Mary (Wilson) Lusco (1931-1969) was born in Sprague, WV as the daughter of Matthew and Maggie Wilson. Her father was a coal miner. Mary was a Private First Class in the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) during the 1950s. She was stationed in Fort Monmouth, NJ and Fort Holabird, MD at a time when there were not many African American women in the WAC. She had a son, Jarvis F. Wilson, who was also in the Army, prior to her marriage to Lovell M. Lusco in 1964. Together they lived at 716 S. 19th Street in the California Neighborhood. Lovell was a WWII veteran and worker at the VA Hospital. Mary was a clinical technician at the children’s hospital.

 

Anna Theresa (Hagmann) Ott (1877-1909) was born in Louisville, KY during the Victorian Era. In 1901, she married Charles George Ott and became a housewife. Together Anna and George had three children: a son and two daughters. Anna died of tuberculosis at the young age of 31. In the early 1900s, tuberculosis was responsible for the deaths of 110,000 Americans each year. During Anna’s lifetime, it was not common to record women’s history and as a result, the information we have on her is very limited. If you have any information about Anna that you would like to share, please comment on this post. Image from Find A Grave user Deborah Kaelin.

Amelia (Cramm) Kahnt Weise Kress (1840-1934) is buried with her three husbands, which is marked by one large monument. Amelia married Charles “Carl” Kahnt, a furniture dealer, in 1862. Together they had two children: Louisa and Frederick. Kahnt died in 1869 at the age of 43. Amelia married Frederick “Fritz” Weise, a saloon keeper, in 1873. Together they had a son, William. Weise died of tuberculosis in 1884 at the age of 46. Amelia married Christian Kress, a shoe retailer, in 1886. Together they lived at 2035 Bank St. in the Portland Neighborhood. Kress died of appendicitis in 1901 at the age of 65. After his death, Amelia briefly stayed in her home before moving in with her daughter’s family (Emil Beyer and Louisa Kahnt) and her granddaughter’s family (Dean Meads and Flora Beyer). Amelia died in 1934 at the age of 94.

Matilda “Minnie” Erb (1858-1943) was born in Louisville, Kentucky. Her mother and father were from Germany. Matilda also went by the name Minnie. She never married and spent much of her adult life living with the family of her sister, Wilhelmine Emmons, who also went by Minnie. As a matter of fact, at the time of the 1930 census, the following “Minnies” were all living together at 4110 West Broadway: Minnie H. Emmons (Matilda’s sister, Wilhelmine) age 65, wife of John Emmons; Minnie M. Boylan, age 38, daughter of John and Minnie Emmons, wife of Howard Boylan; Minnie M. Boylan, age 14, daughter of Howard and Minnie Boylan, granddaughter of John and Minnie Emmons; and Matilda “Minnie” Erb, age 66, sister-in-law of John Emmons. John worked as a traveling salesman for a uniform manufacturing company and owned the house located at 4110 West Broadway. Image of Matilda from Find A Grave user Karen Shirar. 

Dorothy (Rogers) Coleman (1911-1972) was born in Anderson, IN. She moved to Louisville when she married William S. Coleman, an educator with the Civilian Conservation Corps and Executive Director of the Chestnut Street YMCA. They lived in the Russell Neighborhood (305 S. 28th St.) and the Parkland Neighborhood (3225 Dumesnil St.). Together they had three children: Shirley, William, Jr., and Robert. As an African American teacher, Dorothy taught French and English at DuValle Junior High School, a school for African American students. She was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority and a charter member of the Mother Dears Club, an enrichment program for African American children, which later incorporated into Jack and Jill of America.

Anastacia (Cook) Summers (1886-1944) was born in the small town of Alton Station, KY, located in Anderson County. Throughout her life, she was known as Stacia. In July of 1913, she married Edward Summers, a construction worker, in Shelbyville, KY. The couple had five children, and they resided on Story Avenue for many years including the Great Depression. Stacia was a homemaker throughout her life. She died of cirrhosis of the liver at St. Joseph’s Infirmary in 1944. She was 57 years old. Stacia’s final resting place at Eastern Cemetery is with her son, William, who was killed in a car accident in 1936 at the age of 20. Image of Stacia and Edward from Find A Grave user Dorothy Hare Wigginton.

Mattie (Thomas) Lewis (circa 1856-1915) was a housekeeper, wife, and mother. She worked in the home of Henry S. “Tip” Tyler, the 27th Mayor of Louisville. Her husband Plummer Lewis was a Civil War veteran (28th U.S. Colored Infantry) and butler for Mrs. Henry S. Tyler and Col. John Boyle. Together, Plummer and Mattie had two sons: Plummer, Jr., and Cary B. who was an editor of the “Chicago Defender.” We could not find information about Mattie Lewis prior to 1880, and there does not appear to be much information about her life. Mattie lived during a time when neither women’s history nor African American history was frequently recorded. Image is from “Courier-Journal” October 22, 1915.

Lucinda (Sale) Shanks (1820-1898) married Thomas Shanks, a brick mason who later became a deputy sheriff. They married in the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1838. According to the 1870 census, the couple had three daughters and Lucinda was “keeping house.” After Thomas’s death, Lucinda operated a boarding house, which was a common occupation for widows at the time. Lucinda died of senility in 1898 at the age of 77. There is not much documentation on Lucinda’s life as she lived in a time that women’s history was rarely documented. However, in 1898, the year of Lucinda’s death, we know sharpshooter/exhibition shooter Annie Oakley wrote a letter to President McKinley offering the service of 50 lady sharpshooters should the United States go to war with Spain. The letter is viewed as the first political move for women’s rights to combat services in the United States Military. Image of Lucinda from Find A Grave user Cameron.

Louise (Weppner) Waller (1871-1938) was born in Louisville, KY to F.W. Weppner and Elizabeth Dauber, German immigrants. Louise married Joseph C. Waller, a printer, in 1900. Together they had one son, Lethen, and resided at 1047 E. Kentucky Street in the Germantown Neighborhood. Louise was active in the Harmony Chapter (273) of the Order of the Eastern Star (OES). The OES is an organization closely tied to the Masons. The emblem is a five-pointed star with a series of symbols, colors, and meanings. This emblem is engraved on Louise’s headstone. For that reason, her grave became known as the “witch’s grave.” We have found evidence of people vandalizing her grave, so we work hard to explain the OES symbol and protect Louise’s grave.

Louisa Faber (circa 1868-1887) was born in Germany. Louis Szczepansky, her childhood sweetheart and fiancé, immigrated to America to make his fortune and send for his betrothed. During the 1880s, nearly 1.5 million Germans immigrated to the United States from Germany to escape economic poverty and political unrest. Louis obtained a job as head cutter at Deppen & Sons in the tailoring department. He sent for Louisa. She first arrived in New York and insisted on working to pay her way to Louisville. Arriving in Louisville a month later, 19-year-old Louisa decided to work as a domestic for George A. Lippold until the wedding. However, she developed typhoid fever and was sent to the City Hospital without Louis’s knowledge. When he discovered what happened, he attempted to see Louisa several times but was denied visitation because she was too sick. When Louis returned after a couple of days, he was told she was dead and her body was taken to a potter’s field. Louis attempted to retrieve Louisa’s body only to find it had been donated to the local medical school because no next of kin claimed it. Louis eventually secured Louisa’s remains and gave her a private burial at Eastern Cemetery. Image is from “Courier-Journal” October 11, 1887.

Detective Gwendolyn (Malone) Downs (1951-1977) joined the Louisville Police Department in 1974 at the age of 23. She was a detective in the sex-offenses unit. On May 16, 1977, Gwen and her partner, Detective Edward Wegenast, were on patrol when they were dispatched to the White Castle at 7th and Broadway. Upon arrival, they encountered Gwen’s estranged husband, Claude Downs, who was also a Louisville police officer. Claude was off duty when he shot Gwen and then himself. Both died. Gwen served as the corresponding secretary of the Louisville Black Police Officers Organization and had been nominated to serve as the financial secretary of the National Black Police Association. She was also a member of the Black Essence Social Club. She had two daughters. Gwen was the 60th Louisville police officer to be killed in the line of duty since 1907. She was the first female Louisville police officer killed in the line of duty, and she was Louisville’s fourth African American police officer killed in the line of duty. Image of Gwen is from supportingheroes.org.

Loraine (Sneed) Parsons (1896-1971) was a native of Woodford County, KY. She was married at least three times with last names of Duvall, Theobold, and Parsons. At the time of her death, Parsons was a widow with four daughters and one son. She was the owner and operator of the Adair Grocery Store (aka Adair Restaurant aka Moonlight Café) located in the Limerick Neighborhood at 1148 S. 7th Street. Parsons also lived at that address. Unfortunately the building has been demolished. According to several newspaper articles, Parsons was arrested for violating liquor license laws. In one particular incident in 1947, police broke up a “beer-bottle barrage” and “free-for-all” which led to the arrest of nine men and three women participants. Parsons establishment was open for at least 30 years during which time she consistently owned and operated it. This was a feat for a female entrepreneur at this time.

Flora (Kaltenbacher) Bremer (1860-1898) was the daughter of Ludwig and Pauline (Erdtel) Kaltenbacher, who were German immigrants. Flora was born in Evansville, IN in 1860. On January 6, 1885, at the age of 25, Flora married Henry Bremer. Together the couple had six children: three boys and three girls. There is very little information on Flora. However, Flora’s daughter Sophia married Dominic Ehrler in 1913. Dominic was the son of dairy farmer Joseph Ehrler. In 1924, Dominic and Sophia had secured 40 acres of land at 3231 Poplar Level Road and started what we know today as the Ehrler’s Dairy Farm. Three of their sons started processing the milk and selling it door to door. The business evolved into a full-scale processing plant that served all of Jefferson County, several surrounding counties, Southern Indiana, and Lexington. They also operated eleven ice cream stores. Image of Flora from Find A Grave user Stephanie Brown Kaltenbacher.

 

Mary Jane (Constable) Gibson (circa 1828-1880) was born to free blacks in Baltimore, MD where she married William H. Gibson in 1850. They then moved to Louisville after Gibson had established a school for African Americans in the basement of a Methodist Church at 4th and Green Streets. Mary Jane taught sewing and dressmaking at the school. Her husband was a well-known educator and community organizer. In 1877, he helped establish the Colored Orphan’s Home on 18th and Dumesnil Streets. Mary Jane was among the women who worked to support the Home. She and William had six children of which three also became educators: William H., Jr., Lucretia, and Mary Jane. Lucretia Gibson (circa 1870-1956) taught at Booker T. Washington School (principal Albert Meyzeek) and Western Colored School. She was one of the organizers of the Louisville Choral Society with the Minnis sisters and was organist of the Quinn Chapel AME Church Sunday School. Lucretia was also a member of the Kentucky Association of Colored Women’s Clubs with the Nugent sisters.

On this St. Patrick’s Day we will share Eliza (Fitzsimmons) Baker (circa 1828-1873) who was born in Ireland. It is unclear when she immigrated as there were several Eliza Fitzsimmons in the immigration records. At some point she married Eli Baker and became a housewife. Together they had five children: two sons and three daughters. Eliza died of cholera at the age of 45. Louisville saw 7 separate cholera epidemics due to unsanitary conditions affecting the water supply. Eliza died during the 4th epidemic as did 50,000 Americans across the country. Very few were safe from the cholera epidemics including the Rowan Family at Federal Hill, also known as My Old Kentucky Home. In July 1833, 26 slaves and 4 members of the Rowan Family, containing John who had just been appointed President Andrew Jackson’s Secretary of State, died of cholera. Image of patent from picryl.com.