, some shipyard workers resided here.  Roy Reviere (1914-2000) came here to live on the Hamill farm with his family when he was four years old from Patterson, Louisiana.  His father was a shipyard laborer.(Roy Reviere, October 1996)

In 1917, Lloyd Matlock was the manager of the Hamill Farm.  Matlock was the champion trap and wing shot of the State of Mississippi.  He left the employ of Mr. Hamill to join the Army at Florida in 1917.(The Jackson County Times, June 30 and July 17, 1917)

In 1920, Lynn B. Watson (1880-1920+) was the foreman of the Hamill plantation.  His children were: Hazel Watson (1902-1920+), Horace Watson (1905-1920+), and Lynn Boyd Watson (1908-1920+).  Jack Parks, husband of Essie C. Parks (1893-1996), ran the machine shop, which repaired the farm tools. 

In the 1920s, Lynn Goff (1892-1966) worked for the Hamills.  Goff later managed the Frank Bryan Farm and worked for pecan orchardist, Chauncey Bell (1842-1925).  Other believed to have worked for the Hamills were: Newton Wiliams (b. 1907), George H. Bilbo (1860-1932), Ernest Williams (b. 1888), Francis Martin (b. 1897), Thomas Garlotte (b. 1897), and George Green (b. 1857).

           

The Lyon dream-Belle Fontaine

In March 1925, it was rumored that Robert W. Hamill would establish a town on the beach at Belle Fontaine south of the village of Fontainbleau.  Belle Fontaine is part of the “Isle of Belle Fontaine” and situated on the Mississippi Sound between Ocean Springs and Gautier, Mississippi.  It affords an excellent view of Horn Island, which is only six miles south.  The seashore here has the only natural sand beach in Jackson County, Mississippi.  Mr. Hamill’s plan called for a road to the beach and a modern hotel to be erected there.  This dream was reminiscent of the “New Chicago” of his late father-in-law, John Bacon Lyon (1829-1904), in the 1890s.(The Jackson County Times, March 28, 1925, p. 1)

Financing for the Hamill project at Belle Fontaine came in mid-year 1928, when R.W. Hamill placed a five-year, $300,000 bond issue with Dangler, Lapham Company of Chicago, which was bought by the Illinois Merchants Trust Company.  The bonds paid 6% interest and were secured by 9,000 acres of Hamill land valued at $1,660,000.(The Jackson County, August 18, 1928, p. 1.)

            In July 1928, the construction of a road system for the Hamill project at Belle Fontaine Beach began, when the four-mile section from the Old Spanish Trail, US 90, to Graveline Lake, was commenced.  Lynn Watson and Fred Ryan with road building equipment and a crew of fifteen men were assigned the task.  At this time, R.W. Hamill was planning for a golf course, airport, and an elaborate road network as ancillary developments to his beach hotel project.(The Jackson County Times, July 14, 1928, p. 3)

            In November 1928, Albert E. Lee (1874-1936), the editor of The Jackson County Times, set out with Clarence W. Gormly (1882-1957), the builder of Shell Beach-on-the Bay, a hotel and golf course north of Bay St. Louis, Gulf Hills at Ocean Springs, owner of a large tract of land at Pointe-aux- Chenes, and now in charge of construction for the Hamill Corporation, to view the 9,000-acre Belle Fontaine tract.  Mr. Gormly had traversed the tangle undergrowth of the pine forest on foot to layout the road to Graveline Lake and others in order that the Hamill tract could be open for viewing and development.(The Jackson County Times, November 24, 1928, p. 1)

In March 1929, Clarence W. Gormley (1882-1957) continued the supervision of an extensive road building and other developmental projects on the Hamill tract.  He opened two new roads.  One called the East Shore Road extended along the shoreline of the Mississippi Sound east of the Hamill home at Belle Fontaine Beach.  The other went westward to Pointe-aux-Chenes.  Both were considered excellent thoroughfares.(The Jackson County Times, March 2, 1929, p. 5)

In April 1929, a deepwater pier was erected on the Hamill property.  There were eight to ten feet of water at the pier head.  Fred Ryan constructed the wharf with the F.H. McGowan firm providing the civil engineering studies.  Mr. McGowan was active in the area having supervised the construction of the sea wall at Ocean Springs and the 1929 Fort Bayou Bridge.(The Jackson County Times, April 7, 1929)

 

The Great Depression

Unfortunately, the stock market crash of October 1929, dashed the fortunes and aspirations of many thousands of American entrepreneurs.  Robert W. Hamill of Fontainebleau Farm was no exception. In the spring of 1935, Federal Court Judge F.B. Holmes named Mr. H.P. Flateau as receiver of the Hamill Corporation assets in Jackson County.  His mission was to oversee the operation of all the pecan orchards, lumber tracts, and all cut-over and improved lands and real estate for the Managing Committee of the Hamill Properties Trust, a working agreement between the Hamill Corporation and the Bank of Commerce Trust Company of Memphis, Tennessee, Trustee of the Hamill Properties Trust.(The Jackson County Times, March 2, 1935, p. 1 and JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Cause No. 5520-August 1933)

 

H.P. Flateau

            Harrison Pitts Flateau (1888-1955) was very likely born in Massachusetts as William Harrison Pitts, but he was known in Jackson County as Harrison Pitts Flateau..(JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Cause No. 12983)  He came to the Fontainebleau, Mississippi area circa 1933, and resided in a home at Pointe-aux-Chenes, which he called “Holly Lodge”.

H.P. Flateau was politically and socially active in the Fontainebleau and Ocean Springs communities.  In July 1934, he sponsored the formation of the Ocean Springs Little Theatre Guild.  He was elected president of the organization which included Mrs. Annette McConnell Anderson (1867-1964), vice president; Mrs. Chester Davis, treasurer; and Miss Elsie McFarland (1881-1956), secretary.(The Jackson County Times, July 28, 1934, p. 3)

In 1939, H.P. Flateau and J.C. Wright (1879-1941), the brother-in-law of H.L. Hunt (1889-1974), were operating the Rite-O Pecan Company.  It was situated in the Schmidt Building on the northwest corner of Washington Avenue and Desoto.  The name was derived from Wright (Rite) and Flateau (Flay-toe).  It bought and processed thousands of pounds of local pecans.  Flateau was also chairman of the Red Cross drive in the Fontainebleau area in 1939.(The Jackson County Times, October 21, 1939, p. 4 and November 11, 1939, p. 1)

In 1940, H.P. Flateau was named executive chairman of the Pageant Committee of the City of Ocean Springs.  He planned the “Landing of d’Iberville” for the March 1940 event.(The Jackson County Times, March 2, 1940, p. 1)

            In March 1941, H.P. Flateau ran for Justice of the Peace of Beat Four in a special election following the demise of JP Charles E. Pattison (1866-1940).  Ballot boxes for this election were at Ocean Springs, Jacobs, Fontainebleau, and Gautier.  He was a member of the Jackson County Democratic Party executive committee.  Flateau’s honorable opponents were Herbert “Cub” Beaugez (1895-1954), and J.S. Bradford (1884-1963).  H.P. Flateau lost the election to Herbert Beaugez, as he received only 77 votes of the 482 votes cast.  At his home box, Fontainebleau, Mr. Flateau got 15 votes of the 19 ballots placed.(The Jackson County Times, March 1, 1941, p. 1, March 15, 1941, p. 1, and March 22,1941, p.1)

H.P. Flateau resigned from the Ocean Springs School Board in July 1949.  He had served many years on this august body.  Mr. Flateau was replaced by Major Daniel Bernard Van Court (1910-1976) who had just been elected to the board.  Other members of the local school board at this time were: Lynd Gottsche (1901-1974), Gus R. Nelson (1886-1970), George Arndt (1909-1994), and Mrs. Eleanor Scharr (1913-1953).( The Gulf Coast Times, July 29, 1949, p. 1)

 

The Katharine Lyon Community Center

In January 1936, the Hamill Properties Trust conveyed two parcels of land to H.P. Flateau.  The first tract consisted of 3.02 acres in the NW/4 of the NE/4 of Section 31, T7S-R7W, on the west side of Mississippi State Highway No. 59, which is now Highway 57.  The deed to Flateau stipulated that this land was to be conveyed to the citizens of Jackson County for use as a playground and recreation center.  Mr. Flateau conveyed this tract to Jackson County on October 7, 1936.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 69, pp. 331-332)  A community center was erected here, and it was named for Mrs. Robert W. Hamill, nee Katharine Francis Lyon.( JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 68, pp. 562-564)

 

The Fontainebleau Farm

            The other land parcel which H.P. Flateau purchased from the Hamill Properties Trust in January 1936, was that 34-acre portion of the R.W. Hamill farm, called the Fontainebleau Farm, situated along US 90, in the S/2 of the NE/4 of Section 31, T7S-R7W.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 68, pp. 562-564)  Flateau bought the remaining 125-acres of the Fontainebleau Farm from Coast Properties Company of Chicago, Illinois, in June 1941.  This tract was contiguous and situated south of his initial purchase and extended into the N/2 of the SE/4 of Section 31, T7S-R7W.  The Hamill Farm Road was the western perimeter of these lands while the Old Spanish Trail formed their northern limits.

 

Flateau’s Corner

The intersection of Mississippi State Highway 59, now Highway 57, and US 90, now known as Old US 90, was called Flateau’s Corner.  It was situated in the NW/4 of the NE/4 of Section 31, T7S-R7W and consisted of several commercial enterprises including a grocery store, gasoline filling station, pecan factory, and restaurant.  The Katharine Lyon Community Center was just north and Mr. Flateau’s sister, Lotawanna F. Nims, the spouse of Eugene Nims (1897-1963), owned a 20-acre pecan orchard on the east side of Highway 59.

            Evan Byrd (1924-1952) operated the store and filling station for Mr. Flateau.  It was closed before January 1952, as the property was sublet to the Mississippi Highway Department some months prior.(The Gulf Coast Times, January 3, 1952, p. 1)

 

Camille Bought the Farm

            By 1950, H.P. Flateau was nearing retirement age.  He conveyed Fontainebleau Farm which included his residence to Camille Morgan Ruddiman (1891-1989), the spouse of Stanley P. Ruddiman (1890-1986), for $35,000 in September 1950.  Camille Morgan, a native of Goodman, Attala County, Mississippi, had met her husband in the early 1920s at Birmingham, Alabama, where he worked for her uncle, the City Engineer of the Iron City.( JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 114, pp. 255-256 and Edsel Ruddiman, November 2, 2000)

Armed with a civil engineering degree from Vanderbilt University, Stanley P. Ruddiman had gone to Birmingham, Alabama where he worked in the city engineering department.  After marrying Camille, they departed Birmingham for Michigan.  Here Stanley P. Ruddiman was employed by the Detroit, Toledo & Ironton Railroad.  This railway was owned by the Ford Motor Company of Detroit, Michigan, young Ruddiman’s birthplace.  Stanley’s father, Edsel A. Ruddiman, was an associate of Henry Ford (1863-1947), the founder of the Ford Motor Company.  Mr. Ford had acquired the Detroit, Toledo, & Ironton to haul coal from eastern Kentucky to his automotive plant at Detroit.  When he required a young engineer to design a rail system to the Appalachian coalfields, which supplied power for his plant, Stanley P. Ruddiman was hired.  Henry Ford named one of his sons, Edsel B. Ford (1893-1943), for Stanley’s father.  In 1952, Mr. Stanley P. Ruddiman retired as president of the Detroit, Toledo & Ironton Railroad.(Edsel Ruddiman, November 2, 2000) 

H.P. Flateau ran an advertisement in The Gulf Coast Times in mid-November 1950, which read as follows:

 

Sold Farm

All Household Furnishing

All Farm Impliments (sic) and Equipment

All Chicken Equipment Including Battery Brooder

See H.P. Flateau

Fountainebleau (sic) Farm (November 10, 1950, p. 10)

 

The Ruddimans sold their 160-acre Fontainebleau Farm to William and Flossie Burch in December 1955.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 154, pp. 153-155)

 

The Wisteria House

Before she had bought the Fontainebleau Farm from H.P. Flateau, Mrs. Ruddiman acquired a restaurant, called The Wisteria House, from Lorna Carr Leavell (1892-1976), in September 1949.   Mrs. Leavell was a native of Mt. Pleasant, Texas.  She married James Reader Leavell (1884-1974), from Fulton, Missouri who would become a successful Chicago bank president.  In fact, Mr. Leavell’s bank, the Continental Illinois Bank and Trust Company, was financially involved in the Hamill Corporation’s Jackson County, Mississippi operations.  The Leavells retired to this area and owned a home at Pointe-aux-Chenes called “Doone Gate”.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 110, pp. 4-5) 

Mrs. Ruddiman’s son, William B. Ruddiman (1928-1978), ran the eatery at Flateau’s Corner.  Camille M. Ruddiman sold The Wisteria House for $3300, James W. Gibson and Willie C. Gibson in July 1956.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 159, pp. 367-369)

           

Barnes & Davis

In December 1936, the Barnes & Davis Lumber Company acquired from the Bank of Commerce and Trust of Memphis, Tennessee for $190,000, a five-year lease to cut, haul, manufacture, and remove all merchantable timber from the pine forests formerly possessed by the Hamill Corporation in T7S-R7W and T7S-R8W, Jackson County, Mississippi.  Only those trees 8 inches in diameter a foot above ground level could be felled.  This operation exploited the virgin forest on the Hamill tract at Fontainebleau, which was estimated to contain 12,000,000 board feet of lumber.  The principals, Homer C. Barnes and William A. Davis, resided at Gulfport.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 69, pp. 469-474 and The Jackson County Times, August 18, 1928, p. 1)

            Ground was broken for the Barnes & Davis sawmill on January 15, 1937, which was located in the NE/4 of Section 7, T8S-R7W.  It replaced a smaller mill operated by the Noble Lumber Company for about one year.  A.P. 'Fred' Moran (1897-1967) was the Noble Lumber Company manager.  Some of the first timber cut from this tract and milled by Noble was shipped to Egypt from Gulfport.  In this shipment were twenty-five beams, which measured 12 inch x 12 inch and twenty-five feet in length.(The Jackson County Times, January 16, 1937, p. 1)

            Fred H. Heyer (1883-1941), a Chicago native, and son of German immigrant, Fred H. Heyer and Hattie Pinkham, ran the commissary at the Barnes & Davis mill.  Heyer and his wife, Katie Ehrlich, had come to Jackson County in 1917, probably to manage the Hamill store.  Mrs. Katie Heyer later relocated to Bowen Avenue at Ocean Springs where she taught school.   

            The Barnes & Davis sawmill employed forty-eight men with an annual payroll of $26,208.  It had the capacity to cut 25,000 board feet of lumber daily.  Estimates said that there was enough timber on the Hamill tract for five years of harvesting.  Timber products were sold locally and abroad.(WPA-JXCO, Ms.,1936-1937, p. 321 and The Jackson County Times, January 16, 1937, p. 1))

            In January 1937, Barnes & Davis granted a turpentine lease to the Gay-Hamill Turpentine Company.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Book 70, pp. 340-344)

 

The final years

The Hamill era at Fontainebleau-Belle Fontaine ended for the most part with the death of Robert Waldbridge Hamill on September 17, 1943, at his home on No. 48 Harris Road at Clarendon Hills, Illinois.  His corporal remains were interred in the Graceland Cemetery at Chicago, Illinois.  Robert Lyon Hamill and his mother remained in possession of the Hamill homestead property at Belle Fontaine Beach, until August 1966, when they conveyed it to W.B. Rudolph et al for $98,750. The Tanglewood Subdivision was created here and has become the site of several upscale littoral edifices. (JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 298, pp. 20-23) 

Circa 1952, H.P. Flateau left Jackson County, Mississippi and relocated to Webster Groves, Missouri.  He expired on January 31, 1955, at St. Louis, Missouri, following a major medical operation.  Flateau was survived by five sisters: Mrs. Eugene D. (Lotawanna) Nims of St. Louis, Mrs. T.D. (Kate) Ratcliffe of New York, Mrs. Tom (LuLu) Gooch of Dallas, Texas, Mrs. Winnie Long of Hartford, Connecticut, and Miss Sadie Flateau of Dallas, Texas.(The Daily Herald, February 8, 1955, p. 2 and The Pascagoula-Chronicle, February 11, 1955, p. 3)

 

 

REFERENCES:

 

Charles L. Dyer, Along The Gulf, (Women of the Trinity Episcopal Church:  Pass Christian-1971.[originally published 1895]

 

Belle Fontaine, Jackson County, Mississippi: Human History, Geology, and Shoreline Erosion, Geological Bulletin 130, (Mississippi Department of Enviromental Quality:  Jackson, Mississipi-1994), pp.   

 

The History of Jackson County, Mississippi, “Lyon Rural Consolidated Separate School District”, (Jackson County Genealogical Society: Pascagoula, Mississippi-1989), pp. 49-50.

 

Victoria Glendining, Vita, The Life of V. Sackville-West, (Alfred A. Knopf:  New York-1983), pp. 396-397 and p. 402.

 

Jerry G. LaChaussee, L&N Stations in Jackson Couty, Mississippi.

 

Lois L. Leipper, Clarendon Hills: The Village of Volunteers, (1974).

 

WPA For Mississippi Historical Data, Jackson County, Mississippi (Statewide Historical Project 1936-1937), “Katherine Hamill”, p. 398.