Notes for Edward EVANS


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  Edward Evans.
Return to Edward EVANS




















































































Notes for Gustav L. FABER


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  Gustab L. Faber; Born: 
10 Aug 1852 Konigsberg, Prussia; Died:  25 Oct 1937.

FOLKS WE KNEW WHILE IN THE K.U. by Marie McCready:  "An old sailor who came
from Tacoma --Vesta Newcomb.  Allen mentioned him in connection with the
geodetic survey.  His boat was wrecked in heavy surf and Allen's "effects,"
which had been aboard, were lost."

Burial:  Koreshan Unity Cemetery--lot 22.  Inscription:  Gustav Faber,
1852-Oct 1937.

U.S. Federal Census/Lee County/Estero, Florida/1910:  Living outside the
Koreshan community; Gus Faber; Age 56; Single; Place of birth:  Germany; Place
of birth of mother and father:  Germany; Occupation:  Truck farmer

U.S. Federal Census/Lee County/Estero, Florida/1920; Enumerator:  Henry D.
Silverfriend; Enumeration Date:  5 Jan 1920; Microfilm number: 
1820221-T625-221; ED:  109; Precinct 10; Outside the Koreshan Colony;
Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff, January 1995:  Gustav Faber; Living
outside the Koreshan community; Place of residence:  Black Island; Age 67;
Widower; Year of immigration to U.S.:  1875; Naturalized; Year of
naturalization: 1878; Place of birth of mother and father:  Germany;
Occupation:  Farmer/Postmaster.

Memoirs of the First Settler by Capt. E. E. Damkohler, Estero, Florida
1882---copyright 1967 by Elwin E. Damkohler; Library of Congress Catalog
Number 67-19575--Fort Myers: Island Press:  Page 28, "Still later, Queen
(Annie) Ordway told Captain (Gustav) Faber to go after clams at Clam Pass,
near Naples. So many clams were gathered that the boat (Ada) was overloaded
and sank during a squall on the way back.  The crew got safely ashore but
Capt. Faber decided to become a farmer.  He took up a homestead on Black Rock
I."
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Notes for Charles H. FAULKNER


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  Charles H. Faulkner;
Born: 15 Aug 1864, Maine; died:  9 Nov 1942.

FOLKS WE KNEW WHILE IN THE K.U. by Marie McCready:  "The boys always called
him "Charley Peanuts" because he had sold peanuts in Chicago before coming to
Florida; fired the boiler for the machine shop and laundry --William McCready. 
I think he was the fourth in the singing quartet at Estero for awhile, and
remember seeing him selling peanuts just outside the Tampa Bay Hotel entrance
during the first Tampa Fair, but do not know whether this was a temporary
absence or not."

Burial:  The Koreshan Unity Cemetery--lot 34; Inscription:  Charles Faulkner,
1864-Nov 1942.

MEMORIES, MEMORIES--DAYS OF LONG AGO chronicled by Marie McCready with
participation by Lovelle McCready:  George and Charley Hunt, Jesse Putnam and
Charley Faulkner were popular as a singing quartet.--Page 83.
Return to Charles H. FAULKNER




















































































Notes for Antonio FERNANDEZ


ESTERO POST OFFICE; Established March 26, 1895:  Antonio Fernandez brought the
mail from the train to the Seaboard Coastline depot, located at the railroad
crossing on East Broadway, by car to the Post Office.....Antonio Fernandez was
the maternal grandfather of Henrietta Davenport who later became
"Officer-In-Charge of the Post Office and was a clerk until her retirement in
the mid 1970's.  He was also the great-great maternal grandfather of present
day clerk Kay McCullers. Carl Luettich was the paternal grandfather of Mrs.
Davenport.
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Notes for Charles C. FIFIELD


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  Charles C. Fifield.

U.S. Federal Census--1910; Estero, Lee, Florida; Enumeration date:  23 Apr
1910; Koreshan Unity; Enumerator:  Walter S. Turner, Jr.; Microfilm number: 
Fl 1910-H T624; ED:  80; Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff: Charles C.
Fifield; Sex:  Male; Race:  White; Age 67; Marital Status:  Married one time;
Number of years married: 15; Place of birth:  New York; Place of birth of
father;  New Hampshire; Place of birth of mother:  New York; Occupation: 
wheelwright; Nature of trade:  Wagon making; Employer or worker:  worker; No.
of months not employed:  0; Can read and write:  yes.

BROTHERS' LAUNDRY LIST:  Charles Fifield
#136
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Notes for Ethel FINKE


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  Josephine Finke and
Ethel--arr. Estero, April 1907

FOLKS WE KNEW WHILE IN THE K.U. by Marie McCready:  FINK, (no name given) ,
Mother
Return to Ethel FINKE










































Notes for Josephine FINKE


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  Josephine Finke and
Ethel--Arr. Estero, April 1907.

FOLKS WE KNEW WHILE IN THE K.U. by Marie McCready;  Ethel
Fink
Return to Josephine FINKE










































Notes for Arnold E. FISCHER


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn: Arnold Fischer.

FOLKS WE KNEW WHILE IN THE K.U. by Marie McCready:    The only ones of this
family I remember are Ida and Mildred --Marie McCready. Irving, Jr. joined the
Navy.  Arnold, who enjoyed hunting and often went alone, was bitten by a
rattlesnake and died before reaching the hospital --William McCready."

U.S. Federal Census/Estero/Lee County/Florida/1910; Enumeration date:  23 Apr
1910; Koreshan Unity; Enumerator:  Walter S. Turner, Jr.; Microfilm number: 
Fl 1910-H T624; ED:  80; Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff, 4 Jan 1995: 
Arnold E. Fisher; Sex:  Male; Race:  white; Age 10; Marital status:  Single;
Place of birth:  Wisconsin; Place of birth of father: Switzerland; Place of
birth of mother; Wisconsin; Occupation:  None; No. of months not employed:  0;
Can read and write:  yes; Attending school:  yes.

BROTHERS' LAUNDRY LIST:  Arnold Fischer #161

FLAMING SWORD, Community Current Events, Vol.59, No.6, June 1945, p.10:
Mildred (Mrs. Barager) was brought into the Unity by her parents in 1907, when
a very young child, and together with her two brothers, Erwin and Arnold, grew
up in the Unity.  In time the two boys left to make their homes elsewhere. 
Erwin joined the navy and for a number of years followed the sea.  At the
expiration of his enlistment he came back to Florida and engaged in commercial
fishing, but is now interested in a Shell Factory at Bonita Springs.  Arnold
remained in the vicinity and also became a fisherman, but while out hunting in
the woods he was bitten by a rattlesnake and died from the effects of its
deadly poison.
Return to Arnold E. FISCHER










































Notes for Emil FISCHER


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J Rahn:  Emil Fischer
Return to Emil FISCHER










































Notes for Erwin FISCHER


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  Ervin Fischer.

FOLKS WE KNEW WHILE IN THE K.U. by Marie McCready:  Irving Fisher, Jr. The
only ones of this family I remember are Ida and Mildred --Marie McCready. 
Irving,  Jr. joined the Navy.  Arnold, who enjoyed hunting and often went
alone, was bitten by a rattlesnake and died before reaching the hospital
--William McCready."

THE FLAMING SWORD; Community Current Events by Alafae Stephens; June 1933: 
"Sister Ida Fischer spent Mothers' Day at Coconut with her son, Erwin, and his
family.  She was surprised to learn that she had a little three-day-old
grandson, who has been named Erwin, Junior."

SOCIAL SECURITY DEATH INDEX; VOLUME 1; A-L:  Erwin Fischer; Born:  6 Apr 1894;
SS#:  264-34-3865 issued in Florida; Died:  Nov 1973; Residence: Ft. Myers,
Florida.

Evelyn Horn's notes:  Ida Fischer
Sister Ida came to the Koreshan Unity in Estero in 1907 with her family.
Husband, Emil and three children:  Erwin and Arnold Fischer, one daughter,
Mildred Barager, who lives in Seattle, Washington.  Emil died at the Unity
after only a few years here.  Arnold, died a young man in his 20's, after a
rattlesnake bite on a hunting trip in the everglades. Erwin grew up in the
Unity and became a commercial fisherman, married a local girl, Bessie Johnson,
and they had six children.  They lived at Lover's Key Island, in the Estero
Bay.

FLAMING SWORD, Community Current Events, Vol.59, No.6, June 1945, p.10:
Mildred (Mrs. Barager) was brought into the Unity by her parents in 1907, when
a very young child, and together with her two brothers, Erwin and Arnold, grew
up in the Unity.  In time the two boys left to make their homes elsewhere. 
Erwin joined the navy and for a number of years followed the sea.  At the
expiration of his enlistment he came back to Florida and engaged in commercial
fishing, but is now interested in a Shell Factory at Bonita Springs.  Arnold
remained in the vicinity and also became a fisherman, but while out hunting in
the woods he was bitten by a rattlesnake and died from the effects of its
deadly poison.
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Notes for Marie FISCHER


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  Marie Fischer.

FOLKS WE KNEW WHILE IN THE K.U. by Marie McCready:  Conrad and Marie Fischer;
"These were brother and sister.  En route to one of my visits, I was on the
Victoria with Marie when she came to join and remember that she was suffering
from pleurisy at the time so sat bundled up and very quite.  Later I learned
to know her quite well and always admired her outspoken independence.  She
left to marry a man some called "The Tramp" because he was supposed to have
been a wanderer.  They operated a chicken farm near some Florida town, but
later divorced, I was told."

U.S. Federal Census; Estero; Lee County; 1920; Enumeration date:  Jan 2, 1920;
Enumerator:  Henry D. Silverfriend; ED:  109; SD:  1; Fourth Precinct;
Microfilm roll number:  1820221; Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff, Dec 1994: 
Marie Fisher; Relation to head of family:  Boarder; Age 36; Single; Place of
birth: Pennsylvania; Place of birth of mother and father:  Germany;
Occupation: saleslady and bookkeeper; Place of residence:  Poultry yard road.

ESTERO POST OFFICE; Established March 26, 1895:  ....Subsequent Masters of the
Post in order were:  Ada Price, sisters Rosa Gilbert and Anna Lewis (whose
home still remains as part of the Koreshan State Recreational Area), Marie
Fisher (the last Koreshan member to be Postmaster.)

MEMORIES, MEMORIES--DAYS OF LONG AGO chronicled by Marie McCready with
participation by Lovelle; 1966:  "The other (cottage) was our school for a
time and then was used by Marie Fischer and now by Vesta Newcomb"--page 57.

FLAMING SWORD, Community Current Events by Adah Price, April 1946: "January
8th Miss Marie Fischer left Estero to make her home on a farm in northern
Florida near Ocala."
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Notes for Mildred A. FISCHER


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  Mildred Fischer.

FOLKS WE KNEW WHILE IN THE K.U. by Marie McCready:    The only ones of this
family I remember are Ida and Mildred --Marie McCready.  Irving, Jr. joined
the Navy.  Arnold, who enjoyed hunting and often went alone, was bitten by a
rattlesnake and died before reaching the hospital --William McCready."

U.S. Federal Census; Estero, Lee County; Florida; 1910; Enumeration date:  23
Apr 1910; Koreshan Unity; Enumerator:  Walter S. Turner, Jr.; Microfilm
number:  Fl 1910-H T624; ED:  80; Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff, 4 Jan
1995:  Mildred A. Fisher; Sex:  Female; Race:  white; Age 9; Marital status: 
Single; Place of birth:  Wisconsin; Place of birth of father:  Switzerland;
Place of birth of mother; Wisconsin; Language spoken:  English; Occupation:
None; No. of months not employed:  0; Can read and write:  yes; Attending
school:  yes.

U.S. Federal Census; Estero, Lee County; Florida; 1920; Enumeration date:  Jan
2, 1920; Enumerator:  Henry D. Silverfriend; ED:  109; SD:  1; Fourth
Precinct; Microfilm roll number:  1820221; Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff,
Dec 1994:  Mildred A. Fisher; Relation to head of family:  daughter; Place of
residence:  Poultry yard road; Age 19; Single; Place of birth:  Wisconsin;
Place of birth of father:  Switzerland; Place of birth of mother:  Wisconsin;
Occupation:  Lino-type operator/Publishing House.

Vital Record; Social Security Death Index, 1937-1998:  Mildren Barager; Date
of birth:  12 Dec 1900; Social Security applied for in Washington State; Date
of death:  June 1995; Place of residence:  Seattle, Washington  98115; SS#: 
532-24-8908.

FLAMING SWORD, Community Current Events, Vol.59, No.6, June 1945, p.10: Mr.
and Mrs. Miles Barager of Seattle, Washington, arrived on Monday the 14th to
visit her mother, Mrs. Ida Fischer, who has been in very poor health for some
time.   Mildred (Mrs. Barager) was brought into the Unity by her parents in
1907, when a very young child, and together with her two brothers, Erwin and
Arnold, grew up in the Unity.  In time the two boys left to make their homes
elsewhere.  Erwin joined the navy and for a number of years followed the sea. 
At the expiration of his enlistment he came back to Florida and engaged in
commercial fishing, but is now interested in a Shell Factory at Bonita
Springs.  Arnold remained in the vicinity and also became a fisherman, but
while out hunting in the woods he was bitten by a rattlesnake and died from
the effects of its deadly poison.   Mildred remained in the Unity with her
mother and when a Linotype machine was installed in the printing house she
learned to operate it and for several years she set up the type for the Eagle. 
In the meantime, however, Mildred had grown to young womanhood and she, too,
went out to seek her fortune and soon found it in the shape of a very
personable young man, who, it seems, had been waiting for just such a girl as
Mildred, and so cupid lost no time, and soon they were married and journeyed
away off to Seattle, Washington, where they have made their home, and now
Mildred is the mother of two children, one already in training to serve his
country; the daughter, Alice, is still in high school.

ORAL HISTORY:  On April 9, 1982, I, Captain K. C. Alvarez, Interpretive
Naturalist for the Florida Park Service, interviewed Mrs. Mildred Barager of
Seattle, Washington, by telephone to gather information on the Koreshan Unity. 
The following is a report of that interview.

Mrs. Barager came to the Koreshan Unity in 1908 (at the age of seven) from
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with her parents and two brothers.  She remained with
the Unity at Estero until she returned to Milwaukee in 1920 (when she was
nineteen). Her father was a Swiss-born machinist and her mother was of German
extraction.

One interesting thing Mrs. Barager pointed out was that the name "Koresh" was
pronounced with the accent on the first syllable.  Another interesting fact
was that one of the Unity members (a female) was black. The Koreshans,
according to Mrs. Barager, were free of any racial prejudice.  This is
surprising since racial intolerance was pronounced in the United States in the
early 1900's, particularly in the South.  She said that local blacks and
Seminole Indians often came to shop at the Koreshan Store.  All were treated
equally.

Replying to a question about education for the children, she said that, in
general, it was sadly lacking.  Education was not compulsory, although
instruction was sometimes given to the children by an older member during a
part of each day.  The remainder of the day was spent in "practical education"
(some form of work). This practice of dividing the day between classroom and
practical education conformed to Koresh's teaching.  Mrs. Barager felt that
her education was well below the level of anyone who had attended public
school at that time.

Another interesting aspect of the children's education was that there was no
attempt to indoctrinate them with Koreshan beliefs.  She was aware of the
beliefs, but only because she heard them discussed among her elders, not as a
result of any formal instruction.  She did say that Koreshan doctrine was a
popular topic of conversation.

She remembers hearing of "The World's College of Life" as one of Koresh's
ideas, but she saw nothing of it in practice.

Children in the Unity were kept very busy, just like the adults.  She washed
and ironed her clothes, the old fashioned way, at the age of nine and, at
twelve, went to work in the printing shop as a typesetter.  She also learned
to operate a Linotype.  She waited on tables in the dining hall when the
adults ate.  Her brothers and the other boys washed the dishes.  She also
spent many hours practicing on the piano in the Art Hall (it is still there),
and also waited on tables.

On Sunday evenings, the Koreshans held religious services in the Art Hall. 
The services consisted of singing, solo piano playing, and reading from the
works of Koresh.  There was no single religious leader after the death of
Koresh.  Responsibility for conducting the religious services rotated among
the group.  Following the services, the members would all retire to the
Planetary Court to hear a "record concert".  The records always consisted of
classical music or operas.  At the time, Mrs. Barager disliked these concerts,
but, in later years, she was grateful for the musical background, with which
she had been provided.  The Planetary Court was where the female board members
lived.

In addition to religious services, she remembers the Art Hall resounding with
the music of the orchestra, and she also remembers plays being presented.  Two
members, James Calderwood and Bertie Boomer, wrote the plays.  They made their
own costumes.  She remembers that romance never figured in any of these plays.

Mrs. Barager feels that the three-story dining hall was one of the Unity's
most important buildings.  It was the center of activity.  When she recently
returned to the site, she had difficulty orienting herself because the dining
hall was missing. The Unity women lived in the two upper stories of this
building.  There were no interior walls; sheets were hung to partition space. 
The ground floor was the dining area.  She remembers meals being served at
5:30 a.m., 12:00 noon, and 5:30 p.m.  The dinner bell was rung twice at
five-minute intervals for each meal.

She does not remember food ever being abundant; the meals were always rather
sparse.  This was another surprising bit of information.  I had the impression
from the research that the Koreshans had a great abundance of food and even
produced a surplus.  Mr. Barager reports that trips to Ft. Myers were made
weekly to purchase provisions such as eggs, milk, and sugar.  The trip was
made by boat until 1914 when the Unity acquired an automobile and made a
difficult journey to town over sand roads. Numerous "break-downs" were a
feature of the automobile trip.  The Koreshans did have chickens and cows and
grew produce, but their agricultural production was apparently inadequate. 
She can remember the crops being devoured by insects and she can remember
drinking milk that was blue in color.  At that time there were no insecticides
such as we have today, and forage for cattle was very poor on the "open
range."

White corn meal mush was served each morning for breakfast.  The leftover mush
was brushed with lard and baked in the oven for the evening meal. During the
summer the Koreshans went to the beach to harvest nesting sea turtles.  The
meat from these turtles was always ground up and used like hamburger.  The men
hunted in season and occasionally provided turkey and venison for food.  The
biggest meal of the year was on Koresh's birthday in October.  That was the
one time of the year that butter was served, as well as homemade ice cream. 
It was a day that the children looked forward to.  Citrus fruit was always
plentiful and, on occasion, mangos, avocados, and sapodillas were available. 
The Koreshans had bee hives and she remembers that there was always "burnt
honey" on the table.  The burned  honey was the result of not being able to
store honey in Florida without refrigeration.  In the cooking process, it was
inadvertently burned.  That burned honey lasted forever.

Children were separated from their families when they arrived at the Unity,
but Mrs. Barager does not recall the experience as being traumatic.  The girls
lived in a house with a caretaker who left the Unity (along with a number of
others) when Koresh died.  The girls then moved in with another woman.  In
later years, Mrs. Barager moved back with her mother.  The boys lived in a
structure some little distance to the south that they referred to as the
"Hotel de Swamp".  The number of children at the Unity probably varied
somewhat during the time Mrs. Barager was there.  She seems to recall twelve
to fourteen or more at one time.

It seems to her that relations among the group were fairly harmonious though
there was some friction as might be expected with a large group of people
living at close quarters.  One source of friction was the fact that some
individuals received spending money from outside sources, violating the
principle of community-owned wealth.  Gossip was a common pastime.

The interview touched on a number of other miscellaneous items.  For example,
the tennis courts were constructed around 1913-1914 and were the personal
project of one woman member of the organization.

The grounds, according to Mrs. Barager, presented a much better-kept
appearance in the old days than they do at present.

People came from quite some distance to shop at the Koreshan store.  She
remembers the Whiddens, who came all the way from Immokalee.

The Estero Post Office was in the store; there was no restaurant during the
time she was there.

A Koreshan sister, Emma Norton, was a blood sister of Koresh.  She also was
Matron of the group and was in charge of the medicine chest. The Koreshans
never went to Fort Myers to visit a doctor.  The Matron was the Doctor.  There
was another blood sister, Melora, and a brother, Oliver, in the Unity.

The Solar Festival, in celebration of Koresh's birthday in October, was the
big event of the year.  Christmas and Easter were not celebrated nor were any
other of the general holidays.  On April Fools' Day, we kids would have great
fun out of pinning old, long rags on some of the sisters' long skirts.  There
was a dearth of toys, etc. for kids amusement.

Mrs. Barager arrived with her family at Estero in February 1908.  When her
family arrived at Estero, the Koreshans were having an "oyster feed"
out-of-doors.  Her mother did not like raw oysters.  Koresh died in December
of the same year.  She vaguely remembers him and she remembers going to Estero
Island after his death to view the body.

Some of the paintings are missing from the Art Hall.

Her older brother left Estero in 1914 and joined the Navy and subsequently
married.  He and his wife later returned to Estero, not as members of the
Unity, and lived in a house down the river, owned by the Unity and called the
Amity.  When she was nineteen, her brother and his wife invited her to move to
Wisconsin and live with them.  She moved with them to Madison in 1920 and
found a job as a Linotype operator.  Her younger brother left the Unity around
1917.  He died as a result of being bitten by a rattlesnake while hunting
turkeys in and around Naples.  She reports that her father lost his mind in
the fall of 1908 and passed away in May 1909.  Her mother passed away in 1945
at Estero.  She had become a very devoted member.

Mrs. Barager feels that growing up in the Koreshan Unity did not prepare her
properly for her later life.  Her education was inadequate and she was very
naive about the world outside the Unity.
Return to Mildred A. FISCHER










































Notes for William F. FISCHER , Sr.


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  William F. Fischer.

U.S. Federal Census; Estero; Lee County; Florida; 1920; Enumeration date:  Jan
2, 1920; Enumerator:  Henry D. Silverfriend; ED:  109; SD:  1; Fourth
Precinct; Microfilm roll number:  1820221; Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff;
December 1994:  William F. Fischer, Sr.; Relation to head of family:  partner;
Residence:  Estero River Front; Age 70; widower; Year of immigration to U.S.: 
1879; Naturalized; Year of naturalization:  1896; Place of birth:  Germany;
Place of birth of mother and father: Germany; Occupation:  Farmer/home farm.

The Brothers' Laundry List:  William Fischer (I am unsure if this is William,
Sr. or William, Jr.)

FLAMING SWORD, Community Current Events by Alafae Stephens, December 1933: 
"Brother Will Fischer has been advised of the death of his father in
Monongahela, Pennsylvania.  "Dad" Fischer, as he was affectionately called,
held a high place in the esteem of the Unity members."
Return to William F. FISCHER , Sr.










































Notes for William F. FISCHER , Jr.


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn:  William F. Fischer, Jr.;
Born: 10 Oct 1881--Ontario, Canada; Died:  29 Mar 1938.

U.S. Federal Census; Estero; Lee County; Florida; 1920; Enumeration date:  Jan
2, 1920; Enumerator:  Henry D. Silverfriend; ED:  109; SD:  1; Fourth
Precinct; Microfilm roll number:  1820221; Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff;
December 1994:  William F. Fischer, Jr.; Relation to head of family:  partner;
Place of residence:  Estero River Front; Age 38; Single; Year of immigration
to U.S.:  1882; Naturalized; Year of naturalization: 1896; Place of birth: 
Canada; Place of birth of mother and father: Germany; Occupation:  Marine
Engineer/boat line.

The Brothers' Laundry List--Name listed William Fischer--do not know if it is
William Jr. or William Sr.

Burial:  Koreshan Unity Cemetery--lot 25; Inscription:  Wiliam
Fisher/1882-July 1938

FLAMING SWORD,  Community Current Events by D. J. Richards, November 1930: "It
gives us great pleasure to announce in this issue the return of Brother
William F. Fischer, after an absence of two years from the Unity."

FLAMING SWORD, Community Current Events by Adah J. Price, August 1938:
"Brother William Fischer, aged 56, passed away on July 19.  He had been in
poor health for over a year, and for some months he had been under a doctor's
care.  Brother William has always been appreciated for his honesty and
sincerity of purpose.  He is survived by two sisters, one in Monongahela, Pa.,
and another, Miss Marie Fischer, in West Palm Beach, Florida."
Return to William F. FISCHER , Jr.










































Notes for Emma Gertrude FISKE


THE KORESHAN UNITY MEMBERSHIP LIST by Claude J. Rahn: Emma Gertrude Fiske;
Born: 27 Feb 1856, Waltham, Mass; Died 30 Aug 1931.

FOLKS WE KNEW WHILE IN THE K.U. by Marie McCready:  Lelia and Emma Fisk; "They
both sat at the Second Sisters' table with Mamma.  Lela who was tall, died
first.  Emma, the little one, was one of Mamma's good friends."

U.S. Federal Census--1910; Estero, Lee, Florida; Microfilm Roll number:  Fl
1910-H T624; Koreshan Unity; Enumeration Date:  25 Apr 1910; Enumerator: 
Walter S. Turner, Jr.; ED:  80; Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff, Jan 1995:
Emma G. Fiske; Sex:  female; Age 54; Marital status:  Single; Place of birth: 
Massachusetts; Place of birth of mother and father:  Massachusetts; Language
spoken:  English; Occupation:  Seamstress; Employer or worker:  worker; Can
read and write:  yes; Attending school:  yes.

U.S. Federal Census/Estero/Lee County/Florida/1920; Enumeration date:  Jan 2,
1920; Enumerator:  Henry D. Silverfriend; ED:  109; SD:  1; Fourth Precinct;
Microfilm roll number:  1820221; Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff, December
1994:  Emma G. Fiske; Place of residence:  Planetary Court; Relation to head
of family:  Boarder; Age 63; Single; Place of birth: Massachusetts; Place of
birth of mother and father:  Massachusetts; Occupation:  Seamstress/KU home.

U.S. Federal 1930 Census; Estero, Lee County; Florida; Election Precinct 12;
Koreshan Unity Home; Enumeration date:  May 5, 1930; Enumerator:  William
Howell ED:  36-17; SD:  6; Page:  199; Transcribed by Joyce Nelle Ratliff,
January 2003:  Emma G. Fiske; Radio set:  none listed; Sex:  female; Color: 
white; Age at last birthday:  74; Marital condition:  single; Attended school
since Sep 1, 1929:  no; Whether able to read and write;  yes; Place of birth: 
Massachusetts:  Place of birth of father:  Massachusetts; Place of birth of
mother:  Massachusetts; Whether able to speak English:  yes; Occupation:  
House keeper; Industry:  Sick (?)

Court Record--Warranty Deed:  Apr 1924, Deed Book 70, Page 209, entry number
1.  Emma Fiske and other Koreshans.

FLAMING SWORD, Community Current Events by Rose Gilbert, October 1931: 
"Sister Emma Gertrude Fiske, aged 75 years, died Sunday, August 23, at 4 a.m.
after a long illness hastened by a recent fall and injury to her hip. She was
a native of Waltham, Massachusetts.  She had been a member of the Unity for
over 27 years, coming to Estero from Chicago, Illinois.  For many years she
had been partly invalided (sic) and her suffering was intense.  Her many
friends regret her loss and she will be greatly missed.  She was a loyal
friend and firm believer in the Koreshan doctrines.  The deceased was buried
in the Koreshan cemetery in Estero."

Burial: Koreshan Unity Cemetery--lot 3. Inscription: Emma Fisk--Aug
1931.
Return to Emma Gertrude FISKE