Dear Julia,
In the 1930s I attended an elementary school, Frank T. Howard No. 1, at Cleveland and Lopez streets in New Orleans. I believe there was an F.T. Howard No. 2 somewhere in the Uptown area.
My question is: What other philanthropic endeavors are attributed to Mr. Howard and, was he a contemporary of John McDonogh?
Myrtis B. Kern
Metairie
Yes, there were two local public schools named in honor of New Orleans native Frank Turner Howard (1855-1911). Frank T. Howard No. 1, located in Mid-City, was dedicated in 1901 while Frank T. Howard No. 2, located Uptown, was dedicated in ’03.
McDonogh died in 1850, five years before Frank Turner Howard’s birth. Howard’s financial generosity made possible the public schools dedicated in his name. The civic-minded Howard also headed and supported the Fisk Free Library, the New Orleans Public Library and the Louisiana Historical Association. In addition, he raised funds and helped acquire land for Confederate Memorial Hall (now Louisiana’s Civil War Museum at Confederate Memorial Hall). In recognition of his exemplary community service, the Daily Picayune awarded Howard its first Loving Cup.
Dear Julia,
I have located an antique tub I wish to purchase and the feet are topped with the letter “B.” Because that’s my initial, I thought it would be great to have it in our new home. I was told the footed tub came from the Boudreaux Hotel which was on Canal Street and that it burned down in 1904. So far I cannot find any information to support the existence of the hotel. Can you please tell me if in fact the story could be true?
Jo Baudoin
Mandeville
I haven’t been able to find a citation to confirm the existence of a turn of the 20th century Canal Street hostelry called the Hotel Boudreaux. New Orleans city directories don’t list a hotel by that name. There was, however, a Hotel Bero. Located at 226 Bourbon St., it was run by Mrs. Victor Bero, who was also the proprietor of the popular Victor’s Restaurant across the street at 211 Bourbon St.
Dear Julia and Poydras,
I faithfully read your column each month and thought of you when I discovered a postcard in some of my mother’s possessions. We lived in Louisiana for many years and just recently moved to California. My mother’s family lived in New Orleans for a number of years and I was very curious about the business printed on the card: “the Louisiana Grocer’s Co-Operative, Inc.” Can you please help solve the puzzle of who owned this business and is it still in operation?
Thanks for your help and keep up the great job with New Orleans history. Hope Poydras is behaving!
Genie Hendry
Rancho Mirage, Calif.
Genie, the only time Poydras behaves is when he’s sleeping though, given that wicked cackle he has when he dreams, I’m not even sure about that.
The Louisiana Grocers Cooperative Inc. appears to have first been incorporated in 1933. Early officers were Ellis E. P. Jordy and James K. McNamara. Later renamed the Louisiana Grocers’ Co-operative Inc., it’s no longer an active Louisiana corporation. Similar groups, such as Associated Food Stores, still exist and serve the same function, enabling smaller food stores to band together and buy in bulk. By making large wholesale purchases as a group, the grocers who belong to these cooperatives can lower operating costs and offer competitively priced goods to their customers.
Dear Julia,
I have recently read the question and answer from Doug O’Bannon regarding an elementary school band and in the article, Mr. O’Bannon stated that Sam Barthe’s school was in a house on Napoleon Avenue. Sam Barthe’s school actually was in a house but not on Napoleon Avenue. The school was next door to our family’s house at 3624 General Pershing St. in 1942 when Barthe was a young man. He and his wife lived in a small place on the premises that one of my sisters thinks was originally for the previous caretaker of the property, the school actually faced South Tonti Street. Their young son was an infant for whom my sisters and I occasionally babysat. I can remember, as a McMain freshman, the house had a swimming pool inside. Back in the “dark ages” McMain was an all-girls high school and Fortier was strictly for boys; neither were co-ed at that time. McMain was all-girls throughout the 1940s. I don’t know when either school became co-ed.
What can you tell me about Kruttschnitt school, which I’d not heard of prior to Mr. O’Bannon’s question? Was this a private school? I attended Allen school when I was in kindergarten.
My question to you is where I might obtain a City of New Orleans street map printed prior to Katrina – do any still exist?
Audrey Enzor
Carriere, Miss.
You are quite right on all counts, Audrey. The allegation that the schools were co-educational during World War II suddenly appeared when computer-dwelling gremlins invaded my editor’s computer and added the bewildering gender-bending details to Mr. O’Bannon’s letter.
Kruttschnitt was a public school located in the 3500 block of Dryades St. Renamed Walter H. Cohen High School, its original building was demolished when a new school building was built at the site in the late 1960s. The school was damaged by three feet of post-Katrina flooding.
Before you run off and pay an exorbitant rate for a pre-Katrina local street map, I think you should know that the flooding from the levee failures didn’t wash away either the city or its street grid. I don’t know what you’re thinking, but pre-Katrina and post-Katrina street maps should be virtually identical.
Dear Julia Street,
I have enjoyed your little-known facts about New Orleans. In 1937 when I was a “little girl” (7 years old) I was taken by my mother to the 12th floor of the Maison Blanche building to the office of Dr. S. D. Gore to get braces. Every two weeks we returned to have the braces checked. I thought this was the tallest building in the world!
My father was a dentist who graduated from Tulane dental school in 1925. Most people stand me down that Tulane didn’t have a dental school. Since I possess his diploma, I’m sure Tulane had such a school!
I also remember Canal Street as a child and the Roosevelt Hotel and Godcheaux Department Store. Mother took me to eat at Galatoire’s and also Arnaud’s prior to returning to Hattiesburg.
Widgie B. Bell
Hattiesburg, Miss.
Tulane University most certainly had a dental school although, according to John P. Dyer’s Tulane: The Biography of a University, the School of Dentistry had a brief but tumultuous history. The New Orleans College of Dentistry, founded in 1899, had shared students, faculty and facilities with Tulane but lost its building in a 1908 fire. The school set up temporary headquarters in Tulane’s Hutchinson Memorial Building. The following year, the New Orleans College of Dentistry was incorporated into Tulane’s Medical Department, with Dr. Andrew G. Friedrichs serving as its first dean.
Although the dental school served vast numbers of the poor, thus providing valuable community service, it always teetered on the brink of financial ruin. In 1926-’27, the department operated at a $14,000 loss and, in June ’28, Tulane’s dental school closed. The school’s clinic, however, remained open until ’34.
Win a Court of Two Sisters Jazz Brunch or a night at the Omni Royal Orleans Hotel
Here’s a chance to stay at an elegant local hotel, or to eat, drink and listen to music, and have your curiosity satiated all at once. Send Julia a question. If we use it, you’ll be eligible for a monthly drawing for one of two Jazz Brunch gift certificates for two at THE COURT OF TWO SISTERS in the Vieux Carré or an overnight stay for two at the elegant Omni Royal Orleans Hotel. To take part, send your question to: Julia Street c/o New Orleans Magazine, 110 Veterans Blvd., Suite 123, Metairie, LA 70005 or e-mail: errol@renpubllc.com. This month’s winners are Josie Baudoin, Mandeville; Genie Hendry, Rancho Mirage, Calif.; and Myrtis Kern, Metairie.