David Evander Shapard (Chapter 5) 1889-1891, Battling Life's Difficulties, Fort Smith, Arkansas

 Chapter 5

BATTLING LIFE’S DIFFICULTIES

FORT SMITH, ARKANSAS

1889-1891

 

At the time of his father’s death, David Evander Shapard was only two and a half years old. His older sister Lizzie was 17 years old; and, his older brothers, Sumner and Edwin, Jr., were 14 and 9 years of age. Although the family had little in savings, they did afford their father a lavish burial out of love and respect. On the frigid Monday afternoon of November 18, 1889, young David E. Shapard was dressed and readied for his father’s funeral. At 3 o’clock, the services were conducted over his father’s remains at the Central Methodist Church. The Rev. J. A. Anderson of First Methodist Church, conducted the introductory service; the Rev. J. L. Massey of Central Methodist Church, read the funeral Psalm, and the Rev. S. H. Babcock the lesson in the 15^th chapter of First Corinthians. After prayer by Brother Massey, the Rev. T. F. Brewer addressed the audience giving a brief history of the life and death of his departed friend and co-laborer.

At the conclusion of the service, Rev. Shapard’s 5-foot 9-inch casket was carried from the church and placed into a horse-drawn black hearse by the pall-bearers: Fort Smith Mayor Daniel Baker, Dr. E. H. Stevenson, J. W. Patrick, Joel McKenna, B. F. Gannaway and D. N. Weaver. Two-year-old David joined his family in one of three horse drawn hacks that followed the hearse through the streets of Fort Smith to the City Cemetery (later known as Oak Cemetery) for burial. It was noted that the interment was particularly difficult that day due to the cold weather hardening the ground.

After the funeral, the heartbroken and depleted Shapard family returned to their home at 411 Lexington Avenue. Over the following days and weeks, numerous friends and acquaintances lavished the little family with food and support. When the time came, Lizzie reluctantly returned to her studies at North Texas Female College in Sherman, Texas; and, Sumner and Edwin, Jr., returned to Fort Smith public school. Toddler David spent many a day in the care of a close friend or neighbor, allowing his mother opportunity to rest and fully weep.

However, rest was elusive for the broken hearted. Within weeks of her husband’s death, Mrs. Shapard became quite ill, with fever and cough. The stress of her situation, exacerbated by the particularly cold weather, rendered her vulnerable to illness. David also developed numerous colds during the harsh winter of 1889. His mother remarked that it was almost impossible to keep him from getting sick, and that he coughed extensively at night.

In January of 1890, another great tragedy befell Mrs. Shapard, when she received the news that her younger sister, Sallie had died at Edgefield Junction near Nashville Tennessee on the 18^th. Sallie Thompson Hall (1861-1890) had married William Watson Yeatman (1862-1914) prior to the year 1887. Great joy turned to great sorrow, when she passed away only hours after giving birth. A few hours later, the baby also perished. The baby was placed in the coffin with its mother and the two were buried together at Spring Hill Cemetery in Davidson County, Tennessee.

On December 7, 1889, David’s mother paid the sum of $63, in settlement of the total expenditures for Rev. Shapard‘s funeral. This was a sizable amount for a funeral at that time. Although David’s father had been the sole provider for his family, his estate, which seemed to have been settled by the Probate Court of Fort Smith in January of 1890, did provide them with a few valuable properties and assets for financial support. Years ago, on February 14, 1883, David’s father had purchased, for $340, four adjoining city lots on Lexington Avenue in Fort Smith from Edmund Fitzgerald, the Catholic Bishop of Arkansas and Indian Territory. The land was identified as lots 3, 4, 5 and 6, on city block P, in the Fitzgerald Addition. Then on March 26, 1883, David’s father purchased half of adjoining lot 2 from a fellow Methodist minister, Rev. F. A. Jeffett, for the sum of $75. Prior to 1887, David’s father had four single story wood planked houses built upon these lots. The largest house, spanning lots 2 and 3, became the Shapard’s personal residence and the other three smaller dwellings were utilized as rent houses. The total value of the property with houses in 1890 was $3,250.

Directly across Lexington Avenue from the Shapard residence was a field of four undeveloped city lots where David and his brothers could run and play. Just to the north of this field, within a stone’s throw from the Shapard house, on the corner of Lexington Avenue and D Street, was the home of Dr. and Mrs. Elam H. Stevenson and their three young sons, Jessie “Eugene” (1880-1967), Wyatt (1882-1911) and Elam (1897-1932). Due to the similarity in age, Edwin Jr., and Eugene became playmates and life-long friends. The Stevenson’s were very active in the Methodist Church and were an anchor of support for the Shapard family during this hard time. Other neighbors in the vicinity included: Mary Baker, James H. Baker, Mrs. Watts, Mrs. E. M. Dyke, J. Kelley, W. B. Casey, G. W. Smith, J. A. Cannon and B. Okeefe.

In addition to the homeowners, there were also tenants and transitory boarders that occupied the Shapard’s rent houses. In 1889, one of the houses had been leased to Mr. Hershey and his son Charley. However, after the death of David’s father, Mr. Hershey quickly, and perhaps deliberately, got behind on his rent, which rendered a great deal of stress for David’s mother. Apparently, neither Mr. Hershey nor his son were favored by the Shapards, nor the community at large, as they set a poor example.

Out of necessity, David’s mother began supplementing her income by opening up two modest vacant rooms in her house to overnight boarders. One room was located in the front of the house and the other was at the back end, near the porch. Due to her vast experience managing the kitchen at the New Hope Seminary and Asbury Manuel Labor School, Mrs. Shapard was comfortably able to provide her boarders with quality meals to enhance their stay.  Her grocery receipt for the month of March, 1895, from J. W. Meek Confectioneries and Fancy Groceries, 813 Garrison Avenue in Fort Smith, allows us a rare glimpse into the Shapard’s kitchen pantry. She purchased: Chicken, pickle, sweet potato, sugar beets, potato, ham, walnuts, sugar, chocolate, popcorn, rolled oats, mackerel, cheese, can corn, can salmon, crackers, soda, bacon, eggs, butter, pepper, turnips, lettuce, flour, oil, baking powder, lard, onion, vinegar, crackers, chives and candy.

Besides cooking, cleaning, laundry, dishes, grocery shopping, and other domestic talents, David’s mother was well versed in sewing. She made many garments for herself and her children. During this era, it was customary for widows to wear black mourning dresses after the death of their husband. At the time, Mrs. Shapard could not afford a store-bought dress, so she fabricated a mourning dress from two of her older garments. She removed the stitching, washed and pressed the material and made her new dress austere, yet, with a fold at the bottom. She also made aprons for David, to keep him from soiling his nice clothing at meals and while at play. On February 3, 1890, Edwin, Jr., recounted a somewhat comical event involving David and his apron; “Today, while I was gone to school and Sumner was at the store and mama was getting coal, David got into the dye and he had on an apron that mama had just finished yesterday… and when mama came, he ran and hid under the cot…”

By May of 1890, David’s mother had lost her renters. She remarked that she felt so embarrassed by money matters and that she could not see a way out of it all. She had cut down on every conceivable expense and stated that it took so much money to even “half live.” As a means to offset her lack of money, she began to barter, using the fabric from her old dresses, in return for services with the local women. In June of 1890, a great financial alleviation finally arrived, when her brother-in-law, Rev. William Shapard of Austin, Texas, graciously sent her $100 to assist the struggling family. Although this copious donation abated her debt, it did not significantly absorb what she owed.

Rev. William Shapard (1830-1894) was David’s uncle and the eldest brother of Rev. Edwin R. Shapard. William was born on August 17, 1830, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He was educated in Fayetteville, Tennessee, and baptized in 1846, by Rev. S. S. Yarborough. He became a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South on December 19, 1849, and became a licensed preacher for the church on June 25, 1850, being admitted on trial to the Tennessee Conference. He served the circuits of Rock Creek, Middleton, and Edgefield before being transferred to the Memphis Conference where he was stationed at Aberdeen. He married Susan “Emily” Hall on November 11, 1856. Interestingly, Emily was the sister of David’s mother Jennie (Hall) Shapard. William was transferred to the Alabama Conference and supplied Eufaula Station, Auburn, Montgomery District and St. Francis Station in Mobile. He joined the Confederate army on September 10, 1861, and served until his health failed, being discharged near the end of 1862. In 1868, he was appointed to the East Alabama Male College board of trustees and moved to Auburn, Alabama. Beginning in 1870, he served as the president of Auburn Female College for seven years. He received an honorary Doctor of Divinity from the Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical College in 1873. In 1876, he moved to Texas and was appointed by the church to St. Johns in Galveston and First Church on Tenth Street in Austin until 1880. On January 1, 1884, he was made Superintendent of the Texas School for the Deaf and Dumb until February 1, 1887. He retired to his farm in Texas, east of Austin. He and his wife had seven children; Ava (1858-1862), daughter (1860-1860), William, Jr. (1862-1865), Adella (1864-1941), Emma (1866-1944), Herbert Hall (1869-1921) and Robert Sumner (1874-1946).

On June 10, 1890, David’s sister Lizzie Shapard, at 18 years of age, graduated with honors from North Texas Female College, ending her school days. In celebration of this achievement, Lizzie accepted an invitation from her beloved uncle Rev. William Shapard and aunt Emily, to stay with them in Austin, Texas, for a large part of the summer. In true form, her uncle graciously paid her travel and living expenses for the duration of her visit. Uncle William and aunt Emily truly loved the Fort Smith Shapards, and looked after them as best as they could. Lizzie returned to Fort Smith, Arkansas, in mid to late July. As a grown young lady, ready for the responsibilities of life, she applied for and received a teaching position at Belle Point Public School at Fort Smith for the following school year. This job was a sentimental milestone for Lizzie, as it had been her father’s hope, by sending her to college, that she would eventually qualify herself as a teacher.

Fort Smith established its first public schools in 1868 with varying degrees of success. By 1884 there were three public schools within the city limits: Belle Grove and Peabody were for the education of white children and Howard was established for the education of colored children. In 1884, Congress gifted to the City of Fort Smith a large reservation of former military land for public sale. Congress stipulated that the profits from the sale were to be used for the benefit of the public schools of Fort Smith. City officials were wise stewards of the public school fund, and, over the years, were able to construct the most beautiful and state-of-the-art school buildings of its time, rivaling the best schools in the nation. Circa February of 1885, the lots were available for purchase in what became known as the Reservation Addition. Due to its proximity to the railroad and the river, many large tracts were purchased by manufacturing companies, such as coal, lumber, and cotton yarn. Smaller tracts were also purchased for residential and small business use.

In December of 1885, a new two-story eight-room brick school house, known as Belle Point School, was opened for occupancy in the Reservation Addition on the corner of present-day South 9^th Street and Carnall Avenue. The school had beautiful architecture and the grounds were adorned with tree-lined walkways. A large park, known as Reservation Park was established only a block from the school. Initially, the education ranged from primary through high school, however, as class size grew, the high school students were moved, circa 1888, to better accommodations at the Belle Grove school, on the present-day corner of North 6^th and North G streets. Belle Point school was heated in the winter by two furnaces located in the school’s basement. Unfortunately, during periods of extremely cold weather the furnaces were inadequate. In early February of 1905, the janitor over stoked the furnace in an attempt to render more heat to the classrooms, which cause the walls along the radiator shafts to catch fire. The children were evacuated without injury and the school building was resigned from further use. Belle Point students were relocated to Belle Grove or Peabody to finish out the remainder of the year. Construction quickly began on an updated building at a more accommodating location. On November 26, 1908, the new Belle Point school was opened on the corner of Lexington and Dodson Avenue. Circa 1917, the old building was torn down and the grounds were renovated for use as a baseball diamond for the American Legion Junior League.

In 1890, Bell Point school was the nearest public school to the Shapard residence, being a distance of a half-mile. When Lizzie Shapard began her teaching position in the fall of 1890, her younger brother Edwin, Jr. was a student at Belle Point. Each morning, Lizzie walked nine year-old Edwin to school and ensured he made it to his classroom, taught by Miss Cunningham. From all accounts, Edwin struggled in primary school. His mother was concerned that he was not doing “one bit of good in school,” and often remarked at the deplorable state of his penmanship, to the point of being illegible.

David’s brother Sumner Shapard also attended Belle Point school for middle school; however, after the death of his father, he began sacrificing his high school education to provide for his family. By January of 1890, 14-year-old Sumner had gained part-time employment at Dyke Brothers, who operated a lumber yard and planing mill business at the corner of Park and Cabell streets, just a few blocks from the Shapard house. On February 6, 1890, Sumner’s mother reported in a letter to Lizzie that, “Sumner is busy tonight studying his short hand lesson. This is the first night he has been home in some time. He has not been to school for nearly two weeks because they keep him at the store so late…Sumner is gone nearly all the time. He has gone to school tonight. I wish I could see more of him…”

Whilst facing tribulation, Sumner truly was the young unsung hero. At a time of need, he embodied the essence of Christian manliness, forever leaving behind the childish things of his youth to alleviate the stress, strain and worry from those he loved. In addition to working for Dyke Brothers, Sumner also shouldered the responsibility of negotiating the leases for their rent houses. He continued to work for Dyke Brothers, attending school when able, until May of 1891, when the company went bankrupt and was forfeited to J. G. Miller & Co.

In May of 1890, three-year-old David was also gaining a degree of independence, though not in the helpful way.  His mother conveyed to Lizzie, in a letter on the 27^th that, “David continues to run away. Sunday when I got ready to go to church, I couldn’t find David. I went to every house in the neighborhood where he was in the habit of going, but could not find him. I went up to Mrs. Bakers and there he was, so I left him there while I went to church. This evening he asked me to go to ‘Bakess,’ so I dressed him up and let him go…”

For the next year and a half, the Shapard family remained together, helping one another and pooling their resources. Mrs. Shapard managed the main house and chores. Lizzie was living at home and employed as a teacher at Belle Point school. Sumner was working for Dyke Brothers, managed the rent houses and, when able, attended school. Edwin was a student at Belle Point school, and David was a typical youngster playing around the house and neighborhood. Because of the hardships they endured, they remained steadfast to their commitment to church and God. The family actively attended Central Methodist Church on North 7^th and B streets, being the closest Methodist church to their house on Lexington Avenue.

Even with the extra resources and income, the Shapard’s financial situation was dire. Mrs. Shapard was in debt with numerous persons and businesses around Ft. Smith, despite her best efforts to economize. On December 15, 1890, she mortgaged her rent house and property, on lot 6, of block P, in the Fitzgerald Addition, in return for $250 borrowed from Miss Sophia Hale, an investor from Illinois, at eight percent interest per annum. If Mrs. Shapard defaulted on the terms of the agreement, then the property and house could be sold at public auction to satisfy the loan. Luckily, the property remained secure as the loan was satisfied in full on January 20, 1894.

Only three months later, on March 2, 1891, Mrs. Shapard was again in need of a large sum of money and utilized the services of the Fort Smith Building Association in the matter. The Building Association was organized on January 5, 1884, as a loan business. The company was owned by its local Fort Smith members and tried to accommodate all borrowers with minimal interest and fees, compared to outside loan companies and banks. Mrs. Shapard mortgaged her main house, on lots 2 and 3, to purchase 24 shares in the Fort Smith Building Association, and then immediately returned those shares back to the company, whereupon they loaned her $600. The terms of the loan stated that she was required to pay $6 per month dues on the stock and $3 interest per month, payable on the 15^th through the 17^th of each month. During the term of the loan, she was required to keep the house and real estate in good repair, fully insured, paying all taxes and assessments lawfully imposed upon said real estate. If the loan was paid as described, then the contract became null and void, otherwise her land and house would be sold at public auction by the Building Association to the highest bidder to recoup the amount of the loan.

In early September of 1891, the Shapard family was over joyed at the news that David’s sister Lizzie had received and accepted a marriage proposal from a young man she had met at college, Mr. W. B. Jaynes of Sherman, Texas. In preparation for the upcoming wedding expenses, David’s mother purchased 10 more shares of stock from the Fort Smith Building Association, on Sept 18, 1891, for an additional $250 loan, using her main house, on lots 2 and 3, as collateral. Despite the large amounts borrowed, Mrs. Shapard was successfully able to navigate the terms of the loan; paying the monthly principal and interest on time. In total she had borrowed $850 from the Fort Smith Building Association, all of which was satisfied in full sometime between 1897 and 1900.

After a long period of stress, sorrow and uncertainty, the Shapard family was finally blessed with a reason to celebrate. On December 26, 1891, David’s 19-year-old sister Lizzie Shapard married 26 year-old attorney Mr. William B. Jaynes. A few days before the wedding, David, Edwin Jr., Sumner, Lizzie and Mrs. Shapard took the St. Louis & San Francisco Railroad train to Paris, Lamar County, Texas, which was a direct trip from Fort Smith. The wedding was held at 11 o’clock in the morning at Centenary Methodist Church in Paris, Texas. The Rev. P. C. Archer officiating. Lizzie wore a beautiful white or cream-colored wedding gown, embellished with lace trim, lace flowers, and a long train of ruffles. Her full-length white veil followed the drape of the train, fanning out upon the floor; and, her hands were adorned with white elbow length gloves to complete her wedding outfit. She was a beautiful sight.

Her husband, William Burton Jaynes (pronounced Jay-knees) (1866 – 1950) was born in 1866 in Richland, Oconee County, South Carolina. He was the son of Waddy T. Jaynes and Delia Rust, and had an older brother Robert, and a younger sister Fannie. From their youth, William and his siblings were raised in the light and morality of the Methodist church. William studied at North Georgia Agriculture College and then moved to Sherman, Texas, in 1888, to establish his law practice. It was at the latter place where he first met Lizzie Shapard. The two remained in close contact after Lizzie graduated in June of 1890 and returned to Fort Smith to teach at Belle Point school.

Immediately after the wedding, Lizzie went home briefly to Fort Smith with her family. She had to settle her affairs, pack her belongings and say goodbye to old friends, before moving to Sherman, Texas, with her husband. Her mother used that precious time to advise Lizzie on how to be a godly wife and gave her the blessing, “May God guide, direct and keep my darling child.” The day of her departure on the train, Lizzie tearfully said goodbye to her family, especially her little brother David, before venturing off on the next chapter of her life.