Articles | Historic South Dade

The Women’s Industrial Club of Detroit

Posted on September 18, 2016 by JeffOctober 28, 2019

By Jeff Blakley

I ran across an article that appeared in the Homestead Enterprise on July 16, 1914, giving a history of the Women’s Industrial Club in Detroit. It was organized for social reasons as well as to promote the civic betterment of Detroit on October 29, 1911, shortly after the Longview Club was organized in May of 1911. Both clubs were established before the Homestead Woman’s Club was founded on September 26, 1914.

SOCIAL SIDE OF DETROIT

It was a happy and enthusiastic crowd of pioneers who arrived at Detroit on October 28, 1910. The stopping of the train was a notable event and the merry laughter, ejaculations of surprise and delight made the pine woods ring.

Were we glad to be alive and in Detroit, Florida? The place where we were to make a city, “Where life is worth living,” patterned after Detroit, “The City of the Straits?” Yes, most emphatically, yes.

We all worked hard to make our own corner comfortable and attractive by building up the town little by little.

“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy;” that would never do, and then we were too full of the joy of living in a country where the sun shone every day and the moonlight bright enough to read by.

The young ladies of the town formed the first club. It was known as “The Big Four.” The members were Miss Lillian Hunter, Miss Marion Sharp, Miss Eleanor Shields, Miss Octavia Stiling. There were no rules and regulations, but the young ladies accomplished a great and good work, for they helped themselves and others not to be homesick for friends and associates in the north.

The matrons of the town were also pleasure seekers. The planned many social gatherings. You who were here will well remember the masquerades, dances, card parties, see-saw parties, poverty parties, joy rides on moonlight nights in our auto-mobiles were a never-ending lark.

The ladies met afternoons with their sewing, tried to help each other with suggestions in cooking, gardening and home-making.

The men were not idle all these hours. When not busy in the fields, they were planning for the welfare of the town. One of the first fruits of their labor was the erection of the Town Hall. People of Miami, Detroit and vicinity were generous with their subscriptions of time and money The frame was up, floor down and roof on in short order, but, sad to say, the funds were not sufficient to even pay for all the lumber used; as a result, the building was closed till such bills should be paid. This is when the women took an active hand in public affairs.

On October 29, 1911, the following petition was drawn up and signed:

“We, the undersigned ladies, hereby agree to take it upon ourselves to do all in our power to pay the claims on the Town Hall, held by Mr. Ring and others.

“Possession to be given at once to the ladies as a society, that the hall may be opened to the public.

“Mrs. Geo. A. Reynolds, Mrs. Chas. E. Sharp, Mrs. T. W. Shields, Mrs. S. S. Shields, Mrs. M. E. Tanner, Mrs. E. H. Ring, Mrs. F. L. Young, Mrs. E. M. Van Horn, Miss Flossie Van Horn, Mrs. J. L. Ishmael, Mrs. A. Gromaire, Mrs. Edward Stiling, Mrs. Mabelle Rue, Miss Marion Turner, Miss Eleanor Shields, Mrs. Stanley Havens, Mrs. H. C. Hunt, Miss Lillie D. Hunter, Mrs. W. H. Hunter, Miss Ada Haile, Mrs. J. Allen Brown, Mrs. Clara Tucker, Mrs. M. L. Williams, Mrs. L. E. Watson, Mrs. Lura B. Morrison, Miss Gladys Graves, Mrs. Tom Brooker, Mrs. Addie M. Calkins, Mrs. Ed Brooker, Mrs. Norwood, Mrs. Henry Brooker, Miss Chloe Flora, Miss Carrie Flora.”

This was the beginning of a club for Detroit. The ladies met in the Town Hall, held an election, and the following officers were elected and installed: President, Mrs. Geo. A. Reynolds; vice-president, Mrs. Edward Stiling; secretary, Mrs. B. W. Mason; treasurer, Mrs. Chas. Sharp.

A constitution and by-laws were drawn up and approved by the members. The name decided upon was the “Women’s Industrial Club.” Their purpose was the advancement and upbuilding of the town, religiously, socially and civically.

The first social gathering held by the ladies under their new organization was an ice cream social and dance. It was a huge success, people for miles around coming, and were royally entertained, and went home ready and willing to attend all future undertakings of the club.

Other social successes of the winter were the Thanksgiving party. Do you remember how cold it was, and how everyone drank steaming coffee, ate sandwiches, pie and doughnuts? And those never-to-be-forgotten square dances? They were the great event for each new comer.

An impromptu entertainment was given, at which time Mrs. Ring read a clever rhyme she had composed, telling how the ladies had earned their dollar of experience money given to the club.

A box social given on New Year’s afforded a most interesting evening. The bidding was lively, and the daintily decorated boxes went at high prices. Even then the men considered themselves fortunate to get such pretty girls and delicious suppers for the money.

Our crowning success was the way in which we had won the respect and loyalty of the surrounding people.

The Neighborhood Club of Longview entertained the W. I. C. at a daintily appointed luncheon at the home of Mrs. Roy D. Marsh.

In return for their hospitality, the W. I. C. entertained them at the Town Hall, serving 1 o’clock luncheon to over seventy-five ladies and children.

These two delightful days will long be remembered, for we learned to know our neighbors for their true worth and realized more fully the rapid growth of the community.

The Pioneer Guild of Redland has always been ready and willing to aid us in all undertakings, and we hope to find ways and means to show our appreciation for their kind acts and the jolly times they have given us.

Up to this time $198.25 had been paid out by the ladies for labor and lumber, leaving $32.17 still to be paid on the Town Hall.

The club adjourned for the summer, as many of the members went north.

In May of 1912 the club had received an invitation from Mrs. Frederick, the president of the State Federation of Women’s Clubs, to join. The club was now ready to work, met the requirements as to membership, etc., and gladly accepted the honor.

In the fall of 1912 a new difficulty confronted the club. Much to our delight, new people had settled in town during our vacation, but woe to our peace and prosperity, they wanted to break up our W. I. C. and form a new organization. The new club was formed, but the loyal members of the W. I. C. rallied around their president, Mrs. Reynolds, and continued to carry out their original purpose.

Through the diligent efforts of Mr. Edward Stiling the Town Hall had been transformed from a structure disfigured by scaffolding, with no windows or paint, to a finished article. The white paint just shone in the sun and the windows with their full length copper screens bade fair to make our future audiences comfortable under any and all conditions.

The Detroit Dramatic Club had already bought one hundred chairs which they generously kept in the building, allowing the public free use of them for all occasions. They had also bought a gasoline lamp and the dancing class another, so that now the great need was a musical instrument.

The proceeds of the first entertainment in the fall of 1912 cleared the debt on the Town Hall, so we were ready for a new enterprise.

The ladies of the W. I. C. decided to buy a piano of Mr. Calkins, for which they paid $300 cash. The piano was placed in the hall and used for church school and entertainments.

At the annual election in January 1913, the following officers were elected: President, Mrs. Geo. A. Reynolds; vice-president, Mrs. W. C. Norwood; secretary, Mrs. Calkins; assistant secretary, Miss O. R. Stiling; treasurer, Mrs. Edward Stiling. Many new members were enrolled.

Among the social successes of the winter 1912-1913 was the bazaar in January, at which time $70.14 was made. A Washington’s birthday party consisting of tableaux, followed by a dance, ice cream and box socials, besides musical programs, was given.

A vacation was again planned for the summer, but not so with our rivals. They not only carried on their own business, but tried to run ours, also. As a result, the W. I. C., by a vote of the majority of the members, had their piano removed from the hall, as they were not willing that it should be voted public property just because it pleased a certain few to do so.

The regular meetings were resumed in October, 1913, but the family circle had been broken; the town was no longer united, for bitter rivalry was in the hearts of many.

Plans were made to continue the work of the club, meetings were held, and everything was in good working order.

At the election in January, 1914, the officers were as follows: President, Mrs. Lee H. Lehman; vice-president, Mrs. T. L. Graves; secretary, Mrs. Frank Skill; treasurer, Mrs. Edward Stiling.

The ladies planned a “Twelfth Night” party for January 6th. Invitations were issued to the neighboring clubs, and were accepted. Everyone was looking forward to an evening of frolic and fun in the Town Hall. The ladies, as was their custom, went in the afternoon to prepare the hall for the evening, when certain men of the town proceeded to clear the hall of women, children and several men who were there to help the ladies, for they must hold a meeting there and then. The result was disastrous to many, but fortunately almost all of them have recovered from the bodily injuries received.

Our friends came to the number of 125, the evening was a success, and strengthened the bond of friendship and loyalty.

Other successful entertainments have been given, among which was the “stocking party.” A short program of songs, readings and numbers by the orchestra preceded the dancing and serving refreshments of sandwiches and coffee.

The chicken supper was well patronized. The people enjoyed a bountiful supper, good music and dancing.

The monthly afternoon and evening meetings have been well attended.

Contrary to the usual custom of the club, meetings will be held during the summer months. An afternoon meeting on the third Tuesday, an evening meeting the full of the moon.

At present the club is composed of twenty-five active members. They are not all living in Detroit, but have proven themselves true as steel to the interests of the club.

Since October 20, 1911, the club has raised $798.03.

We do not have to say much more, for you can see for yourselves the building we have worked faithfully to help pay for, and people for miles around will tell you of our hospitality and ability.

We are still members of the State Federation of Women’s Clubs, and are planning to take a more active part in their work in the future.

From the Miami Herald on January 8, 1913:

“Detroit, Fla., Jan. 6 — The annual election of officers of the Women’s Industrial Club was held in the town hall at Detroit, Thursday afternoon, January 2, 1913. The following officers were duly elected:

President: Mrs. George B. Reynolds
Vice-President: Mrs. W. C. Norwood
Secretary: Mrs. O.W. Calkins
Treasurer: Mrs. Edward Etiling (sic)
Trustees: Mrs. E. H. Ring, Mrs. Haas, Mrs. Tanner

“The following ladies were admitted as members of the club: Mrs. Fox, Mrs. J.M. Powers, Mrs. Forrest, Mrs. Riley, Mrs. Priestly, Mrs. R.L. Bow, Mrs. L.L. Bow, Miss Margaret Baker.”

As time goes on, I’ll attempt to identify some of these women. We already know who Mmes. Norwood, Calkins and Powers were. Mrs. Edward Etiling (sic) was Edward Stiling’s wife, of course. I found it interesting that Mrs. Richard L. Bow and Mrs. Lily Lawrence Bow were listed as members of the Women’s Industrial Club in Detroit, because they lived in Homestead, not Detroit. The reason for that was because the Women’s Industrial Club in Detroit was formed before the Homestead Women’s Club. The first meeting of the Homestead Women’s Club was held at the Evans Hotel (now called the Redland Hotel) on September 26, 1914, almost three years after the Women’s Industrial Club in Detroit drew up and signed its founding petition on October 29, 1911.

The Founding of Royal Palm State Park

Posted on June 28, 2016 by JeffOctober 6, 2018

An interesting project for someone to undertake would be an article exploring the role that the Women’s Industrial Club in Detroit played in the establishment of the Royal Palm State Park in 1916. An article that appears on the website of the National Park Service doesn’t mention the members of Women’s Industrial Club. Instead, it gives credit to the Florida Federation of Women’s Clubs and May Mann Jennings, who was elected president of the Florida Federation of Women’s Clubs in November, 1914. What role did the women in Longview and Detroit (now Florida City) play in the founding of Royal Palm State Park? An article that appeared in the Florida Historical Quarterly, entitled May Mann Jennings and Royal Palm State Park, by Linda D. Vance, is accessible through JSTOR and makes for interesting reading. In it, Vance writes that at a December 23, 1914 meeting of the trustees of the Florida Internal Improvement Fund in Tallahassee, they “approved a letter to be sent to W. J. Tweedell and E. J. Powers, Dade County commissioners, authorizing action to prevent trespassing on the hammock land owned by the state.” E. J. Powers is actually Frank John Powers, the land agent for the Flagler’s Model Land Company in Homestead. He was born on August 21, 1874 in South Carolina and was married to Sara Lorena Faber, who was born in Brevard County, Florida, in 1879. In 1918, he was employed by the land department of the Florida East Coast Railway Company at Cape Sable. The letter can be read by viewing the minutes of the Trustees of the Internal Improvement Fund, volume 10, 1913-1914. The letter starts on page 609. Tweedell and Powers were well known to the women who belonged to the Detroit Women’s Industrial Club. Masie Parks Tweedell, Walter’s wife, was a member of the Homestead Women’s Club. On page 10 of her article, Vance writes that after Mrs. Jennings visited Royal Palm Hammock on December 28, 1914, she wrote that “[t]he Hammock is entirely surrounded by water, the palms tower much above the other growth …. The women down in that part of the country are very enthusiastic over the Park subject.” (italics mine)

In 1980, Linda Vance received her PhD from the University of Florida and her dissertation, May Mann Jennings, Florida’s Genteel Activist, should be the starting point for the question I posed earlier in this post. Chapter 7, Madam President and the Old Girl Network reveals that there was a resolution as early as 1905 to preserve Royal Palm Hammock. It also states that Mrs. E. C. Loveland and Mr. and Mrs. W. J. Tweedell were present at the dedication of the Park on November 23, 1916. There is much to be learned about the role that local women played in the establishment of the Park. No doubt, their role was that of being cheer-leaders, but May Mann Jennings needed all the cheering-on that she could get, as her efforts were passively and implacably opposed by most of the politicians of the time.

The struggle to establish the Park was much more difficult than it has been portrayed. The State and County governments, influenced by powerful real estate speculators and their lobbyists, opposed the Federation’s efforts at every turn while speaking nicely about the Federation’s project.

Rev. Joseph A. Kahl – Part II

Posted on June 14, 2016 by JeffDecember 8, 2019

By Jeff Blakley

In part I of this series on the Reverend Joseph A. Kahl, I explored the early lives of Joseph and his future wife, Harriet Woodbury. I ended that post with their marriage, on August 20, 1908.

After their marriage, the Methodist Episcopal Church sent the Reverend Kahl and his new wife to Hunter, in Cass County, North Dakota, which is a tiny community about 70 miles northwest of Abercrombie, where the Woodburys were from. He took up the pastorate of the Methodist Episcopal Church there in April of 1909.

Reverend Kahl preached in Hunter and also in Arthur, another tiny town 5 miles south of Hunter. On May 17, 1910, Rev. Kahl and his wife welcomed the arrival of their daughter, Myoma.

Myoma Kahl at the age of about 2
– courtesy of Louise Kahl Young

As an adult, Myoma preferred to be called Irma and that is what is on her marker in Flagler Memorial Park in Miami.

While Reverend Kahl preached in Cass County, he made the acquaintance of Edward Mitchell, who was the editor and manager of the Hunter Herald. Mr. Mitchell will make another appearance later in this post. Rev. Kahl preached in Cass County until September of 1910, when the Church sent him to preach in Miami at the First Methodist Episcopal Church.¹ In early 1911, he accepted the pastorate of the Park Temple Methodist Episcopal Church in Fort Lauderdale, Broward County, Florida. Reverend Kahl was there from early 1911 until early 1912, when he was sent to Homestead, perhaps to help the Reverend Joseph M. Cormack, who was experiencing personal difficulties.

While in Fort Lauderdale, Harriet, Joseph’s wife, became active in the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. Her membership in the society was noted in a July 8, 1911 society column by Virginia Craig, which appeared in The Miami Herald.

Upon his arrival in Homestead, Reverend Kahl promptly got to work establishing Homestead’s first newspaper, The South Florida Banner, the first edition of which was published on March 15, 1912. A short notice in the April 26, 1912 edition notes that he was living temporarily in Hardee’s house, east of the Sullivan Hotel. That was in the original town of Homestead, on the east side of the railroad tracks. The Sullivan Hotel was located on the corner of N.E. 1st Road and N.E. 1st Drive, east of Railroad (Flagler) Avenue. The location of Mr. Hardee’s house has not been determined. Montelus Clifton Hardee (1863 – 1956) was born in Mississippi and came to South Florida at an early date. He was a prominent tomato and fruit grower and owned packing houses in Dade and Broward Counties. His packing house in Homestead sat perpendicular to the railroad tracks on the west side of the Homestead Depot. In 1924, he was the president of Hardee & Gentile, Inc. and lived at 1756 N. Bayshore Drive in Miami. In the 1930 census, that house was valued at $35,000, a substantial amount of money at that time.

On May 10, 1912, Kahl’s wife, Harriet, and their daughter Myoma came down from Fort Lauderdale to join him.

The South Florida Banner was owned and edited by Rev. Kahl, but it was printed on the presses of The Tropical Sun in West Palm Beach. The Tropical Sun was owned by Guy Metcalf and his paper was Dade County’s only newspaper until the Miami Metropolis published its first edition on May 15, 1896. Metcalf was a mayor of West Palm Beach, a prime mover in creating Broward County out of Dade County in 1909, a real estate speculator and an early school superintendent. The fact that The South Florida Banner was printed in West Palm Beach led to occasional delays in the copies being delivered to Homestead and to proofs not being delivered to the presses on time, via Flagler’s railroad, so that issues missed being printed. It also led to charges by Alexander C. Graw, the owner of The Homestead Enterprise, the successor to The South Florida Banner, that it was published in “a shack.” That was not true – the Banner was located in a small building at 17 West Mowry, just west of the Homestead Mercantile building.

Rev. Kahl Standing by his Office²

Jean Taylor wrote that Kahl’s newspaper “gave priority to church news.”³ I read all of the extant issues of The South Florida Banner on microfilm and I have to disagree. Rev. Kahl covered much more than church activities. Churches were very important social institutions in early Homestead, so Kahl did publish items of a religious nature. Rev. Kahl published the times when he preached at the churches on his circuit and he covered the construction of the First Baptist Church in Homestead on several occasions. But he published no sermons from local preachers nor did he publicize any churches other than the Methodist and Baptist denominations. While he was the editor, Kahl publicized the comings and goings of important and not-so-important people, covered business news in great detail and used his paper to push initiatives to build a new school (now Neva King Cooper, completed in January, 1914), establish a municipal light plant, pass a sanitary ordinance, publicize the accomplishments of the Homestead Circle (the predecessor of the Homestead Women’s Club – Harriet was a founding member) and covered news in Detroit, Longview, Redland, Silver Palm and Princeton. He was also responsible for the fact that Krome Avenue north of Mowry is wider than it is south of Mowry. When the owners of The Homestead Mercantile were building their new store in late 1912, Rev. Kahl persuaded them to dedicate an additional 15′ as right-of-way for Krome Avenue. When the Commerce Addition, on the east side of Krome, was platted in September of 1914, an identical right-of-way was dedicated, thus making Krome Avenue 80′ wide north of Mowry and 50′ wide south of Mowry. Kahl also used his bully pulpit to fulminate against the lack of landscaping near the Depot, which he thought, correctly, made Homestead unappealing to visitors and travelers on their way to Key West. Reverend Kahl was a fierce critic of alcohol consumption and Harriet was a founder of the local chapter of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. Those views naturally found their way into the paper. Rev. Kahl and his wife were responsible for creating the first lending library in Homestead, some years before Lily Lawrence Bow became known for her role in establishing a library in Homestead. In addition to local news, Rev. Kahl published state, national and international news. He covered much more than church news and the surviving issues of The South Florida Banner are likely one of the few sources extant for learning more about what this area was like from 1912 to 1914. Because Kahl was a preacher as well as the editor of the paper, he commanded a great deal of respect and played an important role in early Homestead, a role that was at least as important as those played by W. D. Horne, J. D. Redd, S. E. Livingston, R. F. Tatum, and Henry Brooker, other names frequently mentioned as “founders” of Homestead. Rev. Kahl presided over the meeting in which the Town of Homestead was incorporated in 1913, so the fact that not much has been published about him is regrettable.

In October of 1913, tragedy struck the Kahls when Harriet died from complications from childbirth. The circumstances of the tragedy had been guessed at by various authors over the years, but it wasn’t until Dr. Greg Bush, a professor at the University of Miami, uncovered a manuscript written in 1938 by WPA authors Mary Ferrell Dickinson and Gladys Buck at the Florida State Archives⁴ that the details emerged. Jane Tower, the wife of Dr. John Tower, recounted the tale of why Harriet died. In late September, Harriet gave birth to an infant which died upon delivery. Harriet’s situation, as was not uncommon among women experiencing complications resulting from childbirth in those days, worsened in the days that followed. Dr. Tower was the physician in charge and, when it became apparent that surgery was necessary on October 10, he called Dr. John Dennis in Modello for assistance. Another operation became necessary two days later, in which Dr. B. F. Forrest, the mayor of Detroit, assisted. But their efforts were of no avail and Harriet died early in the morning of October 13 due to complications from the childbirth. She was only 37 years old. Mrs. Tower stated that Harriet’s death was the event that motivated her husband to persuade Florence Hunt to move her hospital from Florida City to Homestead. That took six years, but in September of 1919, Florence opened her maternity hospital in Homestead.

The outpouring of grief in the community was remarkable and the complete memorial service, given by Dr. P. S. Merrill, pastor of the First Methodist Church in Miami, was published in the newspaper. The service was held at the First Baptist Church in Homestead. On January 30, 1915, more than a year after her death, she was remembered by the W.C.T.U. in a memorial service held at the Redland Methodist Episcopal Church.

The pall bearers were Sidney E. Livingston, S. T. Parker, Edward C. Loveland, C. H. Miller, Wilmer H. Cast and Earl Hair. Harriet is buried in an unmarked grave in the Woodbury plot at Naranja. The grave may have had a marker at one time, but it does not have one now.

After Harriet’s death, Rev. Kahl and his daughter, Myoma, continued to live in the house that was built for them in 1912 by carpenters from Detroit.⁵

The South Florida Banner grew substantially during its ownership by Kahl – he beat the drum ceaselessly for additional subscriptions. By late 1913, if a reader thought that the paper was going bankrupt, as other published accounts about the paper read, that reader would think it was so, for Kahl was pleading desperately for more subscriptions. But the reason he was doing so was because he had plans to expand his operations and create a job printing plant so that the paper could be printed locally and also so that other printing jobs could be undertaken. Kahl purchased two lots “just west of where the Banner office is now located” and let a contract to J. U. Free, who built a 24 x 50 foot building with a concrete floor to house the printing plant and a Cottrell printing press which was purchased from the Keystone Type Foundry in Atlanta, Georgia. In April of 1921, this building was expanded to 40 x 65 feet.⁶ The front of the building was stuccoed in January of 1925.⁷

Courtesy of the Historic Homestead Town Hall Museum

George T. Rice was hired to be the foreman. He had published a newspaper in South Carolina for a number of years.⁸ On February 13, 1914,⁹ Kahl announced the stunning news that he had sold a 50% interest in the paper to Ed Mitchell, of North Dakota. Mitchell would be the business manager of the paper while Kahl would retain the editorship of the paper. L. D. Cook, a friend of Mitchell’s from North Dakota, would be the salesman while Guy E. Mitchell, Ed’s nephew, would be the printer. The paper seemed to have a bright future and several lavish editions were published in the summer of 1914.¹⁰ Unfortunately, many issues of The Homestead Enterprise (the name of the paper changed with the issue of March 26, 1914) published in the first half of 1914 have not survived. Only two of those bonus editions are extant. The others, which were supposed to have “more than a hundred biographies of those who made the Redland district” have been lost. In the final part of this series, the complicated story of the difficult transition to new ownership of the newspaper will be told.

Rev. Joseph A. Kahl, Part I

Two Historic Houses Lost

Posted on May 27, 2016 by JeffOctober 28, 2019

by Jeff Blakley

I was saddened to learn from Karon Buckley that two of our historic houses were recently demolished: the Kosel home at the northwest corner of Redland and Plummer and the Schaff house, on Krome at 273rd St.

The Kosel house was not in very good condition due to its age but hopefully, some of the Dade County pine from it was salvaged and put to good use. The Schaff house, on the other hand, looked like it could have been renovated. However, I have no knowledge of its condition other than viewing it from the photographs taken by the Florida Department of Transportation.

I’m posting the following, kindly provided by Bob Bow, who knew Howard E. Schaff and his wife, Arrie, when he was a child at Palm Lodge. The source is the Centennial History of Missouri: One Hundred Years in the Union 1820-1921, Volume 2, St. Louis-Chicago: The S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1921.

Charles E. Schaff, receiver for the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad Company, was born on a farm in Licking county, Ohio. February 4, 1856. He is a son of the late Isaac M. Schaff, who was also born in the Buckeye state and represented one of the old families there of Dutch descent. In early life the father engaged in agricultural pursuits and later turned his attention to railroading, becoming connected with the train service of various roads. He passed away in Carroll county, Missouri, in 1888, aged fifty-seven years, having become a resident of Missouri four years before. He married Angeline Cleaves, a native of Maine and a representative of one of the old New England families of English lineage. She is now living in Columbus, Ohio. By her marriage she became the mother of seven sons and six daughters, of whom eight are living.

Charles E. Schaff, the eldest of the family, was educated in private schools of Virginia and at the age of fourteen started out to provide for his own support. He was first employed as water boy on the Pennsylvania Railroad and initiated his business career with a wage of fifty cents per day. Later he took up railroading and was advanced through various parts of the train service, acting as supervisor and in various executive positions. His first official position was that of train master for the Big Four Railroad in 1889 and he acted in that capacity until the spring of 1891. He was next made general superintendent of the Peoria & Pekin Union at Peoria, Illinois, so serving until July, 1893, when he was made assistant to the president of the Big Four, occupying that position until September, 1894. Later he became assistant general manager, which position he filled until November, 1896, after which he was general manager until January, 1906, or for a period of more than a decade. His next official position was that of vice president of the New York Central Lines at Chicago from 1906 until 1912, when he became president of the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad Company and was its president until September, 1916, since which time he has been receiver for the company. He is likewise a director of the Mississippi Valley Trust Company of St. Louis and is a director of the Terminal Railway of St. Louis and its various subsidiary lines. Throughout his life be has been connected with railway interests and his progress has been continuous. His constantly developing powers have qualified him for added responsibilities and duties and he has long figured prominently in official circles in connection with railway interests throughout the middle west.

On the 31st of December, 1878, in Columbus, Ohio, Mr. Schaff was married to Miss Leila B. White, a native of Ohio and a daughter of George and Hettie (Ehrhart) White, both of whom have passed away. Both were representatives of old Ohio families. Mr. and Mrs. Schaff have two children: Howard E., who was born September 23, 1880, at Columbus, Ohio, married Miss Arrie Hughes of Louisville, Kentucky, and is a resident of Homestead, Florida; the younger son, Frederic A., born in Nelsonville, Ohio, May 24, 1884, wedded Mary Lee Meyer of Brownsville, Texas. They reside at Bronxville, New York, and have two children, Mary Jane and Mary Alan Schaff.

In his political views Charles E. Schaff is an earnest republican. Fraternally he has become a Knights Templar Mason and he belongs to the Noonday, St. Louis, Round Table, Bellerive Country and Country Clubs of St. Louis, his social standing, like his business position, being most enviable.

Here is a historic photograph of the Howard Schaff house, formerly located at 27450 S.W. 177 Ave.:

Here is a photograph taken in 2005, for the Krome Avenue widening project, compiled for the Florida Department of Transportation:

And here is what was left after the track hoe operator finished:

The house was a wonderful example of early Dade County vernacular architecture. It was eligible for inclusion on the National Register for Historic Preservation, according to the report for the Florida Department of Transportation, which is widening Krome Avenue, much to the dismay of agriculturalists in the Redland. Apparently, the owner decided that the increased traffic on Krome Avenue, a result of the widening, would make a commercial re-zoning of the property economically feasible. Even though the house would have been situated 204 feet back from Krome Avenue after the widening, developers prefer a piece of property with minimal issues and the presence of a house designated as eligible for the National Register of Historic Preservation would definitely present a problem.

Such is the fate of historic properties in Miami-Dade County. The possibilities for financial gain almost always win over historic preservation.