Date range: 1897-1900
Size of collection: 1 carton
Terms of Access: Available to registered researchers by appointment

Walter Chew Flower was born in East Feliciana Parish in 1850, the son of a planter and cotton factor. Flower was educated at Pass Christian College and also studied law at the University of Louisiana (later Tulane University). After leaving school, he worked for several years as a reporter for the Daily Picayune and briefly practiced law before joining the cotton factoring firm of Edwin Nall & Co. In 1884, he founded his own firm, Flower Brothers, with his brother Ivy, and in 1888 formed a partnership with Branch M. King; in 1891 the firm became Flower, King and Putnam. He served as President of the New Orleans Cotton Exchange in 1891 and 1892 and retired from the business in 1895.

In 1896, Flower was chosen by the Citizens' League, a non-partisan reform group dedicated to overthrowing the current political regime in New Orleans, as its candidate for Mayor. Flower defeated the regular Democrat candidate Charles F. Buck.

The Flower administration brought in a municipally owned water, sewer, and drainage system and placed the port facilities under a publicly controlled board. It was during the Flower administration that the 1896 city charter was implemented, which cut the city council to 17 members, increased the mayor's appointive powers and (briefly) instituted a system of civil service. Flower also worked to de-politicize the Police Department and to combat epidemic disease. The City Council passed the infamous "Storyville" ordinance in 1897 during Story's time in office.

In 1900, the regular Democrats returned to power with the election of Mayor Paul Capedeville. Flower died of tuberculosis at his summer home in Covington later that year.

Correspondence is arranged chronologically, with letters from 1897-1899 in one folder and those 1900 in separate folders for each month represented.

The detailed item-level description below was begun and left incomplete a number of years ago by a former Louisiana Division employee. Given the very small size of this collection, we have continued this item-level description in completing the processing of these records. Each letter is identified by its date, its recipient, its correspondent, the place where it was written and its subject matter. The number of pages is also given, along with the designation "typewritten" or "handwritten."

Very little incoming correspondence has survived from the administration of Mayor Flower, and what has survived is of a very routine nature. Letterpress copies of outgoing correspondence for this period have survived in the form of the Letter Books from the Office of the Mayor. The following volumes are available for Mayor Flower's administration:

v. 39 (9/25/1895 -- 6/2/1896)

v. 41 (3/9/1897 -- 5/27/1898)

v. 42 (5/28/1898 -- 2/23/1899)

v. 44 (9/11/1899 -- 1/25/1900)

v. 45 (1/25/1900 -- 6/20/1900)

[vols. 40 and 43 are missing]

Detailed Description of the Records

Date	Recipient	Correspondent	Place	Subject	Extent
1897-1899
2/26/1897	Mayor	E. Heche, President, Louisiana Construction & Improvement Co.	New Orleans	Protest against fees for upkeep and policing of wharves	2 pages; typewritten
8/24/1897	Mayor	Jenkins & Sears, agents, Belliare Stamping Co.	New Orleans	Can provide samples of license plates	1 page; handwritten
11/20/1897	Mayor	Henry J. Levy, attorney for liquidators of Louisiana Auxiliary Sanitary Assn.	New Orleans	Claim against city	3 pages; typewritten
8/26/1898	Mayor	H.C. Brown, former City Surveyor	New Orleans	Request for back pay	3 pages; typewritten
3/7/1899	Mayor and City Council	John W. Murphy, Commissioner, Police and Public Buildings	New Orleans	Need to have Comptroller advertise for bids for replacing 4th and 7th Precinct stations	1 page; typewritten
4/22/1899	Mayor and City Council	R.J. McNeill, W.M. Hermitage Lodge No. 98	New Orleans	Requests duplicates of receipts for Lodge's purchase of vaults in Lafayette Cemetery No. 2	1 page; typewritten
11/4/1899	Mayor	Sarah Cooley	[illegible]	Various questions about lodging and employment in the area from woman relocating to the South	2 pages; handwritten
11/4/1899	Mayor	[signature illegible]	New Orleans	Procedure for extending street railroad franchise is illegal	1 page; typewritten
12/26/1899	Mayor	W.B. Spencer, attorney, member of Board of Commissioners of Prisons and Asylums	New Orleans	Resigns position on Board	1 page; typewritten
n.d.	J.S. Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	S.W. Urban (Urban the Tailor)	East St. Louis, Illinois	Regarding his distant relative Charles Ender, now destitute in New Orleans	1 page; handwritten
January, 1900
1/12/1900	Mayor	C.E. Phelps, Chief Engineer, City of Baltimore	Baltimore, Maryland	Information on New Orleans city lighting station	1 page; typescript
1/12/1900	Mayor	Joseph E. Manning, Secretary, Louisiana Improvement Co.	New Orleans	Paving Canal St. neutral ground, Delta to Liberty St.	2 pages; typed
1/16/1900	J.S. Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	Herman E. Bulkley, University of Chicago	Chicago	Request for last Mayor's Annual Report	1 page; handwritten
1/18/1900	Mayor	James Trahan, Jr., New Orleans Maritime Assn.	New Orleans	Use of "spark arresters" on steam vessels operating in harbor or at wharves	2 pages; typewritten
1/18/1900	Mayor	Mary Scott Stafford	McHenry, Mississippi	Request for name of a divorce lawyer in New Orleans	1 page; handwritten
1/19/1900	Mayor	James E. Manning, Secretary, Louisiana Improvement Assn.	New Orleans	Paving Canal Street neutral ground	2 pages; typewritten
1/19/1900	J.S. Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	Charles M. Raquet, Texas Land Agency	Marshall, Texas	Trying to locate Thomas Sheldon or heirs	1 page; typewritten
1/22/1900	Mayor	Dan McGary, Acting City Electrician	New Orleans	Request of Baltimore City Engineer handled (see 1/12/1900 above)	1 page; typewritten
1/22/1900	Mayor and City Council	L. Arnauld, Recorder, Sixth Recorder's Court	New Orleans	Criminal Sheriff is collecting fines and releasing prisoners without authority	1 page; typewritten
1/23/1900	Mayor	C.D. Wyman, New Orleans City Railroad Co.	New Orleans	Trying to expedite work on railroad tracks on Canal Street (St. Charles Ave. to River)	2 pages; typewritten
1/24/1900	Mayor	Dr. S.E. Hale	New Orleans	Napoleon Avenue needs repairs	2 pages; handwritten
1/24/1900	Mayor	W.C. Spotswood, Tow Boat Co.	Mobile, Alabama	Wants to bid on gravel and stone for paving	1 page; handwritten
1/25/1900	John. S. Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	Charles M. Raquet, Texas Land Agency	Marshall, Texas	Locating Tomas Sheldon	1 page; typewritten
1/25/1900	Mayor	C.D. Wyman, New Orleans City Railroad Co.	New Orleans	Work on neutral ground on Canal St. (St. Charles and Royal intersection) agreement reached between New Orleans City Railroad and Carrollton Railroad	1 page; typewritten
1/26/1900	Mayor	C.D. Wyman, New Orleans City Railroad Co.	New Orleans	Has submitted plans to City Engineer for Canal-Camp St. work	2 page; typewritten
1/28/1900	Mayor	[Fragmentary; no signature]	Bird's Point	Danger of Atchafalaya River cutting New Orleans off trade route	6 pages; handwritten
1/29/1900	Mayor	A.C. Bell, City Engineer	New Orleans	Annex to Live Oak School not begun yet	1 page; typewritten
1/30/1900	Mayor	L. Clarke Davis, editor, Public Lodger	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Thanks for information on trolley fares	1 page; typewritten
1/30/1900	Mayor	J.H. Kalley	Sullivan, Indiana	Requests names of hotels for Mardi Gras	1 page; handwritten
1/31/1900	Dr. Edmond Souchon, President, La. Board of Health; copy to Mayor	F.C. Zacharie, attorney for La. Board of Health	New Orleans	Laborers arriving in New Orleans with small-pox	1 page; typewritten
1/31/1900	Mayor	Dr. Edmond Souchon, La. Board of Health	New Orleans	Enclosed letter (see above)	1 page; typewritten
1/31/1900	Mayor	Samuel L. Gilmore, City Attorney	New Orleans	Opinion--Sheriff incompetent to collect fines	1 page; typewritten
February 1900
2/2/1900	Mayor	A. Lehman, A. Lehman and Co.	New Orleans	Sending two statements due since 1898 (one for Mayor and one for Dept. of Police and Public Buildings)	1 page; typewritten
2/2/1900	Mayor	H.L. Favrot, attorney	New Orleans	Public market proposed for Second District	1 page; typewritten
2/3/1900	Mayor	W.E. Uniacke, Criminal Sheriff	New Orleans	Collection of fines controversy	2 pages; handwritten
2/5/1900	Mayor	Henry V. Johnson, Mayor of Denver	Denver, Colorado	Affairs of the League of American Municipalities	2 pages; typewritten
2/5/1900	City Clerk	John F. Fisdale	Montgomery, Alabama	Wants licenses fees for street salesmen	1 page; handwritten
2/9/1900	Mayor	S. Jacobs	New Orleans	Complaint about paving Canal/Camp St.	1 page; typewritten
2/9/1900	Mayor	Dan McGary, Acting City Electrician	New Orleans	Free telephone service to which city is entitled	1 page; typewritten
2/10/1900	Mayor	A. Bell, City Engineer	New Orleans	Calliope St. Engine House work not complete	1 page; typewritten
2/12/1900	Mayor	Dan McGary, Acting City Electrician	New Orleans	Report on street lights not burning	1 page; typewritten
2/12/1900	Mayor	Charles Dormand, Secretary, Board of Police Commissioners	New Orleans	Meeting on 2/14/1900 to hear cases	1 page; typewritten
2/14/1900	J.S. Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	William J. Bok, Regent Publishing Co.	Bell Port, New York	Seeking location of cemeteries; Girod Cemetery; seeking death of novelist Eliza Ann Dupuy	2 pages; handwritten
2/15/1900	Mayor	Lillie May	Mobile, Alabama	Wants name of a good New Orleans dentist	1 page; typewritten
2/19/1900	Mayor	E.L. Cope, Superintendent, Commissioners, Port of New Orleans	New Orleans	Comparative report 1872/3 and 1898/9	3 pages; handwritten
2/26/1900	Mayor	C. Milo Williams, City Surveyor	New Orleans	Board of Commissioners of Carrollton Ave. resolution	1 page; handwritten
2/28/1900	Mayor	V.H. Tucker	Jacksonville, Florida	Wants information on liquor taxes	1 page; handwritten
March 1900
3/1/1900	Mayor	J.W. Beam & Co.	Montreal, Arkansas	Wants names of coal dealers	1 page; handwritten
3/2/1900	Mayor	Charles R. Fitzenreiter	New Orleans	Bienville St. resident complaint against New Orleans/Spanish Fort Railroad	2 pages; handwritten
3/2/1900	Mayor	John J. Seay, Mayor, Rome, Georgia	Rome, Georgia	Telegram requesting release of a man from prison; note on telegram says man was released, got drunk and was re-arrested
3/7/1900	Mayor	W.C. Dotterer, New Orleans/Spanish Fort & Lake Railroad	New Orleans	Railroad's defense of its tracks on Bienville St.; answer to all charges	3 pages; typewritten
3/8/1900	J.S. Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	Albert C. Philips, Lepers Home	New Orleans	Reporting of leprosy cases	1 page; handwritten
3/9/1900	Mayor	Merchants Electric Light & Power Co.	New Orleans	Furnishing bond as required	1 page; typewritten
3/12/1900	Mayor	H.W. Ball	Norfolk, Virginia	Information on loan businesses in New Orleans	2 pages; handwritten
3/13/1900	Mayor	Charles R. Fitzenreiter	New Orleans	Complaints against New Orleans/Spanish Fort & Lake Railroad	6 pages; handwritten
3/14/1900	Mayor	Eanilien Rerrin, New Orleans Railroad Co.	New Orleans	Bridge on Bayou St. John; bridgekeeper is incompetent	1 page; typewritten
3/14/1900	Mayor	C. Driscoll, Clerk, Committee on Public Order	New Orleans	Regarding New Orleans and Carrollton Railroad	1 page; typewritten
3/16/1900	Mayor	T. Wallis Blakistone	Baltimore, Maryland	Telephone rates requested	1 page; typewritten
3/17/1900	Mayor	Harvie DuVal	Montezuma, Georgia	Information on White Oak Stars	1 page; handwritten
3/19/1900	Mayor	Elizabeth Hubbard	Carlinville, Illinois	Requests names of Cemetery Board	2 pages; handwritten
3/21/1900	Mayor	F.S. Sheilds, Secretary	New Orleans	Resignation of W.B. Spencer from Board of Prisons and Asylums tendered	1 page; handwritten
3/24/1900	Mayor	James E. Griyyard	Austin, Texas	Trying to locate William Gee	1 page; handwritten
3/24/1900	Mayor	Baykin Optical Manufacturing Co.	Memphis, Tennessee	Wants names of New Orleans oculists	1 page; handwritten
3/26/1900	Mayor	Charles W. Brown, Continental Gaurds	New Orleans	Rumors of being evicted from their rooms in Fisk Library building	1 page; typewritten
3/26/1900	Mayor	H.V. Johnson, President, League of American Cities	New York, New York	Notice of meeting of Leaguein New York.	1 page; typewritten
3/27/1900	Councilman Sidney Story	J.R.G. Pitkin, Office of the Postmaster	New Orleans	Notifies Story that Capt. Thomas J. Woodward will attend Trans-Mississippi Commercial Congress in Houston as Mayor's appointee.	1 page; handwritten
3/28/1900	Mayor	Hodgson, Harry H., auctioneer and real estate agent	New Orleans	Requests appointment of certain individuals to Board of Commissioners of St. Charles Avenue	1 page; typewritten
3/29/1900	Jack Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	Sidney Story	New Orleans	Asks that Vincent Riviere be appointed a delegate to the Trans-Mississippi Commericial Congress.	1 page; typewritten
3/30/1900	Mayor	W.R. Brashear, Clerk of Council	New Orleans	Forwards ordinance Cal. 3183	1 page; typewritten
3/31/1900	Jack Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	Sidney Story	New Orleans	Asks that Vice-President of Trans-Mississippi Commercial Congress be officially notified of names of delegates.	1 page; typewritten
3/31/1900	Jack Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	Charles Wenar	New Orleans	Regarding cancellation of order for metal files furnished to the Comptrollers Office.	1 page; typewritten
April 1900
4/1/1900	Mayor	Mollie Appleby	Lavergne, Tennessee	Seeking man in New Orleans--A.C.Dudley	1 page; typewritten
4/2/1900	Mayor	B.F. Gilkison, Secretary, League of American Municipalities	New York, New York	Asks whether Mayor will attend meeting of Executive Committee of League of American Municipalities.	1 page; typewritten
4/2/1900	"My dear Sir"	E.H. Murrell, M.D.	Lynchburg, Virginia	Looking for E.W. Perry, his former tenant before, during and after the Civil War, and others, for affidavits to be used in claim	2 pages; handwritten
4/3/1900	J.S. Waterman, Secretary to the Mayor	Sidney Story	New Orleans	Asks for appointment of John R.G. Pitkin as delegate to Trans-Mississippi Commercial Congress	1 page; typwritten
4/3/1900	Mayor	P.S. Sowell, Attorney and real estate agent	Leguin, Texas	Trying to verify death of Nancy A. McLean	1 page; handwritten
4/6/1900	Mayor	I.C.G. Raburn, Superintendent, South Georgia Conference Orphan's Home	Macon, Georgia	Inquiry about moral and financial character of woman who wants to adopt child from them	1 page; handwritten
4/10/1900	Mayor	____ Ferris, Jr., Secretary of Committee on Franchises	New Orleans	Encloses ordinance providing for sale of ferry privileges	1 page; typewritten
4/11/1900	J.S. Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	Sidney Story	New Orleans	Requests mayor to sign resolution invinting Trans-Mississippi Commercial Congress to meen in New Orleans next year.	1 page; handwritten
4/12/1900	Mayor	D.S. Gaster, Superintendent of Police	New ORleans	Encloses letter from Dr. Kells requesting removal of bridge across sidewalk	1 page; typewritten
4/12/1900	D.S. Gaster, Chief of Police	C. Edmund Kells, Jr., President, Board of Commissioners of St. Charles Ave.	New Orleans	Requests replacement of bridge across sidewalk	1 page; handwritten
4/16/1900	Mayor	C. Edmund Kells, Jr., President, Board of Commissioners of St. Charles Ave.	New Orleans	Requests return of water cart loane to city by his board	1 page; typewritten
3/9/1900	J.F. Herberger	C. Edmund Kells, Jr.	New Orleans	Regarding ownership of the water cart	1 page; typewritten; attached to letter above before
4/17/1900	Mayor	Mrs. S. Miller	New Orleans	Requests information on character of Professor Andre Faning, a palmist	2 pages; handwritten
4/21/1900	Mayor and Council	Charles Pajewski, Vice President and Treasurer, Cleveland Park Commission	New Orleans	Regarding excavations left on Claiborne Street neutral ground	2 pages; handwritten
4/23/1900	Mayor	Elizabeth B. Kirkbride, Chairman, Committee on Legislation, Civic Club of Philadelphia	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Submits list of questions regarding street-cleaning, garbage and ash removal	3 pages; handwritten
4/24/1900	Mayor	William L. McGary, Commissioner of Public Works	New Orleans	Enclosing letter from Fred A. Ober	1 page; typewritten
n.d.	William L. McGary, Commissioner of Public Works	Fred A. Ober	New Orleans	Regarding injury suffered due to lack of footbridge and street lights	1 page; handwritten
4/25/1900	J.S. Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	D. Goldstein, Touro Infirmary	New Orleans	Reply to inquiry about current Touro patient William Dalaney	1 page; handwritten
4/27/1900	Mayor	Fred A. Ober	New Orleans	Regarding letter about injury referred to Mayor (see above)	1 page; handwritten
May 1900
5/2/1900	Mayor	Fanny B.L. Kinnie, Associate Society of the Red Cross	Woodbury, New Jersey	Offering help to victims of floods near New Orleans	2 pages; handwritten
5/2/1900	J.S. Waterman, Secretary to Mayor	Fred A. Ober	New ORleans	Regarding compensation for his injury (see above)	1 page; handwritten
5/3/1900	Mayor	Mary H. Shaw	Neligh, Nebraska	Seeks information on life of "Margaret" [Haughery]	2 pages; handwritten
5/4/1900	Mayor	P.H. Wessel, Mayor of Moline, Ill.	Moline, Illinois	Telegram inquiring about asphalt paving on residential streets
5/5/1900	Mayor of Algiers, La.	J.E. Greffet, real estate agent	St. Louis, Missouri	Asks for name of reliable notary public	1 page; handwritten
5/5/1900	Judge of Probate	James B. Hopkins	Birmingham, Alabama	Inquiring about reformatory for his daughter	1 page; handwritten

Back to Archival Inventories

coded: 7/29/1990
coded by: Irene Wainwright