THE ROSE-MONEY FARM

Fort Bayou Area

Locator Plat

Like many early events in the history of an area, the origin of an event becomes obscure with time.  The Rose Farm is such an occasion.  How the name Rose Farm survived the years is in itself an anomaly as it could have easily been remembered as the Money or Earle Farm.  Regardless, much has happened in this area north of Fort Bayou, which is noteworthy.

The Rose Farm, which appropriately should be called the Earle Farm, was commenced about 1890 by Parker Earle (1831-1917), an exceptional gentleman from Vermont.  Earle and his family left an indelible mark on the history of Ocean Springs, which has generally been overlooked by local historians.  I will now share with you my discoveries of this interesting period of our history.  First let me relate to you some information about the Earle Family.

In the late 1850s, a young well-educated Yankee left the culture and security of New York, and went west to the corn and wheat country of Southern Illinois. The Rose Farm consisted of approximately 840 acres of citrus and pecan orchards, cultivated fields, pastures, golf links, fish ponds, houses and outbuildings, and associated woodlands located about two miles north of Ocean Springs, Mississippi in Section 7, T7S-R8W and Section 12, T7S-R9W.  This land was purchased by the Winter Park Land Improvement and Live Stock Company in March 1887, November 1887, and May 1892, from William Seymour and Parker Earle.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 8, p. 432, Bk. 8, p. 337, and Bk. 13, p. 494)

The Winter Park Land Improvement and Livestock Company

The Winter Park Land Improvement and Live Stock Company was organized circa 1886.  Parker Earle (1831-1917) was the president and owned 430 shares of stock.  The directors were:  Franklin Sumner Earle (320 shares), Charles T. Earle (300 shares), W.C. West (10 shares), J.P. Baldwin (10 shares), and T.R. Roach (10 shares).  The company owned approximately 15,000 acres of land in Jackson County, Mississippi.  For the most part these land holdings were pine-bearing tracts with the largest block located generally east and north of the Latimer Community.  A summary of their holdings follows:  T5S-R8W (2080 acres), T5S-R9W  (1960 acres), T6S-R8W (7960 acres), T6S-R9W (1560 acres), T7S-R8W (1400 acres), and T7S-R9W (176 acres).

            Parker Earle was born at Mount Holly, Rutland County, Vermont.  He was the son of Sumner Earle (1802-1851) and Clarissa Tucker (b. 1799).  University educated in horticulture, Earle was a disciple of the great Boston horticulturist, Hovey, the Luther Burbank of his time.  In 1855, Parker Earle married Ohio native, Melanie Tracy (1837-1889), at Dwight, Illinois.  Their family all Illinois born were:  Franklin Sumner Earle (1856-1929), Charles Theodore Earle (1861-1901), and Mary Tracy Horne (1862-1946+)

            In the Cobden-Anna area of southern Illinois, Parker Earle developed vegetable gardens and fruit orchards.  The market for his labors were at Chicago which was 320 rail miles to the north.  In the Spring of 1866, Earle designed and built several large, insulated, wooden chests.  At the bottom of these containers, he placed ice.  The remainder of the boxes were filled with strawberries.  This was the precursor to the refrigerated rail car.  Earle got $2 per quart for his berries at the South Water Street Market in Chicago.  By the 1880s, Parker Earle was one of the most widely known horticulturist in America.  He had been named the first president of the Mississippi Valley Horticultural Society (now the American Horticultural Society).  In 1876, he was a judge at the Centennial Exposition, and later was named horticulture director of the World Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition (1884-1885), at New Orleans.  It was during his tenure at New Orleans, that Parker Earle and family discovered the village of Ocean Springs.  They bought real estate and built a home in the Lovers Lane area.  In 1890, Parker Earles's son, Charles T. Earle, married Cora Poitevent (1868-1930+), the daughter of neighbor, Captain Junius Poitevent (1837-1919) and May Eleanor Staples (1847-1932).

F. Goettche bookkeeper at Earle’s Farm near Ocean Springs.(The Biloxi Herald, January 23, 1892, p. 4)

Ansteen Hanson (1870-1960) was born on February 26, 1870.  In 1887, she married Jessie Littleton McDaniel (1865-1951), a native of Cobden, Illinois.  He had come to Ocean Springs with Parker Earle (1831-1917) to work on the Earle Farm (Rose Farm), just east of Gulf Hills.  By 1896, McDaniel was in the butcher shop and ice business at Ocean Springs.  The family survived the yellow fever epidemic of 1896, by utilizing a remedy learned from her father, Captain Thomas Hanson.  Mr. McDaniel lost an iceman and two horses in the scourge.  He later joined the L&N Railroad bridge building section.(The Times-Picayune, September 19, 1947)

Three of the McDaniel’s children were born at Ocean Springs, before the couple relocated to New Orleans.  Here Mr. McDaniel began a career as a building contractor.  He was a founder of the Franklin Avenue Baptist Church, which he built almost single handedly in 1934.  McDaniel had retired in 1929.  Their children were: Mrs. C.E. Wisecup, Mrs. George Preiss, J.E. McDaniel, Ira McDaniel, Clyde McDaniel, Mrs. P.E. Rooney, Mrs. B.R. Jones, Roy McDaniel.(The Times Picayune, September 1937?)

In the early 1890s, a local journal reported that Parker Earle & Son were shipping tomatoes, peaches, and grapes from eighty cultivated acres.  By October 1891, farm production had increased and Mr. Earle put a large new ferry into service on Fort Bayou.  Although locally no mention is made of the Cheniere Caminada Storm of 1893, this large killer hurricane damaged fifty-percent of the orange and sugar crop in southeastern Louisiana.  It can be assumed that the Earle Farm suffered some damage from this awesome tempest.

Reporter Catherine Cole of The New Orleans Daily Picayune on a visit to the area reported the following romantic description on July 24, 1892:

From Ocean Springs to Biloxi there is a most charming woodland drive of six miles.  You must cross the Bayou Fort in that wide-prowed, prosaic ferry that will persist in looking picturesque as it floats over the steel-gray unrumpled waters, holding their everlasting portrait of pine rushes.  And then the horse ambled up the yellow hill under an arcade of loblollies, giving out their violet-like scent as the west wind bruises the long green needles, and you come in time to the Parker Earle vineyard, where grape gatherers are stepping by, holding on their shoulders huge round baskets filled with purple bloomy clusters, where, under a long shed at long benches, half a hundred girls, scissors in hand, are at work placing the bunches into baskets for shipment to the fabulous Chicago of those riches and World's Fair, perhaps, they dream as they work.

In 1893, Parker Earle left Ocean Springs for the New Mexico Territory in the wake of the collapse of his land and farm holdings at Jackson County.  The general consensus is that the Earle family financial misfortunes were caused by their efforts to raise fruits and vegetables in seasons which turned out to be disastrous to that business, and the Panic of 1893.  The Panic of 1893 was created by the uneasy state of the British securities market in 1890.  This factor caused the cessation of foreign capital into American business resulting in failure of the New York market.  Subsequently, large amounts of gold were exported.  The winter of 1893-1894 saw widespread unemployment, violence prone strikes, and the commencement of an economic depression which lasted until 1897.

Parker Earle died at Pasadena, California on January 12, 1917.  His remains were cremated and interred at Ocean Springs on April 17, 1917 in the Evergreen Cemetery.

Commissioner’s Sale

The Earle Farm and other lands were sold at a Commissioner's Sale in August 1897, because the Winter Park Land Improvement and Live Stock Company failed to pay a mortgage to George S. Smith who had loaned the company $5000 in October 1894.(JXCO, Ms. Chancery Court Cause No. 724)

F.H. Lewis, the Special Commissioner, listed and sold the following property belonging to the Winter Park Land Improvement and Live Stock Company to John B. Lyon of Chicago for $5610:

            23 plows and cultivators, 8 harrows, 1 fertilizer scatterer, 3 seeders, 1 grindstone, 1 sulky hayrake, 1 mowing machine, 8 spades and shovels, 8 hand rakes, 2 axes, 2 jack screws, 2 scythes, 2 grub hoes, 4 two-horse wagons, 1 hand cart, 3 pumps, 1 bellows, 1      anvil, 3 blacksmith hammers, 1 iron kettle, 4 mules, 7 horses, all harness gear, 9,750 fruit and vegetable  boxes, and the following lands:  T6S-R8W (600 acres), T7S-R8W (3120 acres), and T7S-R9W (1700 acres).(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 18, pp. 346-347) 

            A few days later, also in August 1897, John B. Lyon conveyed this property to Joseph B. Rose of New York City. (JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 18, pp. 347-348)

Joseph Benson Rose (1841-1902) and grandson, Joseph Benson Rose II

  (Chicago Observer, February 13, 1897. Courtesy of J. Benson Rose, Sarasota, Florida)

Joseph Benson Rose

By early February 1898, Joseph Benson Rose (1841-1902) was making extensive improvements to the farm.  The management of the property was in the capable hands of W.D. Cowly and J.C. Keeler.  During its primary development in the 1890s, East Beach at Ocean Springs was the locale of several large estates and villas owned primarily by affluent businessmen from the Midwest and West.  In winter, they and their consorts sought relief from the northern cold.  Many were sportsmen who enjoyed sailing and the bountiful hunting and fishing opportunities available along the Mississippi coastline.  Of these winter visitors, Joseph Benson Rose (1841-1902) stands out because of his philanthropic activities here and ownership of the "Rose Farm".  His love for Ocean Springs seems to be rivaled only by William B. Schmidt (1823-1900), "the merchant prince of New Orleans".

            Joseph B. Rose (1841-1902) was born at Cambridge, Ohio.  He grew into manhood tall and with an athletic physique.  Although he carried himself with a military air, Joseph B. Rose was sociable and hospitable by nature.  Some thought that he bore a striking resemblance in facial expression, stature, as well as business acumen, to J. Pierpont Morgan (1837-1913), a leading financier of the time, and the founder of US Steel.  Joseph B. Rose acquired his education in the world of commerce while engaged in the wholesale drug business at New York City from 1860-1878.  He joined the Royal Baking Powder Company in 1878.  His unbounded energy, as president, led this corporation to be one of the most recognized and profitable businesses in the world.  Royal Baking Powder is now part of Nabisco after merging with Standard brands in 1929.  Louisianan, John H. Maginnis, a descendant of Arthur A. Maginnis Sr. (1815-1877), has provided me with a photograph copied from a very recent New York Times (December 15, 1996) of the old Royal Baking Powder building located in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn.  A developer is planning to convert this structure to 136 residential lofts priced from $300,000 to $350,000.  Also in the same vein, there is some consideration of doing a similar conversion project to the old Maginnis Cotton Mill buildings at New Orleans.

            Circa 1870, Joseph Benson Rose married Florence Alicia Field (1850-1893).  They were the parents of: William H. Rose (1872-1873) and George Rose II (1872-1936).

            Joseph B. Rose moved to Chicago in 1890.  He bought controlling interest in the Price Baking Powder Company for $1,500,000.  Dr. V.C. Price was the founder of this company.

            In March 1895, Mr. Joseph Benson Rose established a residence at Ocean Springs, called "Elk Lodge", when he purchased sixteen acres at East Beach from Henry M. Blakely (1866-1902+) in Lots 1 and 2 of Section 32, T7S-R8W.  This tract was once a part of the old Lyman Bradford (1804-1858) homestead, and within the present day perimeter of LeMoyne Beach Subdivision.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 16, pp. 344-346)

            "Elk Lodge" was probably named and built by H.M. Blakely who resided at Leadville, Colorado.  The Pascagoula Democrat-Star of February 16, 1894, alluded to this as follows: 

"Mr. Blakely expects to build a magnificent winter residence on the Tracy property, a part of which he purchased when here last winter". 

            H.M. Blakely was known locally as "the dry goods prince of Leadville".

            The J.B. Rose tract was also once a portion of the thirty-two acre estate of renown artist, John Martin Tracy (1843-1893).  Tracy is known as "America's Great Sporting

Painter", and was the brother-in-law of Parker Earle (1831-1917), the original developer of the "Rose Farm".     The Pascagoula Democrat-Star of November 17, 1899, described the East Beach residence of Mr. Rose as:

Elk Lodge, the winter residence of Col. J.B. Rose, is one of the finest and most beautiful villas situated on east beach.  The grounds are tastefully and artistically ornamented with tropical fruit trees and rare shrubbery.  The dwelling is built after the style of a German suburban home.  It has a wide hall in the center with large elegant rooms on both sides, richly furnished and is very particularly an ideal seaside retreat.  Colonel Rose is fond of yachting and hunting, and is the owner of the celebrated yacht, Nepenthe.  He entertains quite a select number of wealthy Northern friends each season.

Yachtsman

            As the local journal stated, Mr. Rose was indeed a wealthy man and aquatic sportsman.  He was a member of the Atlantic Yacht Club of New York City and the Southern Yacht Club of New Orleans.  Rose and his son, George Rose, owned at least two yachts, the Nepenthe and the Crescent.  The Nepenthe, a 45-foot cabin sloop, was built in Boston by George Lawley & Son for Charles P. Richardson of Chattanooga and New Orleans for $14,000.  She won the "Championship of the South" in a match race outside of Mobile Bay, against a Mobile boat in the 1890s.  When George Rose bought the vessel in June 1897, for his father, it was described as "one of the finest, fastest, pleasure yachts in the South".  He paid George Agar, ex-fleet captain of the Southern Yacht Club, $16,000 for the vessel.  Colonel Rose often sailed to the Chandeleurs with Madames Rushton H. Field, Julia E. Brown, Ellen Woodruff, and Ida Vermilyea.  They were also winter residents and

some of his "east end" neighbors. 

            In January 1898, Colonel Rose sailed the Nepenthe with passengers, Mrs. Rushton H. Field, Julia E. Brown, A.R. Vermilyea and William Ziegler of New York, along the shore of the Gulf of Mexico.  They traveled four hundred miles and returned from the Florida coast to Ocean Springs by rail.

            In addition, J.B. Rose also possessed a gasoline launch called, Florence.  It caught fire at Ocean Springs in October 1899, and was burned beyond repair.

           Mr. Rose also enjoyed hunting.  It was common for him to travel miles from "Elk Lodge" in pursuit of game.  In November 1899, he went to Pearlington and killed two large deer.  Rose shot them from horseback in an exhilarating chase.  Mr. Rose was also fond of hunting on the Leatherbury Place.  In late 1899, when the Methodists decided to relocate their congregation from Porter near Washington to the southeast corner of Porter and Rayburn, Joseph B. Rose donated $50 to the building fund.  He also gave an equal amount to postmaster, Thomas I. Keys (1861-1931), for the construction of a new colored Methodist Episcopal Church on County Road (Government) and Goss (General Pershing).  The colored church, which cost $1000 was dedicated in early February 1900, by S.A. Cowan, P.E. 

Joseph B. Rose Light Artillery-Mississippi National Guard Battery D

            Upon arriving by train at Ocean Springs in May 1898, Colonel Rose was greeted by Battery D, the Joseph B. Rose Light Artillery, which was named for him.  He addressed the soldiers among cheers from a large crowd, and they saluted him in return.  Rose often entertained Battery D and the Merry Twelve Band at Elk Lodge.  He went to Washington D.C. in May 1898, on behalf of these Ocean Springs artillery men.  Ocean Springs Battery D was the First Artillery regiment of the Mississippi National Guards.  It was mustered into service on April 13, 1899, by Colonel E.W. Morill of Biloxi.  Samuel T. Haviland (1845-1911) served the unit as Captain.  Lieutenants were Joseph B. Garrard (1871-1915) and Joe Marsh.  Initially there were twenty-six recruits.  In early May 1899, the Joseph B. Rose Battery D had been reorganized.  The new captain was J.B. Garrard, 1st Lieutenant-Harry P. Halstead (1873-1916), 2nd Lieutenant-Louis V. Schmidt (1880-1953), and Edward F. Illing (1878-1952), quartermaster.  In November 1899, J.B. Garrard was at Honolulu, Sandwich Islands (now Hawaiian Islands) on his way to the Philippines as a volunteer in the 29th Regiment U.S. Army.  He had served with distinction during the Spanish American War (1898) in Cuba, where he had been wounded by poison spears and contracted malarial fever.  The Treaty of Paris (1899) ceded the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico to the United States.

George Rose II

           Colonel Rose's son, George Rose II (1872-1936) of Chicago, married Mary Josephine Maginnis (1873-1957) of New Orleans on April 30, 1896.  They honeymooned at "Elk Lodge".  Mrs. George Rose II was the daughter of John Henry Maginnis (1843-1888) and Elizabeth Cornelson Tweed (1852-1921) of New York City.  Elizabeth Tweed Maginnis is believed to have been the daughter of William Marcy Tweed (1823-1878), the leader of Tammany, the New York City Democratic political machine.  Mrs. Rose was Queen of Rex at the New Orleans Mardi Gras in 1894.  The Maginnis family was engaged in large scale cotton cloth production at New Orleans.  They maintained a large home on the front beach at Ocean Springs near the present day Ocean Springs Yacht Club.  John Henry Maginnis was killed by lightning on July 4, 1888, at Ocean Springs.  George Rose II and Josephine Maginnis Rose were the parents of three children: Joseph Benson Rose (1898-1944); George Rose III (1900-1934) m. Jeanette Ross Vogel; Reginald Perry Rose (1903-1978) m. Bertha Benkard (1906-1982); and Josephine Gwendolyn Rose (1906-2004) m. John William McKay III.

            In October 1901, J.B. Rose sold "Elk Lodge" to Mary Florence Meyers Field.  She already owned the western, sixteen acres, contiguous to "Elk Lodge".  Madame Field was the wife of Rushton H. Field (1838-1908), the proprietor of the Reviere House at Chicago.  Monsieur Field also had mining interests in Lake County, Colorado near Leadville.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk.  24, pp. 14-15)

            After selling his East Beach estate, Joseph B. Rose probably lived at his Rose Farm, north of Fort Bayou.  He continued to enjoy hunting both locally and in adjacent Alabama. 

Earle Farm

           In August 1897, Joseph B. Rose had acquired, what was then known as the Earle Farm, from John B. Lyon (d. 1904) of Chicago.  Lyon, a Chicago entrepreneur, had acquired in 1890, the former Alfred E. Lewis (1812-1885) Estate which comprised about 16,000 acres east of Ocean Springs and would become known briefly as "New Chicago".  Mr. Lyon formed the Gulf of Mexico Land and Development Company and planned a large resort and subdivision at Belle Fontaine Beach, called Belle Fontaine Park.  A detailed survey plat constructed by E.W. Morrill of the Lyon property is recorded in the Jackson County Chancery Court Land Deed Book 12, pp. 158-161.  The Morrill Survey depicts many avenues with names such as, Michigan, Chicago, St. Paul, and several large plazas, Gulf and Graveline, as well as the hotel.

            Katherine Lyon, the daughter of John B. and Emily C. Lyon, married Robert Walbridge Hamill, a commercial merchant, residing at Chicago.  Circa 1916, the large Hamill Farm was established south of Fontainebleau on the legated Lyon holdings.  R.W. Hamill also dreamed of a resort here on the Mississippi Sound, but the Great Depression of the 1930s, destroyed these aspirations.

            The Earle Farm had gone into bankruptcy, a combination of the depression generating, Panic of 1893, and colder than normal winters which damaged crops.  Parker Earle, the founder of this magnificent agricultural operation north of Fort Bayou, relocated to the New Mexico Territory where he commenced developing apple and pear orchards on former range lands, in the Pecos River Valley, near Roswell.

             In the conveyance from John B. Lyon, Mr. Rose acquired the following in the Earle Farm transaction for $5610:

23 plows and cultivators, 8 harrows, 1 fertilizer  scatterer, 3 seeders, 1 grindstone, 1 sulky hay rake, 1 mowing machine, 8 spades and shovels, 8 hand rakes, 2 axes, 2 jack screws, 2 scythes, 2 grub hoes, 4 two-horse wagons, 1 hand cart, 3 pumps, 1 bellows, 1 anvil, 3 blacksmith hammers, 1 iron kettle, 4 mules, 7 horses, all harness gear, 9,750 fruit and vegetable boxes, and the following lands:  T6S-R8W (600 acres), T7S-R8W (3120 acres), and T7S-R9W (1700 acres).(Jackson County Land Deed Book 18, pp. 346-347)

Western horses

        In January 1901, Rushton H. Field (1838-1908), imported a carload of western horses to the Rose Farm.  Mr. Field was an experienced horseman and was capable of succeeding with this venture as he had  years of experience.(The Biloxi Daily Herald, January 15, 1901, p. 8)

Demise           

             On July 3, 1902, George Benson Rose died suddenly of heart disease while at the Savoy Hotel in New York City.  He had gone to New York to bury his wife who had died at Chicago ten years before.  She was to be placed in a mausoleum at the Woodlawn Cemetery on Webster Avenue and East 233rd Street in the Bronx.  Her remains had not yet arrived from the Rosehill Cemetery at Chicago when Joseph Benson Rose expired.  Mr. Rose was passed through the St. Thomas Church, probably Episcopalian.  George Rose attended the funeral of his parents traveling to Gotham from New Orleans.  His brother, Joseph Benson Rose Jr., also attended.

             In January 1903, Frank H. Lewis was appointed administrator of the estate of Joseph B. Rose.  A petition was filed claiming that the Rose Estate owed back taxes for four to five years to the State of Mississippi and Jackson County in the amount of $50,000 to $75,000.  The Rose lands were valued at $1,250,000, an exceptionally high sum for this time.

             Like many others from the Midwest who sought refuge from the cold winters that plagued their homelands, Joseph Benson Rose left an indelible mark on the local landscape.  This New York-Chicago financier who made his fortune selling baking powder, revived the bankrupt Earle Farm north of Fort Bayou, and sailed our sparkling Bay and Gulf waters deserves our remembrance.  Certainly, Ocean Springs benefited from his brief occupation.  Shortly after Rose's demise, Mrs. Annie Benjamin (1848-1938), the wealthy lumber heiress of Milwaukee, would arrive on the Fort Point peninsula (called Benjamin Point during and years after her occupation) and create the magical, "Shore Acres".  More entrepreneurs mesmerized by the charm and beauty of Ocean Springs would follow.

            On February 13, 1899, the mercury fell to one degree Fahrenheit on the Mississippi coast.  Although no report of fruit orchard damage was reported from the Rose Farm, an announcement was made in The Biloxi Daily Herald concerning some of the property loss at Ocean Springs:

            Captain John Johnson was probably the heaviest loser of anyone in town from the cold.  A few days previous he had purchased 700 barrels of oysters at fancy prices, all of which froze, entailing a loss of nearly $800.  To make matters worse, orders for oysters have been pouring in all week, which cannot be filled.

            The fishing was good at Ocean Springs as the fish were so cold they could not swim.  As the piscesan creatures floated helplessly, they were picked up with ease.  The Baptist and Catholic Churches cancelled their services due to the severe weather.

            The freeze must not have damaged the vineyards as The Pascagoula Democrat-Star reported on July 7, 1899, that the Rose Farm was shipping immense and excellent quality grapes.  In January 1900, a turnip weighing 9 1/4 pounds was exhibited at the Davis Brothers Store in Ocean Springs attesting to the productivity of the farm's soils.

             In October 1901, J.B. Rose sold "Elk Lodge" to Mary Florence Field.  She was the wife of Rushton Field of Chicago.  Mr. Field was the proprietor of the Revier House at Chicago and had large mining interests in Colorado.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 24, pp. 14-15)

            After selling his beachfront estate, Rose probably lived at his farm while at Ocean Springs.  In January 1902, Rose was in the area as he went on a hunting trip to Alabama.

            On July 3, 1902, Rose died suddenly, probably of heart disease, while at the Hotel Savoy in New York City.  He had gone to New York to bury his wife who had died at Chicago ten years before.  She was to be placed in a mausoleum at Woodlawn.  Her body had not arrived from the Rosehill Cemetery at Chicago when Rose died.  He was passed through the St. Thomas Church probably Episcopalian. George Rose attended the funeral of his parents traveling to New York from New Orleans.  His brother, Joseph Benson Rose, also attended. 

             In January 1903, F.H. Lewis was appointed administrator of the Estate of Joseph B. Rose.  A petition was filed claiming that the Rose Estate owed back taxes for four to five years to the State of Mississippi and Jackson County in the range of $50,000 to $75,000.  The Rose property was valued at $1,250,000, an exceptionally high amount for this time.

F.M. Dick

Circa 1900, Frederick Magruder Dick (1857-1922) became the manager of the Rose Farm.  He would hold this position until its sale to the Money family in the fall of 1909.  Under the capable management of F.M. Dick, the Rose Farm appears to have prospered.  After the disastrous August 1901 Hurricane which did considerable damage to the pear and pecan trees reducing the crop about one-third, Dick purchased Jersey milk cows in Atlanta (1902), built a large fish pond and stocked it with black bass (1902), witnessed contractor, John A. Sutter of Pass Christian, bore for oil? and ground water (1902), sold dairy products (1904), and survived the damaging Hurricane of September 1906.

            In March 1904, the Rose Farm advertised as follows in The Progress:

ROSE FARM DAIRY PRODUCTS

Fresh Jersey butter, milk, cream, cream cheese,

buttermilk, etc.  Everything refrigerated and personally

cared for by the manager.  Telephone 72 in town, or 38 at the farm.

F.M. Dick, Manager

 On May 28, 1904, Dick again advertised in The Progress:

ROSE FARM

has sale for the following:

Fine Berkshire Duroc Pigs

Two Jersey Cows (registered)

Four Jersey Bulls (Two registered)

Twenty homing pigeons

Split and round fence posts

light wood by the cord

            By August 1904, most of the Jersey herd had been sold and the Rose Farm quit the dairy business.  The holders of milk tickets were given cash. 

            F.M. Dick grew oats, hay, cassava, figs, and oranges.  For years he won prizes at the State Fair for his splendid exhibits of oranges, grapefruit, nuts, hay, and farm products.  To promote his products, Dick would give samples of his satsumas to his friends at Ocean Springs.  He often brought The Ocean Springs News office oranges of "unbeatable quality".  The satsuma orange, which was grown on the Rose Farm is the hardiest of all the varieties of the orange family.  It is seedless, tough, and able to withstand every climatic condition of the Gulf Coast.  The tree is bushy rarely exceeding a height of eight feet.  It bears fruit in three years.  Some trees are capable of producing 3,000 oranges. 

            In November 1904, Manager Dick went to the Biloxi market with mandarins [probably satsumas] and sold them for between 15 and 30 cents per dozen.  The farm also had grown a large crop of Creole oranges that year.(The Biloxi Daily Herald, November 4, 1904, p. 5)

            In 1907, Dick had twenty acres of land dedicated to oranges.  He brought a wagon load to Gulfport for sale. After his dismissal, F.M. Dick became a realtor at Ocean Springs.  In March 1911, he ran an advertisement in The Ocean Springs News:

F.M. Dick Real Estate

Fire and life insurance, surety bonds, furnished and

unfurnished houses for sale or rent.  Notary Public

Agent for Page Wire Fence.

            F.M. Dick married Elizabeth Ryan (1862-1913) in 1882.  They reared a large family on Bowen Avenue at Ocean Springs:  Joseph F. Dick (1882-1946), Louise E. Dick (1883-1885), Henry B. Dick (1884-1885), Dora J. Dick (1886-1886), Alberta Simmons Jumonville (1887-1950), Hattie Anita Hicks (1888-1927), Charles E. Dick (1889-1891),

George T. Dick (1891-1941), Elbert H. Dick (1893-1957), Lillie Ruth Dick (1894-1957), Mamie Dick (1895-1915), Esther N. Dick (1896-1896), Ethel L. Dick (1898-1909), Gertrude Dick Gasser (b. 1900), Everett M. Dick (1901-1901), Florence M. Dick (1903-1903), and a male child (1904-1904).

            F.M. Dick was President of Ocean Springs Fire Company No. 1 (1893), first Vice-President of the Peoples Water Works, and was honored as the Grand Marshall of the parade celebrating the 29th Anniversary of Ocean Springs Fire Company No. 1 in August 1909.  He served as city clerk of Ocean Springs (1897-1898 and 1903-1914).

            Another Ocean Springs local who worked on the Rose Farm was Peter Seymour (1870-1934).  Seymour lived on the farm and reared a family with his two wives, Amanda Noble (1879-1899) and Robina Noble (1884-1965).  His brother, Ellis Seymour (1881-1928), also toiled there.  The Seymours worked for both the Rose and Money families.

            The October Hurricane of September 1906 brought great destruction to the Rose Farm.  The orange trees were whipped mercilessly by the fierce winds.  Their fruit covered the ground of the citrus orchards, but the crop was not a total loss.  Manager, Fred Dick, reported to The Biloxi Daily Herald on September 28, 1906, that $10,000 would not cover the damage done by the storm.  All outbuildings on the Rose Farm were demolished except the residence and stock barn.  The 4,000 square-foot storage barn, filled with oat straw, hay, and farm machinery, was a total wreck.  Large timber tracts were destroyed and the perimeter fence around the farm was badly damaged by falling trees.

            Evidently, by 1909, George Rose was tiring of the Rose Farm and rumors began to circulate at Ocean Springs that it was for sale.  A few days before the sale The Ocean Springs News reported Dr. H.B. Powell (1867-1949) relating that Senator Money was to "colonize" the Rose Farm with enterprising people among his acquaintances and develop it horticulturally.

            On December 1, 1909, George Rose of New York City sold the 850-acre Rose Farm to Hernando Deveaux Money.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 35, pp. 299-301)

Mr. Money also received the following personal property of Rose:

Four horses, one mule, one Jack, three Jersey bulls, one sow, one double wagon, one spring wagon, one two-seat buggy, one dump cat, one reaper, two mowers, one hay rake, one hay press, one two horse drill, one hand drill, two single cultivators, one road scraper, one two-horse plow, four one-horse plows, one disk harrow, two spring tooth harrows, one smoothing harrow, and a lot of small farming tools. 

Partners

In addition all, crops, fruits, and nuts in the fields were the property of Mr. Money.  Hernando D. Money sold his father, Senator H.D. Money, a one-half interest in the Rose Farm on January 22, 1910.  Senator Money legated his interest to his daughter, Mabel Money Kitchen, in November 1910.(JXCO, Ms. Land Deed Bk. 35, pp. 333-334 and Bk. 39, pp. 429-430)

Hernando Desoto Money

Senator Hernando Desoto Money (1839-1912).  The elder Money was a lawyer, planter, soldier, Congressman, and U.S. Senator.  He was born at Holmes County, Mississippi on August 26, 1839.  His parents were Pierson Money of Buncombe County, North Carolina and Tryphene Vardaman of Mississippi.  Senator Money had a brother, James Deveaux Money (1854-1917).

The Money family had come to America from England.  In 1928, Fred B. Money, an engineer with the Pensacola Ship Building Company, and son, Lawrence Money visited with George P. Money and spouse.  Fred B. Money’s father had immigrated from England in 1869.(The Daily Herald, July 14, 1928, p. 2)

            H.D. Money studied law and literature at Ole Miss graduating with the Class of 1860.  Before he entered the Confederate service with the 11th Mississippi Infantry as a Private, he practiced law at Carrollton, Mississippi, and published newspapers at Carrollton and Winona.  Later Money was promoted to orderly-sergeant in CO B of the 28th Mississippi Cavalry.  He was wounded and captured at the first battle of Franklin, Tennessee in 1863.  He retired from military service as a lieutenant in 1864 because of his failing eyesight.

            H.D. Money married Claudia Jane Boddie (1845-1907) of Hinds County, Mississippi in 1863.  Their children were: Claudia Money Hill (d. 1903), Katie Money (1872-1873), George Pierson Money (1867-1951), Mable Clare Money Kitchen (1873-1928), Hernando Deveaux Money (1869-1936), and Lillian Gwyn Money Read.

            Some of H.D. Money’s grandchildren from Claudia Money Hill were: Claudia Hill Hester, Sheila Hill Hester, Celeste Hill Roberson, and Dolores Hill.(The Daily Herald, October 2, 1912, p. 1)

H.D. Money was elected to the House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1874.  He served until 1885.  Money was appointed to the U.S. Senate in 1897, and elected to that office in 1899.  He served as U.S. Senator until March 1911 when he retired to the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  His total time in Congress was twenty-sever years and five months.  At this time, his tenure in Washington D.C. exceeded any other elected official from Mississippi.(The Ocean Springs News, March 18, 1911, p. 1)

Here Senator Money built a home called, Fairhaven, on land just west of Beauvoir acquired in 1904-1905.  Senator Money expired at Fairhaven on September 18, 1912, and was buried at Carrollton, Mississippi.

Rose-Money Farm ca 1920

Hernando Deveaux Money

Hernando Deveaux Money (1869-1936) was born at Clinton, Hinds County, Mississippi.  He was familiar with agriculture in the Mississippi delta as his father had a cotton plantation there.  Money served as his father's secretary for more than ten years at Washington, D.C.  He was a lawyer by profession having studied law at Carrollton, Mississippi being admitted to the bar in 1892.  H.D. Money served as city attorney and mayor of Winona, Mississippi where he practiced law in the firm of Hill & Money. 

            H.D. Money served with the 5th Immune Infantry Regiment in Cuba during the Spanish American War attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.  He served as military governor of the Baracoa District.  Silas W. Boyd (1876-1970), Will Ryan (1877-1925), and Thornton Vaughan (1868-1933) of Ocean Springs were members of his unit at Cuba.  Mustered out at Camp Meade, Pennsylvania in 1899.(The Jackson County Times, June 23, 1923, p.1)

            Colonel Money came to the Mississippi Coast in 1905 probably from Washington D.C.  He had married Lucretia Eggleston (1876-1929) of Lexington, Mississippi in 1898.  She was the daughter of William Eggleston and Delia Sessions of Holmes County, Mississippi.  Hernan and Lucretia Money had two daughters Deveaux Money (1900-1986) and Lucretia Money (1908-2002). 

            The Moneys were active in the Ocean Springs community.  They often entertained friends and relatives with parties and games.  Their children occasionally had dances to honor visiting relatives from Florida or Gulfport.  Young ladies and gentlemen from Gulfport, Biloxi, and Ocean Springs would attend these affairs.

Politics

            H.D. Money ran for Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi in 1923, against Dennis Murpfee.  Money was defeated in a close election held in early August.  It was believed that if Colonel Money had announced his political intentions earlier, he could have handily beaten Murpfee who had been campaigning for more than a year.(The Jackson County Times, June 23, 1923, p. 1 and August 11, 1923, p. 5)

            At Ocean Springs, Colonel Money was staunchly supported by such community leaders as: Dr. H.B. Powell, Dr. O.L. Bailey, J.K. Lemon, E.S. Davis, and A.E. Lee.    

In the summer of 1928, Colonel Money ran for the 6^th Congressional District seat in the US House of Representatives.  Again he appeared to be the pre-election favorite, but lost.(Chronicle-Star, August 11, 1928, p. 1)

Deveaux Money

Deveaux Money (1900-1986) was born March 26, 1900. During WW I, Deveaux Money went to Norfolk, Virginia to perform community service.  In July 1919, she went to New York to study interpretive dancing with a master.  While in Gotham, Deveaux stayed with her aunt, Dorothy Money Gramount.(The Daily Herald, and July 31, 1919, p. 4 and October 8, 1919, p.4)

In the 1920s, Deveaux Money taught dance lessons at Ocean Springs before and after she married Ralph Geary Ackley (1897-1932) of Biloxi on April 7, 1922.  Young Ackley was an employee of The Daily Herald newspaper at the time.  He was the son of Captain Albert and Mrs. Ackley of Ship Island, and had served in France during WWI, after transferring to Federal service from the 1^st Mississippi Infantry.  Ackley's untimely death in May 1932 occurred in a Government hospital in Kentucky.  He left Deveaux with a young daughter.  Ralph G. Ackley’s corporal remains were interred in Bayou La Batre, Alabama where his parents resided at the time of his demise.(The Daily Herald, April 8, 1922, p. 3 and May 25, 1932, p. 2)

In late May 1927, Mrs. Ackley dance class composed of Mary Joachim, George Girot, Bettie Robinson, Audrey Young, Beryl Girot, Doris Micheal, Dorothy Eglin, Sylvia Peters, Phyliss Peters, and Katherine Snyder, performed Cinderella, a three act pantomime ballet.  Deveaux wrote the ballet and designed the dancers’ costumes.  The well-attended event was held in the Ocean Springs Community Center on Iberville Drive.(The Daily Herald, May 28, 1927, p. 2)

Deveaux Money Ackley later moved to Jackson, Mississippi.  She expired here in December 1986.

Lucretia Money

Lucretia Money (1908-2002) was born November 13, 1908, at Washington, D.C.  She was an outstanding scholar at Biloxi High School and Mississippi State College for Women.  She graduated from the Biloxi public school with the Senior Class of 1925.  Miss Money was vice-president of her class.(The Daily Herald, May 30, 1925, p. 1 and p. 5)

In May 1927, Miss Money exhibited her original art work at the Biloxi Public Library, as a junior member of the Gulf Coast Art Association.(The Daily Herald, May 11, 1927, p. 2)

 Lucretia Money was involved in drama and journalism serving as the editor of the Spectator while at MSCW.  In October 1925, she was elected secretary-treasurer of the Freshman Class, which had more than five hundred members.  Upon graduating from college in 1928, she attended school at Asheville, North Carolina taking a special scholarship course.  In the fall of 1929, Lucretia taught English at Ocean Springs High School.  She was elected by a unanimous vote to be the sponsor of the Senior Class of 1929-1930 at the high school.  In this capacity Miss Money advised and directed the class on all occasions as well as directing the senior class play.(The Jackson County Times, October 24, 1925, p. 3)

             Lucretia Money pursued her education at Columbia University in 1936.  After graduation from this New York City institution, she taught school at Meridian, McComb, and Lafayette, Louisiana.  Miss Money married Henry Grady Parlin (1912-1984) of Ocean Springs on July 5, 1946, at San Francisco.  Parlin was born at Mobile on April 12, 1912, but was reared in Ocean Springs.  After serving as a flight officer in the glider corps of the Ninth Air Force in the European Theater during WW II, he worked as an accountant in the San Francisco Bay area for the DNE Water Company.  They resided initially at 2211 Van Ness Avenue.  The Parlins retired to Modesto, California in 1954.  Henry expired here on June 14, 1984.  His corporal remains were interred in the Crestlawn Memorial Park cemetery at Ocean Springs.(The Ocean Springs Record, June 14, 1984, p. 2)

Eventually, Lucretia Money Parlin left Modesto, California and relocated to Jackson, Mississippi where she died on January 28, 2002.

George P. Money

            George Pierson Money (1867-1951), the elder brother of H.D. Money, was born in Hinds County, Mississippi.  Like his brother, George P. Money was a lawyer having studied for the bar examination in Carrollton, Mississippi.  In 1891, he was admitted to the bar there and practiced law for twenty-five years.  When his father was in the Senate, young Money resided in Washington D.C. and worked as a file clerk in the House of Representatives document room and was chief clerk in the folding room of the House of Representatives.  He also worked on a USGS survey team, which was mapping the region near the District of Columbia.(The Daily Herald, March 7, 1951, p. 1)

            George P. Money’s law experience was quite varied.  From 1893 to 1900, he worked as the assistant U.S. attorney for the Territory of New Mexico.  In November 1904, he ran unsuccessfully as a Democrat for the position of delegate to Congress from the New Mexico Territory.  In 1905, the G.P. Money family relocated to the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  He was the deputy clerk and U.S. commissioner at Biloxi from 1918 until 1949.(The Daily Herald, June 3, 1948, p. 6 and March 7, 1951, p. 1)

                At heart, George P. Money was a newspaperman.  His early experience was with The Chattanooga Evening News and The Greenwood Enterprise, where he co-published with Governor James K. Vardaman (1861-1930).  During WW I, Money became associated with The Daily Herald.  He was with this journal for thirty-two years and was its longtime editor.(ibid.)

            George P. Money expired in Gulfport, Mississippi in early March 1951.  He was preceded in death by his spouse, Mary Young Money (1869-1948), a native of Winona, Mississippi.  Mr. Money was survived by to children, Dorothy Money Graymount of New Canaan, Connecticut and Hernando D. Money (1900-1965) of Biloxi.  Burial at Southern Memorial Park Cemetery in Biloxi.(ibid)

            Hernando D. Money was born May 20, 1900 at Las Vegas, New Mexico.  He lived at Mississippi City and 1234 Second Street in Gulfport for most of his life and made his livelihood as an accountant for a Biloxi seafood cannery.  Hernando served as a private in the U.S. Army during WW II.  He was survived by his sister, Dorothy Gramount of Atlanta, Georgia.  Mr. Money expired on May 3, 1965 at the Biloxi VA Hospital.  His remains rest in eternal peace besides those of his parents in the Southern Memorial Park Cemetery in Biloxi.(The Daily Herald, May 4, 1965, p. 2)

Frigid crisis

It wasn't long before Colonel Money was faced with his first crisis at the Rose Farm for on December 20, 1909 the mercury dropped to freezing.  Fortunately, there was no damage to the orange trees as the satsuma orange will stand cold down to 10 degrees F.  Smudge pots were used when low temperatures endangered the citrus trees.

            The formal transfer of ownership of the Rose Farm took place on January 8, 1910.  The new owners retained the name, Rose Farm, and copyrighted it.  Senator Money planned to supervise the Rose Farm personally after Congress adjourned in July 1910.

            By April 1910, the orange groves were enlarged several acres.  Twenty-five hundred grape fruit trees and kumquat oranges were planted as well as new nursery stock. 

           Vincent Beyer (1874-1940), a Texan, was hired as manager and immediately began improvements.  Beyer supervised the thinning out the pecan orchard, grafted better variety pecans to poor bearing trees, and experimented with growing Sea Island Cotton.  In August 1910, he planted five acres of cotton.(The Ocean Springs News, April 23, 1910 and August 20, 1910)

            In March 1911, big improvements were made at the Rose Farm.  W.P. Hewes, evidently the new manager announced that 1200 grapefruit and 400 kumquat trees were planted.  By 1916, the Rose Farm was the largest citrus orchard in Jackson County with 3700 satsuma orange trees.  There were eight other orchards with over a thousand citrus trees.  Among them were those owned by:  Theodore Bechtel, B.F. Parkinson, L.E. Scheffer, G.E. McEwen, and J.P. Price.(The Ocean Springs News, March 4, 1911, p. 1)

            In 1915, Jackson County produced 10,000 boxes of satsuma oranges.  The crop sold for $2.00 to $4.00 per box.  The good quality and early harvest time (October-November) earned citrus growers the highest prices in the United States.

            Hernan D. Money and his family resided in a large home on the west side of Rose Farm Road where it curves into present day Walker Road.  It is believed the Money residence burned in the 1930s.  North of the Money domicile was a small cottage, which housed their black servant, Julia Harris (b. 1820), from Virginia.  A worker's house was located a few hundred feet west of the Money House.

            Another worker home was located about 1/2 mile east of the Money house on the south side of present day Walker Road.  It was a three bay cottage on piers with a hip roof.  The cottage featured a two portal facade and four-over-four windows.  Peter Seymour and Mortimer Money (1866-1953) lived here at various times.

            Several large packing sheds were located just northeast of the Money home on the north side of present day Walker Road.  These buildings were front gable, shingle roof structures and were 60 to 100 feet in length. 

           A high volume artesian well northwest of the Money house provided sufficient water for the entire farming operation.  Water was piped to cultivated areas.

             In 1913, Colonel H.D. Money began subdividing the Rose Farm and selling lots.  He selected lands on the southern perimeter of the farm for development and called it the Rose Farm New Orchards Subdivision (approximately 260 acres).  This area of the farm was apportioned into five and ten acre lots.  The New Orchards Section "B" Subdivision (approximately 250 acres) opened in 1914, and was located to the north of the Money residence.  It was divided into five-acre lots.  An advertisement was place in The Biloxi Daily Herald in March 1913, which read:

A FORTUNE IN A NUT SHELL

Financial Independence Assured

            The estate of the late U.S. Senator, H.D. Money, Rose Farm, Ocean Springs, Miss., is being sold in small tracts of 5 to 20 acres with the exception of a 200-acre grove-the home of H.D. Money, Jr.  The soil is the finest on the Mississippi Gulf Coast and is especially adapted to raising pecans, oranges, and grape fruit, which are profitably marketed every year.  The initial payment secures a warranty deed at once and starts the planting of trees under the personal direction of Mr. Money, Jr., an experienced orchardist, who will bring them up to the bearing stage.  Small monthly payments may be made, subject to extension if more convenient.  There is no risk-your income increases constantly and 6 per cent is guaranteed from date of first payment.  This is an exceptional opportunity to own a profitable grove of pecans, or oranges, or grape fruit at a price and on terms within reach of every earnest investor and home seeker.  Write at once for beautiful illustrated booklet and particulars.

M.R. HICKS & COMPANY

Ocean Springs, Mississippi

The Ocean Springs Country Club

[Courtesy of G. Dickey Arndt]

The Ocean Springs Country Club

Another new development in 1914, was the building of a golf course.  In April 1914, Dr. Henry Bradford Powell (1867-1949) with A.E. Lee (1874-1936) and George E. Arndt (1857-1945) organized the Ocean Springs Country Club.  There were twenty-four charter members.  The country club and golf links were located on sixty-five acres of leased Rose Farm lands in the northern part of the farm.  By summer's end of 1915, Dr. Powell, who was the president of the Ocean Springs Country Club, saw the course enlarged from five to nine holes of 4000 yards length.  Members aspired to have eighteen holes by the end of the year.

            The golf course was unique in that it was surrounded by pecan, orange, kumquat, and grapefruit orchards.  Mrs. D.V. Purington (1846-1933) donated a horse drawn lawn mower to keep the course in good condition.  The putting greens, which were laid out by Robert P. Collins, an expert from England, were kept oiled to insure a solid surface.  Collins also taught the thirty playing members the finer points of the game.  When he wasn't on the links, Mr. Collins was engaged in selling real estate and renting property at Ocean Springs.  The clubhouse had a general room, separate dressing rooms for ladies and men, and showers.

            By January 1917, Dr. Powell owner of the Bayou Inn, a lodge located on the west side of Washington Avenue at Fort Bayou in Ocean Springs, established the Bayou Inn Cup at the country club.  Druggist, John Whittle (1880-1925), won the match play contest, which was played over several weekends.  He proudly displayed the Bayou Inn Cup at his drug store in the Catchot Building (now Lemon) on Washington Avenue.  Almost sixty years later, a golf driving range, Power Tee, was located within the perimeter of the old golf links.

            The October Hurricane of 1915 did very little damage to the Rose Farm.  Colonel Money was quoted as saying, "only defective branches were broken.  It is probably better that they are off anyway.  While about 60 or 75 percent of the pecans are down in my orchard, I am convinced that most of them can be saved, as they are practically ripe, and this will reduce the net loss to a very small figure".

            Unfortunately for the orchards, the June Hurricane of 1916 was not so kind.  The Ocean Springs News reported heavy damage to trees and crops.  The pecan trees were severely whipped by the strong winds.  Much of the fruit of the grapefruit trees was ripped off the branches.  The orange trees came through the tempest with little damage.

            The year 1917 began with good news.  Congressman B.P. Harrison telegraphed Colonel Money that the U.S. House of Representatives had passed a bill appropriating $450,000 to continue the program aimed at eradicating the citrus canker in the southeastern United States.  Unfortunately, this trend of good fortune didn't continue as a series of cold waves struck the Mississippi Coast in 1917 wrecking havoc with the citrus orchards.  In early February, the temperature fell to 20 degrees F.  The Florida Citrus Exchange estimated damage to fruit trees at $1,500,000.  Packing houses were closed to evaluate the condition of damaged fruit before shipping to the markets.

            In late December 1917, the mercury plummeted to 17 degrees F at Ocean Springs bringing the coldest temperatures since the freeze of February 1899.  The cold weather

remained in the area for three days.  The Jackson County Times reported: 

It is not believed that the orange and grapefruit trees were damaged as the trees were in better shape to stand the cold than they were last year when the big freeze wiped out so many promising groves. 

            Unfortunately the icy grip of winter continued into 1918.  On January 11, 1918, the temperature registered a cool seventeen degrees at Biloxi.  Snow flurries were reported at several locations on the coast.  Vegetation that survived the December freeze was killed resulting in thousands of dollars in crop losses for farmers.  It is estimated that the Rose farm lost $40,000 due to these frosty natural disasters of 1917 and 1918.

Mortimer and Coutrier Money

Circa 1919, Mortimer Money (1866-1953), a relative of Colonel Money from Carroll County, moved to the Rose Farm.  His parents were John Money (1828-1889), a merchant at Carrollton and native of South Carolina, and Mary Jane Clarke (1831-1904), who was born in Virginia.  There were at least seven other children: Eva Money (b. 1863); Rebecca Money Hardaway (1865-1942); Marion Money (b. 1869); Inez Money (b. 1871); Coutrier Money (1872-1958); Ruby T. Money (1874-1920); and John Clarke Money (b. 1877).  It appears Mortimer Money was married and had a son, Malcolm Money (1899-1899), who died in infancy.(1880 Carroll Co., Mississippi Federal Census T9_642, p. 51)

Mortimer Money (1866-1953)

(Courtesy of Ina Goff Arguelles Clarke)

           Circa 1933, Mortimer Money was joined at the Rose Farm by his brother, Coutrier C. Money (1872-1958), who had been in the water well drilling and bridge construction businesses.  These gentlemen gathered the pecan crop and generally maintained what remained of the Rose Farm after the damaging freezes and land sales.(The Ocean Springs News, January 8, 1959, p. 8)

            Rebecca Money Hardaway, of Columbus, Georgia purchased some of the lots when Colonel Money sold land from the Rose Farm. 

            Joseph G. Arguelles (1919-1956), a neighbor, cared for Mortimer Money in his old age.  He provided food and nurturing when the old gentleman was ill.  Mr. Money expired in  September 1953 in Carrollton, Mississippi.  His corporal remains interred in the Evergreen Cemetery at Carrollton, Mississippi.  Coutrier Money was residing on the farm at Ocean Springs at the time of Mortimer's demise.(Ina Goff Arguelles Clarke and The Greenwood Commonwealth, September 7, 1953)

Wildcatters arrive

1927 Election

In October 1927, Colonel Money announced his candidacy for the 6th Congressional District.  He campaigned well for the office, but failed running fourth in the August 1928 election.  The Moneys probably moved to Biloxi after the election.  Here Mrs. Lucretia Eggleston Money died on April 24, 1929 at 132 Benachi Avenue.  Colonel Money had a serious operation at the Veterans Hospital in September 1929.  He lived at the Rose Farm during his convalescence period.

Camp Money

            In May 1928, Camp Money, an organization of veterans of the Spanish American War was formed at Gulfport.  It was named for Colonel H.D. Money who served in Cuba with the 5th Immune Infantry Regiment.  In Cuba, Lt. Colonel Money was in charge of the Barracoa District under General Leonard Wood.(The Jackson County Times, May 12, 1928, p. 5)

New wife

 In 1930, Colonel H.D. Money married Irene Eggleston of Lexington, Mississsippi.  She was the widow of his wife's brother, planter-politician, Joseph S. Eggleston (d. 1929), the owner of Wanalaw Plantation. 

Return to home

Circa 1932, Colonel Money left the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  He moved to Holmes County, Mississippi taking up residence at the Wanalaw Plantation.  Wanalaw Planta-

tion was located nine miles north of Lexington.  H.D. Money remained here until his death on December 15, 1936.  He was survived by his wife, and children, Deveaux Ackley (Lexington) and Lucretia Money (New York).  At Gulfport he left a brother, George P. Money, editor of The Daily Herald.  His sister, Lillian Money Reed, was living at

Lexington, Virginia.

Epilogue

If you were to take a drive today through the area once occupied by the Rose Farm, there is little evidence of its former glory.  The citrus orchards and cultivated

fields have long since disappeared.  They are now overgrown with pine and shrub vegetation.  All of the residences and farm buildings have burned or were demolished through neglect, or torn down.  Several subdivisions have been created most notably "Carlos Quave" (1953), "Live Oak Park" (1961), and "Sweetbriar" (1974).

            Although just a maudlin memory in the minds of septuagenarians of the area today, the Rose Farm was once the largest citrus growing orchard in Jackson County.  The

families who built this agricultural enterprise, the Earles, Roses, and Moneys left an indelible mark on the history of the Fort Bayou area and Ocean Springs.  These agricultural pioneers bested hurricanes, killing frost, citrus canker, and other natural calamities deleterious to their crops and animals for approximately sixty years.

            It appears several years of closely spaced killing frost in 1917, 1918 and the early 1930s decimated the citrus orchards thus destroying the agricultural prospects of the area.

REFERENCES:

Ray L. Bellande, Ocean Springs Hotels and Tourist Homes, (Bellande: Ocean Springs, Mississippi-1994), pp. 117-118.

Thomas Ewing Dabney, Ocean Springs: The Land Where Dreams Come True (circa 1915), (Reprinted by The 1699 Historical Committee:  Ocean Springs-1974), pp. 4-5, and p. 12.

Darlene J. Krohn, The Descendants of Jerome Ryan, (Krohn: Latimer, Mississippi-1995), p. 7.

Clayton Rand, Men of Spine, (The Dixie Press:  Gulfport, Mississippi-1940), pp. 267-269.