"2 April 1948
My very dearest darling Eileen Alana,
I slipped up last night in my writing and I hope that you will forgive me honey. Yesterday was a day of rain thunder and lightning and it meant death for one guy down here who was hit by lightning during the height of the storm. Out side of that nothing much happened at this end of the line. Last night I rushed over to the club for a brew or two and since one lead to another I remained to down a few more than I intended. Fortunately I suffered no ill effects and today I worked like a dog all day until I knocked off to play baseball. We had a game to day at the Main Station and after a few costly mistakes we went down to defeat 5-3. It was only a practice game so the mistakes taught us all a few lessons that we won't easily forget. Tomorrow is another holiday for us for a change and it seems unbelievable to us down hear. Just when I will want it the most the tide will change and we will have to work. In order not to put a jinx on my head I won't dwell on that thought for any length of time. I'm waiting for you quite anxiously so please make the time go along at a fast pace. Two weeks from tonight you will be on your way and pretty soon I'll start to count the hours and then the minutes so please hurry along. I made out once again in the mail department so my day was indeed a real success. Even though your letters are short they are still nice to receive and I still search for them as intently as always. It won't be too long now until all of our writing days will be over for good and we can settle down to conversations instead of correspondence. A dream come true. As I told you in a previous letter I'm making a collection of text books down here for future reference and today I picked up a complete set on automobiles. They will always come in handy to me since automobiles are here to stay. I'm going over to your letters now for a bit of inspiration. I won't answer them all because I have a long weekend ahead of me in which to attempt to accumulate a few bits of inspiration. Since nothing much happens down here your letters will be my sole source of help. I'll try to be in the very best of health and condition when you arrive upon the scene. Most of my outstanding aches and pains have disappeared and I'm settling down to the usual routine so have no fear of having a battered cripple on your hands. I'm devoting all of my time and extra energy solely to baseball now so I'm strictly on one track now. I see that you have intentions of continuing your daily Mass and since your first efforts were thwarted don't give up. With the world in a topsy-turvy condition prayers and graces are always helpful and quite beneficial especially with me living under the stress and strain of military life. Keep it up honey, keep it up, please.
Well I'm coming to the end of the page at long last so I'll come to a close about now and tell you that I love you with all of my heart and soul and I miss you with all of my heart and soul. Please take care of yourself.
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxxxxxx
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"5 April 1948
My very dearest darling Eileen Alana,
Hello honey baby here is your poor neglectful husband back on the beam once again. For some inexcusable reason I failed to write to you over the past weekend and I'm indeed deeply sorry. I got involved in the social affairs of the club on both nights and by the time I got back here it was much too late to write and I wasn't in any condition to do so. I guess it is the anxiety over your coming arrival that has me on edge filled with anticipation and the like but I'll settle down quite readily. Saturday night I dropped over for a beer or two to attempt to create a little inspiration when I wrote to you but my success was amazing. I bought one beer all night and since my surplus funds were quite low the good fortune was quite timely. We kept rolling the dice and I kept getting free beer so I couldn't quit then. After a while when we began to get goofed up we started singing and rolling the dice to see who was to give a solo. All in all it was quite a night and we kept the joint alive for awhile.
Last night I went over to the club to see some Navy movies on Pearl Harbor and the Atom Bomb plus a few others so it just ran on and on. The guy that bunks in my room had a late watch and rather than lose any sleep for him I hit the hay instead and postponed the letter until tonight.
The weekend was on again and off again if you know what I mean as the skies were threatening constantly. I'm still praying quite fervently for good weather when you get down here and I hope that this uncertain weather takes a sudden change for the best. Today was rainy and quite dismal but since it was pay day and since I got a letter from you at least I got some sunshine after all. I'm now loaded financially for your arrival to the tune of about $150 so we won't be exactly broke. I'll have another pay day while you are here but it will only be a small one so I'm not really counting on it. You can bring along what you planned and we shouldn't have any monetary difficulties at all. Only 12 days to go honey and I'll have you with me. Seeing that the time is drawing near the days seem to be getting longer and slower. I guess it's all in my head though. Since today was rainy we didn't have any baseball practice but I hope to give it a whirl again tomorrow night. It's work but very relaxing to me as it expends all of the excess energy that I store up during the course of the day. When you get down here I'll let baseball take a rest for awhile and I'll concentrate on you.
Now I'll return to my usual custom of answering your letters which have begun to pile up on me for the past few days. Getting ready for your trip must have you going like mad at the G.S. Co but please don't overdo it or they will be expecting you to keep it up constantly. I expect to see you down here in good shape and not all worn out from work. The rest and trip will do you a world of good and you'll be all rested (?) and ready to go in full force when you get back. I guess everyone will be out in force to see you off on your trip so you should feel quite important. Just hurry hurry and hurry down here. I shall do my utmost to meet you when you arrive but if the rare uncertainty arises that prevents me from doing so I'll give you a few instructions to hold you over until I can get to you. If I'm not around grab the limousine to town to the San Carlos Hotel where I have made reservations for you and me as Mr & Mrs John Manning on March 27. They expect you in on the Eastern Airlines morning flight. These are all emergency measures but I'll doubtedly be there to greet you. Just remember the name of the hotel and the limousine will let you off at the door. The trip will cost about a dollar. That's about all that there is to it I guess.
I see that Rita intends to put you all through your paces as far as exercise goes. Is she getting figure conscious already? The exercise will do her good I guess but she won't stay at it long enough for it to do her any good. One of the follies of youth I guess. She'll spend a half hour going through exercises and calisthenics and then she'll spend a few hours slopping up soda pop recuperating from the efforts. She just won't be able to win. Why don't you suggest that she stop eating for awhile? Now that Madeline is going to have a baby I guess she is full of troubles, woes and uncertainties but everything will work out all right in the end. Married life is causing them a lot of trouble but maybe next year we will be in the same boat so I'm not going to start crowing over our lack of woes at present.
I doubt if your arrival down here will cause me any gray hairs unless you persist in sleeping on the floor. I've been reading over your intended strategy of being awake all night and sleeping all day and I must say that I'm afraid that I'm in for a week of complete frustration if all of your plans succeed. Woe is me! I won't insist that you sleep on the floor but if you sleep in the bed you must be cooperative or out you go. Getting back to reality again I'm awaiting your arrival very very anxiously so please hurry on down here to me. I'm about run out of inspiration now honey so I'll close out until tomorrow night when I'll write once again. I love you and miss you with all of my heart and soul. Please take good care of yourself.
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxxxxxxxx
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"6 April 1948
My very dearest darling Eileen Alana,
Hello again honey and how is everything back home these balmy days? Today was hot and humid and with very little sunshine. All I did was sweat and sweat. I'm hoping longingly that it will take a turn for the better before you get down here because a week of continual rain would be disastrous to say the least. Heat and rain prevailed but we did manage to get in two hours of baseball practice this afternoon and since it was our first workout since Friday's game I feel all worn out from it all. Old age may be creeping up on me but I'm determined to beat it back as best I can. A few more rough workouts and I'll be all right once again. I guess I'm in my second childhood or something to that effect but as long it consumes my unspent time and energies I'm all for it. Today was another heavy work day but for some strange reason we didn't accomplish very much. I guess it was the heat. I'm overlooking everything these days just waiting for you to get here and the sooner the time passes the more pleased I'll be. In eleven days I'll be seeing you and I'm looking forward to it with all of my heart believe me. I'll be the happiest guy in the world when you get here so please hurry.
I gave you some directions to follow in an emergency last night and tonight I'd like to caution you to bring your money in cash because these people are very shy as far as checks are concerned. I don't know definitely how much you intend to bring but please bring it in cash. As I told you last night I'll have about $150 on hand when you get here and since you will have a round trip ticket it will be clear. You can use your own judgement as to how much to bring as it's better to have too much than too little. I'll have to send my khakis to the cleaners maybe tomorrow so that I'll be all spruced up when you get here. Well honey I'm writing this letter a little early as I'm going to the bingo party at the club and see if I can win a few dollars extra. I feel a little lucky tonight so I'll give it a whirl and hope for the best. I didn't get any mail from you today so I guess I'll have to wait to see what tomorrow brings in that department. I miss you with all of my heart and soul and I love you so very very much. Please take real good care of yourself.
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxxx
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"7 April 1948
My very dearest darling Eileen Alana,
Just about now I feel almost completely exhausted and I greatly fear that my head will sag before this letter is completed. We played a bunch of high school kid(s) tonight in baseball in a sweltering hot humid climate and with the necessary running and throwing I sapped all of my strength I'm afraid. I had intentions of weighing myself prior to the game and again after it was all over but I never did make it. One of these days I'll get around to it. After all of this exercise I must be down to practically nothing and right now I feel that way. Lo and behold we have another game tomorrow night so by then I should be completely worn out. I'll rest up though before you get here and I'll be in perfect shape when you arrive so have no fears honey. As I told you last night I went to bingo and my luck was good for a change as I won one game to the tune of $3.50. It paid all of my expenses so I didn't do so bad after all. I was really after the jackpot which was worth $50 but some female grabbed that one. Better luck next week I hope.
I made out in the mail department receiving one letter with a lock of hair enclosed. That battle of the scissors and hair snipping is causing me to doubt the sanity of both of you. A little horseplay every once in a while isn't bad but you two seem to go at it like cats and dogs if you are resorting to scissors. As for getting dumped flat on your back, one of theses days you are going to wind up getting hurt and then maybe it will all cease. You can't be objecting to it all very strongly or he would have ceased long ago. Why doesn't he flip Hannie around a few times if he wants some exercise instead of messing you up. That is supposed to be one of my privileges and I don't want it to be abused by anyone. I guess I have to go home and rearrange a few things. Enough of that for the present so on with your letter. You don't have to pay poll tax for me as I'm still in service. You can check up on that if you will and let me know about it. I see that Eileen is still whooping around hither and yon and life in America must certainly seem like a picnic to her. With the easy life that she is leading she has no other course but to get fat. If and when she goes back to Ireland she will be as big as a mountain and then everyone will want to come over. That baby shower must have really been a hen party and I'm sorry that you didn't get any attractive information on child bearing. You must have been scared or been given bum advice by a frustrated old maid as that's the only conclusion that I can draw. I'll have to develop a glib tongue and persuade you otherwise.
Well honey the time has come for me to close out for now but I'll write again tomorrow. I love you and miss you with all of my heart and soul. Please take care.
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxxxx
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"8 April 1948
My very dearest darling Eileen Alana,
I'm writing tonight with a very heavy heart and with my eyes flaring red with anger. Since I've been aboard this station I have worked like a dog but I'm afraid it's been all in vain. Through some underhanded deal I have wound up in a crash crew which is a detestable monotonous deal and one that everyone has shunned since it was created. It's a good deal in some respect but with you coming down it really has me confused. It is a twenty four hours on and twenty four hours off affair and with you arriving upon the scene I'm all confused as to what is what. Until I get the full swing of the whole deal there isn't much that I can tell you at present, maybe tomorrow night I'll have a little more dope. I want you to standby for a phone call Thursday night when I'll be able to give you all of the necessary dope on what is what. Right now I have two officers working on the deal and they are going to see the Captain tomorrow but the outlook is quite glum all around. As usual I'm hoping for the best and I'm prepared for the worst. It's deals like this that really get me riled up especially when they stab you in the back and try to laugh it off. A couple of old timers put the skids under me for some unknown reason and since I play baseball and knock off two hours early that put the finishing touches on the whole affair. Being a youngster as far as time in the Navy is concerned is really a handicap at times like this and it really hit me below the belt this time. I've never held a real grudge against anyone in my life but this deal I'll never forget, so help me. If ever the opportunity arises when I can cause these people any dirt or harm I'm going out of my way to do it and as they cringe and whine I'll give them a smirky smile in memory of the one that they gave me. I'm really bitter honey, more bitter than I have ever been in my whole life. Almost overnight I hate and detest everything that is Navy and everything about this base. Maybe in time I'll get over it but I'll never forget it. Our plans won't change one iota and I'll make your stay down here as enjoyable as I possibly can if I have to go to the Admiral to swing and engineer it. In a way I'm thankful that you aren't down here at this present moment because I'm afraid that you would have a raving maniac on your hands. I'll close out for now and I hope that I will have better and more pleasant news tomorrow.
I love you deeply honey with all of my heart and soul and I miss you terribly. Please take care and please don't let this cause you any worry whatsoever.
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxxxxxxx
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"12 April 1948
My very dearest darling Eileen Alana,
Hello once again honey, here is your poor broken down husband attempting in a beat up sort of way to correspond with you. As of late, the past week particularly, I've been hitting the brew pretty hard I must admit but it's due chiefly to anxiety and a few other sundry occurrences that have transpired down here as of late. It seems at times as though I want to completely blow my top but only good will and a very steady and constant disposition prevents it most of the time. Prior to your arrival down here I must beseech you to inform me of the address of Mass. State Teachers College so that I can cut loose from all affiliations with this brood of knifing back stabbing characters who have undermined and seem to be overly predominant in the Navy nowadays. At the present moment by the slant of my scroll you can see that I am slightly influenced by a few beers or what have you but nevertheless I'm on my way to a future with a seemingly satisfactory success although I'm not, as Hannie puts it, endowed for a great deal of wealth. It will at least give me a great deal of satisfaction and joy to train and direct young and very immature minds down the road of life to possibly avoid circumvent a few of the obstacles that have confronted me and the likes of me. You know my pet that it is a very sad commentary on life to learn that the things that you have been warned against by the preceding generations are just the things that trip you up so thoroughly and completely. It's just a matter of human nature I guess that each and every human must learn for himself. At times it('s) quite tragic to witness the mistakes and errors of youth and in that sense youth reaches almost up to the thirties & forties. One of these fine days I'll learn the full and very real meaning of life and then I'll set my course & pattern but until then I'm in a quandary as to just what is what. The more that I think of it the more that I fully and completely believe that the training and developing of young minds is my vocation in life and for that end I'm completely willing to subscribe. I'm just hoping and fervently praying that that is the purpose for which I have been created. Sometimes I feel so very selfish and egotistical and at others so selfless and so very charitable and easy going that it all adds up to the fact that I really don't know if I am coming or going. My personal opinion amounts to naught so I'll just have to wait for your unbiased and point blank honest opinion on the whole matter. In about five days I'll have it and believe me my dearest darling that (is) exactly what I want an unbiased straight forward opinion to really set me straight as to my future career. Being so very susceptible to Navy propaganda at times my mind and intellect varies and conflicts as far as this recruiting deal is concerned but I know deep down in my heart that only happiness and satisfaction guaranteed will ever keep me in this Navy and since the Navy isn't a compromising outfit in reality and can't possibly pass out that which I seek I have absolutely no alternative whatsoever. I'm getting out and I'm staying out for once and always. I guess I've told you that a million times but it's absolutely true - I'm out and when I'm out I'm out to stay. I want you, I need you, in fact I demand your presence to keep me level headed and sure of my position otherwise I'm like a ship without a rudder buffeted by wind and tide and very uncertain as to my direction, course and objective if life. You have been and always will be my steadying and most assuredly my guiding influence in life; you have been from the time that first I knew you until the present the guiding pattern in life for me. Without you I'm afraid that life would have been just another tragedy. I implore and I beg of you to keep a constant vigil on my activities, social and otherwise so that I don't get rooted in the wrong path and direction. I'm speaking from the bottom of my heart honey because it is you, and you alone who can decide my cause(?) and also my course to our own mutual happiness. All that I can possibly ask is that you be reasonable understanding and kind to my efforts because regardless of my stake in life it's all for you and us. I feel deeply frustrated at times because I can't think up pretty phrases and rhymes to express myself but I know that you understand.
Today I went to fire school to learn how to put out fires and I must truthfully state that I really did learn a thing or two. Tomorrow is another course and off I will be to learn a little more by actual experience. Tomorrow night I'll write to you again for possibly the last time until you return and I'll save all further information until you arrive upon the scene. If it is at all possible I'm going to check out in a Masonic ring and its accoutrements because it is for some very strange reason retarding my progress as far as cordiality is concerned. This Navy is full of Masons and when Father Smith told me to get out prior to our marriage the reasoning took a while to sink in. Now I know the score completely. I'll explain it all to you someday and you can possibly understand the whole deal.
Well honey although I'm a little the worse for wear my mind is comparatively clear and what I have put on paper is actual and I mean from my heart and soul especially that I miss you tremendously and I love you with all my heart soul and strength and I will continue to do so eternally so help me. Please take care and hurry down.
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxxx
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"13 April 1948
My very dearest darling Eileen Alana,
Hello once again my dearest and how is everything going tonight with you? I'm getting this letter off a little early because I'm going to go to Bingo at the Club in an hour or so. Today I spent at Fire Fighters School on the Main Station and I learned a terrific pile about fighting gasoline and oil fires which will probably come in very handy for me sometime in the future. To date I'm still on the Crash Crew but somebody is trying to get me off so I haven't given up hopes as yet. Your arrival down here is what makes the job so inconvenient but regardless of what job I get I'll do my very best to be with you as much as I possibly can.
I'm going to call you up Thursday night and I'll try to give you all the information that I have so that you will be up to date on everything. I'm counting the hours until you get down here and I'm hoping so very much that they hurry by. This will be my last letter as you should get this Friday and any subsequent arrivals would find you down here and the mail up there. As far as color is concerned I have a big headstart on you because my arms neck and face are all burned crimson. The heat from the fires in school caused small blisters to break out on my arms but they don't hurt me any. Seeing that you seek a tan I'll need this head start to keep up with you. I'm still hoping for the good weather to bless us while you are down here but if it doesn't the sun is hot enough to give you a good burn in no time at all. Please hurry down honey as I'm waiting for you so very, very anxiously. I've been looking forward to your coming for so long that I can hardly believe that you are so close. I haven't been able to get any mail from you this week but tomorrow should bear fruit as I'll be able to pick it up. Tomorrow is the last day of school and I'll return to the base to stay again. Not hearing from you for a few days I'm hoping that everything is all right. Well I'm going to close out for now and I'll be seeing you in a little while. Please take care and hurry. I love you with all of my heart & soul and I miss and need you so very very much.
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxxxxxx
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The picture is of the San Carlos Hotel in Pensacola, Florida where my mother stayed when she visited my father at the naval air base at Saufley Field in Pensacola.
According to historicpensacola.org, 'The San Carlos hotel, nicknamed “Gray Lady” due to its pearly-gray stucco exterior, sat at the corner of Palafox and Garden Streets. Built with over 150 rooms, she underwent an expansion in 1927 which brought the room total to over 500. Sadly, the Gray Lady closed in 1982, then was demolished in 1993 due to deterioration.'
The website goes on to say that by the 1940s 'the San Carlos had added a sign to its facade facing St. Michael’s Basilica, announcing its presence to all passersby ...
Around 1910 'The San Carlos Hotel marketed itself as one of the premier destinations in the Southeast. Guests to the hotel enjoyed the finely carpeted interior and amenities including electric lighting, advanced ventilation, and telephone service in each room. Room rates started at $1.50 per day ... Besides providing guests a place to stay, the San Carlos held a variety of events like dinners, dances, and concerts ... Pensacola locals and visitors alike entered the extravagant lobby of the San Carlos Hotel. Guests gazed upon ornate high ceilings, the grand staircase, and decorative furniture ... in the San Carlos lobby, sunlight shone through a giant colored glass dome and down onto a white marbled floor. The whiteness of the marble provided extra light. The San Carlos used natural lighting wherever possible ... Carpets and furniture in the San Carlos Hotel were of Spanish influence in design and color ... The Garden Street entrance of the San Carlos led guests past the elevators and toward the grand staircase, marble archway, and finally the patio. A wrought-iron gate separated the patio from the hotel lobby. The patio ceiling had glass between the beams. Candelabras illuminated patrons from above ... The hotel boasted a dining room, electric grill, bakery, coffee shop, and banquet hall. The menu changed daily. Guests dined on items like broiled Spanish mackerel, candied sweet potatoes, and tutti frutti ice cream ... The San Carlos Hotel’s dining room, known as one of the finest in the Southeast, was famous for its coffee and southern hospitality. Orchestras played from the overlooking balcony. By day, the adjoining patio provided natural light. By night, electric chandeliers lit the room. Traveling guests enjoyed the inviting atmosphere, and local patrons stopped by daily for coffee and chatting. Many important business transactions occurred during this popular café hour ... Nestled in the business district, the San Carlos Hotel served as a stop for Pensacola’s public bus system ... The Avery Bill enforced Jim Crow laws in the city until 1962 ... On December 3, 1938, the city held a military parade to honor the men and women serving at Naval Air Station Pensacola. The U.S. Naval Reserve Act permitted the enlistment of qualified women as nurses earlier in the year. Nurses marched alongside sailors down Palafox Street in front of the San Carlos Hotel.'
In 1757 a new settlement in the present downtown Pensacola was constructed - other settlements had been destroyed by fires, hurricanes and abandoned - a chapel inside the fort commemorated St Michael the Archangel.
"Bishop Peñalver had difficulty getting priests to agree to go to Pensacola, writing that he “could not even get angels to go to Pensacola.” He visited Pensacola in 1798 where he found the church in “pitiful condition” and was unable to persuade parishioners to make the necessary sacrifices for a new church, even though the “temporary” warehouse/church was slowly falling into ruin. The only priest in town was Father James Coleman.
"The original warehouse/church on Zaragossa Street in Pensacola finally collapsed at the beginning of 1831. Though hindered by poverty, the congregation resolved to build a new church. Bishop Portier gave what assistance he could and presided at the laying of the cornerstone on February 6th, 1831. Just as the new structure neared completion, it was destroyed by a hurricane. A new start was made; new and serious debt was incurred. By 1833, the building at the corner of Jefferson and Church streets was successfully completed.
The Civil War, which began in 1861, brought even more hardship to the area. Father Patrick Coyle of St. Michael’s was commissioned a Confederate chaplain to care for the Southern troops, and Bishop Quinlin of Mobile sent six Daughters of Charity to staff the military hospital. In May of 1862, the Confederate troops abandoned Pensacola. Ninety percent of the population left, the sisters returned to Mobile and the local government evacuated to Greenville, Alabama. During this absence. an empty St. Michael Church was destroyed in a fire.
After the War, Bishop Quinlin immediately went about securing funds to rebuild St. Michael, and a new church was dedicated in 1867. This wooden church building on New Street (now Government Street) was near present-day Jefferson Street. Although Pensacola possessed one of the finest deep-water harbors in the South, it lacked the one feature necessary for commerce: a navigable river to the interior. With the completion of a rail connection north to Montgomery in 1870, followed by an east-west rail line in 1883, Pensacola became a true boomtown! ... In 1882, Father John Baasen was named Pastor of St. Michael’s. Born in Prussia, this zealous missionary had traveled throughout Alabama and West Florida by horseback and train, prior to assuming his new post. But no sooner had he arrived, than St. Michael Church was again destroyed by fire during a raging Yellow Fever epidemic. Fr. Baasen had also contacted the disease while attending sick parishioners and, according to accounts of the time, was carried out of the burning rectory on a cot.
Father Baasen had the foresight to purchase property on the corner of Palafox and Chase Streets for a new church. The price was $3,500, with the seller donating the $500. The location was in an area where much construction was going on, including a new courthouse on the opposite corner. The Methodist Church was at the other end of the block on the corner of Palafox and Garden, and the Lutheran Church was just another block away on the corner of Baylen and Garden Streets. (The San Carlos Hotel was built on the site of the Methodist Church.)
Father Baasen had the foresight to purchase property on the corner of Palafox and Chase Streets for a new church. The price was $3,500, with the seller donating the $500. The location was in an area where much construction was going on, including a new courthouse on the opposite corner. The Methodist Church was at the other end of the block on the corner of Palafox and Garden, and the Lutheran Church was just another block away on the corner of Baylen and Garden Streets. In spite of this, some members of the congregation objected to the new location being “so far from town!”
After the fire, Father Baasen recovered from Yellow Fever. While his congregation met in temporary quarters, construction began in 1883 on the new (and current) St. Michael Church. It was formally dedicated on June 6, 1886 by Bishop Jeremiah O’Sullivan of Mobile. The exterior walls were of the very best red brick made in Kehoe’s brickyard (later covered with stucco). The interior woodwork was all Florida pine, stained and polished. The vaulted pine ceiling is formed by rows of arches set atop support columns. Total cost was $27,000.
In 1897, pews were installed in the church. As was the custom of the time, families were charged a “pew rent”, which was a major source of financial support for the parish. A card with the family’s name was inserted in a metal holder on the end of the family’s pew. While pew rents are no longer in use, the card holders serve as a reminder of this by-gone custom.
During the pastorate of Father J. P. McCafferty (1900-1903), a number of additional improvements were made to the church. A new organ was installed and large, life-like Stations of the Cross, all memorials bearing the names of pioneer Catholic families of Pensacola, were added. Art glass windows with ecclesiastical symbols were installed when the church was built. During the pastorate of Father Robert Fullerton (1904-1926), they were replaced by magnificent new stained glass windows, which today form one of the artistic treasures of Pensacola.
The unique bowed altar rail, certainly a fine example of the cabinet maker’s art, was fortunately preserved during mandated changes to the sanctuary after Vatican II.
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxxxxx
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"28 April 1948
My very dearest darling Ellen,
Here is your poor lonely loving husband once again writing to you as usual. All day long I just slept and slept and I'm afraid without your presence to exert me I'm getting a lazy streak that will linger with me for a while. I did manage to get up in time for a haircut as I was beginning to contemplate braiding my locks it's been so long since I've felt the barbers shears. I miss you so tremendously honey and I'd gladly give my right arm just to have you with me. Someday in the near future it will all be so and then I'll be completely happy for ever. I'm listening to the baseball game down here but since I'm writing to you nothing else really matters.
Tomorrow we commence a new deal as far as the Crash Crew is concerned and I'll let you know about it in a later letter. Since you aren't here I'm not going to whine and complain about anything that arises because my broad(?) shoulders can carry anything that comes my way. It sounds like a better deal but as long as all turned out well while you were here I'm all set and completely satisfied with life in general. I must say that the new deal will create an awful lot of spare time for me but I'll try to put it to good use with good efforts and attempts at studying. I began all over again today and since I laid off during your stay and impending arrival I'm afraid that I'll have to start from scratch once again. Nevertheless I'll keep at it and keep trying as best I can. Tonight I was listening to the radio and as I listened to the music I had a tremendous desire to dance with you but since you weren't here to oblige I got into one of my deep moods and dreamed of just what it would have been like. I really had a tremendously wonderful time while you were here and I only hope that you will be able to come down again before I get discharged. I have missed you constantly ever since we were married but never as much as I miss you now that you have paid me a visit. I'm just hoping waiting and pining for your presence sometime somewhere when we can be together always. You know I've been attempting to figure out still what made you mad at me last Saturday night when I was supposed to have been mean - to you. For the life of me I still can't figure it out. Nevertheless I still miss you terribly.
I'm still awaiting any mail from you and until some arrives I'll be ill at ease. As for my address you had better make it the C.P.O. Mess instead of the Crash Crew because with the new deal I won't be on duty every day. I'll write again tomorrow my very dearest so until then please take care of yourself. I love you with all of ny heart and soul and I miss you with all of my heart.
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxx
xxxxxxxx"
"Hannie
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxx"
"30 April 1948
My very dearest darling Ellen,
How are you my very dearest darling? I'm terribly lonely and distraught due to your absence and try as I may I can't circumvent your absence. Everything I do or plan concerns you and life seems so very dull about here. One of these very fine days every thing will change for the best and we will have all of the joy and happiness that we so dearly rate. I'm looking forward to it so very longingly and beseeching and I'm hoping so very much that we will be able to get together very very soon. I have just returned from the Chiefs Club and since you aren't around to build up my morale and sundry other effects nothing seems to be worthwhile. I get terrific urges to call you down here with me to stay and if things don't change soon I'm going to do just that. At times I just can't stand all of this quiet solitude without you to make me happy or - whatever else may come about for me. I have only four and one half months to go prior to my release and I'm afraid the odds will be slightly insurmountable for me unless things things take a drastic change for the better. I try to study and concentrate on all sorts of things but all that I can see and dream about is you and us. No wonder that I'm in a quandary. All that can be done is that we both pray and hope that the summer weeks and months pass by very very rapidly and all of our troubles will be over. I most certainly hope so anyway. I still haven't received any mail from you but I'm still hoping and counting on a letter in the near future. Please, please oblige. Well honey sack time calls as usual so I'm forced to call it quits for the time being. Please take good care of yourself. I love and miss you with all of my heart and soul, believe me. I'll write again tomorrow.
All of my love to you
God Bless & keep you
Alway & Always
John xxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxx"
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