Celebrating National Historic Districts & Places That Matter

To Recognize International Holocaust Remembrance Day – January 27, 2024

HENRI & HORST TAUCHER

HMP is honored to present the true story of two Jewish brothers that survived Nazi terrorism in Berlin, Germany during World War II and found a new life at 204 South Jackson Avenue in Joplin.

The brothers’ survival of atrocities and how they made their way to Joplin as orphans, is told in part in the book, “Saved by the Enemy…The True Story of Fred and Henry Taucher: Survival Amidst Nazi Terrorism in Berlin.” Published in 2011, the book is still available as an e-book. The author, Craig A. Ledbetter, is a stepson of one of the boys that sought refuge in Joplin.

According to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, The United Nations General Assembly designated January 27—the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz- Birkenau—as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. The annual commemoration honors the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust and millions of other victims of Nazism and to develop educational programs to help prevent future genocides.

True Story of Fred and
Henry Taucher: Survival Amidst Nazi Terrorism in Berlin.”

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BACKGROUND ON HENRI & HORST TAUCHER

Julius Taucher was born in the United States, but for unknown reason, moved back to Germany in 1910 with his parents.  He met and married Therese and soon she gave birth to their son, Henri (known in the U.S. as Henry or Hank) in the comfort and safety of a hospital on January 3, 1932.  But as Therese approached the birth of her second son, Jewish babies were no longer allowed to be born in Berlin hospitals.  Therese’s employer recommended a mid-wife, Fraulein Gertrude Nolting, to help bring Horst (known in the U.S. as Fred) into the world on January 29, 1933.  The very next day, Adolf Hitler would become Chancellor of Germany and conditions for Jewish residents would become increasingly worse and life threatening.

The fact that Gertrude took the chance of assisting in the birth of a Jewish child was puzzling because she was a member of the Nazi party!  Gertrude’s life partner and housemate, Fraulein Traute Holina, was an official photographer for the Nazi Protection Squads.  Together the women were well off and even had a second house on the outskirts of town. After the boys’ father was sent to Auschwitz and killed, the boys and their mother went into hiding and assumed the names of people who had perished during previous air raids on Berlin.  Curiously, they found help from Gertrude and Traute, or in other words…were saved by the enemy.

Before the end of the war on April 15, 1945, Horst was forcibly placed on a train destined for Dauchu, but the train never arrived due to artillery exchange. Horst escaped wearing a “Hitler Youth Uniform” that he removed from a corpse. He was then picked up by Nazi officers. Once again…saved by the enemy! Horst returned to Berlin and met his brother and mother at a pre-selected location.

Therese was later shot and killed in crossfire between German and Russian troops in Berlin. The boys hid in the underground tunnels. Once the war was over in May 1945, and for a short while, the boys became guides for Soviet soldiers.

They found their way to Gertrude’s house and lived there and returned to reopened Berlin public schools and English language classes while waiting for their American visas. This was very difficult due to having no documentation of who they were or the situation of how they came to be orphans. Although the boys were Jewish, Gertrude still hung on to the belief that Hitler’s plan was ideal. She would say, “Boys, you can’t go to America. Americans are our enemies!”

Eventually they went in search of an American army installation and befriended Werner Nathan, and Lieutenant Kowalski, both American Jewish soldiers stationed in Berlin. The soldiers arranged for the boys to immigrate to the U.S. in 1946. The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) and the Central Committee of Liberated Jews in the American Occupied Zone facilitated the boys’ immigration to the U.S.

The British Army took the boys in an ambulance type Jeep to catch a U.S. military transport plane, but there was no room on the plane. So, the boys boarded a ship at the nearby port. The JDC and USCC paid for the tickets. Years later, the boys learned that the plane they were originally scheduled for was “lost” over the Atlantic Ocean.

Ten days later, the boys arrived in New York, were processed, then sent to an orphanage. The JDC started looking for the boys’ two male American cousins who might be named Felix and Alfred. An advertisement was placed in a worldwide newspaper printed in German. The cousins did not subscribe to the paper—but friends did—in fact, friends in Joplin.

But because there was not a female in the household, the boys were sent to a foster home in Kansas City, Missouri. Now known as Fred and Hank, they were enrolled in eighth grade.

Alfred would take the Greyhound bus to Kansas City to visit the boys every other weekend with the goal of bringing them to Joplin. Eventually an aunt living in Israel was found and thankfully she wanted to move to the U.S. She was more than willing to be the “woman of the house” and make a comfortable home for the boys in Joplin. Henry and Fred entered Joplin schools as sophomores, graduating from Joplin High School in 1951. Both were active in R.O.T.C. Henry had a love for the piano, learning from Alfred.

Fred Taucher, Joplin High School

After graduation both boys were hired at Newman Department Store in entry- level positions. Henry had planned to attend college but was drafted into the Army in 1952. Henry made the Army his career, retiring as a major. Henry continued to play the piano and settled in Southern California. He married Moira Bell at the age of 36.

Henry Taucher, Joplin High School

Fred applied to Southeast Missouri State in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, but was denied because he did too well on the English portion of the test and was accused of cheating! He took his citizenship test in Rolla. Fred enlisted in the US Army in 1951 and learned the early stages of the IBM office automation. He returned to Joplin, but after six weeks and not finding any Joplin businesses using the new IBM equipment, he moved to the Pacific Northwest. Fred eventually became president and CEO of Corporate
Management, Inc. and Corporate Computer, Inc. While living in Everett, Washington, he became active in world-wide Holocaust education.

BACKSTORY ON FELIX & ALFRED TAUCHER
Felix was born in Breslau, Germany in 1912 and Alfred in 1915. Hitler’s German forces invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. By 1940, the brothers were living at the Joplin Y.M.C.A. Both men registered for the US Selective Service Draft of World War II, but never served.

Once in Joplin, Felix went to work at Miller Manufacturing at 928 Virginia in Joplin.  It was a clothing manufacturer that started in 1934 owned and managed by two local Jewish families.  He remained until he retired in 1973.  He married Dana Webb, a co-worker, in 1964.  Felix died in 1982 and is buried in Galena, Kansas.   


Alfred was injured while still living in Germany causing him to have a “hunchback.”  Unfortunately, the Nazi Party prevented him from receiving the medical help he needed.  Alfred was a music teacher and taught piano to pupils in his home.  His newspaper advertisements said he was certified by the State Department of Education and graduated from the European Conservatory of Music.  He was also an employee of Newman’s Department Store.  Newman’s was also owned by a local Jewish family.  He received his US citizenship in June 1948.  Alfred never married, died in 1967, and is buried at Mount Hope Cemetery. Both men were members of the Joplin United Hebrew Congregation (702 S. Sergeant) and B’nai B’rith.

Taucher Home 2nd & South Jackson Avenue

During World War II, Joplin residents participated in fund raising activities through the following relief organizations:
Joplin Jewish Welfare Federation,
United Jewish Appeal, Joint Distribution Committee, United Palestine Appeal, National Refugee Service

In reference to a fund raiser at the Joplin Jewish Welfare Federation’s annual dinner meeting in June 1941, George Potlitzer said that, “the whole Tri-State area is requested to join in this campaign so that by the material help and the moral support of their non-Jewish neighbors, our small group of Jewish citizens in this district may be heartened in the humanitarian effort in which we are engaged.” At the time, Mr. Potlitzer and his family lived at 219 S. Sergeant which is now inside the Murphysburg Historic District.

SIDEBAR
As a young child growing up next door to Felix and Alfred Taucher, Carole King recently told HMP that they were wonderful neighbors. Ms. King explained, “The Tauchers kept their house in pristine condition. They kept to themselves but were always friendly. Alfred was a wonderful pianist and a strict piano teacher. My mother was also an accomplished pianist and a strict teacher. Both Mr. Taucher and my mom taught students from their home studios; they were over-the-fence colleagues in music.”

David Castle Tandy

Born 1823 | Died 1875 | Physician | Land Speculator

So, just who was Mr. David Castleman Tandy and what was his connection to our area?

If you own land in the Murphysburg Historic Residential District, specifically in Section 3, or land in other Joplin Sections 7, 10, 11 or 14, you might have seen the name of David C. Tandy on your abstract as the “original” owner of the land.  The abstract may also read, “Copy of Patent or Special Warranty Deed with dates of 1851, 1859, 1864, and “Consideration – Military Service”. Current landowners may assume that Mr. Tandy served in the military.

Self-proclaimed amateur history detectives Mary Anne Phillips and Paula Callihan decided to find out what branch of service and which war Mr. Tandy served in.  With the assistance of the Jasper County Records Department’s staff and volunteers, they discovered that the 1860 U.S. Census revealed David Tandy lived at 123 Olive in St. Louis and was married to Anna Cabell Castleman.  Mr. Tandy never resided in Joplin. According to the Bureau of Land Management’s website, Mr. Tandy acquired land all over the state of Missouri, not just in Joplin.

Continued research uncovered Mr. Tandy on the U.S. Civil War Draft Registration records from 1863-1865. The document revealed that he was a physician, that had been born in Kentucky and still lived on Olive Street in St. Louis. In the “remark” column, it revealed that Donald Cameron was hired as Tandy’s military “substitute” on November 16, 1864.  Cameron’s Civil War service was in the Eighteenth Regiment of the Missouri Infantry and was listed as a Private.

So, the question still remains—how did Tandy acquire land in Joplin? The answer lies in the Bounty-Land Warrants for Military Service, 1775-1855 Congressional Acts.  Starting in 1775, the United States granted bounty-land warrants for military service, including volunteer militias primarily to encourage volunteer enlistments. They also rewarded veterans for service during the Revolutionary War, The War of 1812, the Mexican War, a variety of Indian wars, Indian removals and other military actions during the 1850’s.

During that time the area was sparsly populated, the early Joplin pioneers, John Chandler Cox, Solomon Rothenberger, Reverend Harris Joplin and William Tingle civilized the area by forming a town.

Many veterans who received bounty-land did not take possession but sold them to another party.  The land that was granted was “public land” and the authority was granted through the “Scrip Warrant Act of 1855″.  U.S. land acquisition from Native Americans, Louisiana Purchase, etc. is a conversation for another day.

According to Joplin Title Company, the information on the actual signed Warrant has all of the necessary information going back to the land grant via the General Land Office in Springfield, Missouri. The abstract has “abbreviated” information and in this case, only shows Mr. Tandy. 

Following are some details on the original Joplin warranty deeds:

Section Three (Includes Murphysburg)           

A Fractional Quarter

  • President Millard Fillmore caused the letters to be made Patent
  • The US Government gave the land to William Cabell, a private in Captain Owen’s Company,of the Fourth Regiment of Kentucky Volunteers,
  • Land was transferred to John Chandler Cox, an assignee of  William Cabell on September 1, 1851                                                      

Southeast Quarter

  • President James Buchanan caused the letters to be made Patent
  • US Government gave the land  to John Ozman a private in Captain Bryan’s Company, Maryland Militia, War 1812
  • Ozman assigned the land to David C. Tandy on June 10, 1859

Did David Tandy buy the land grants from Ozman or did   he get them as an heir of his great-great grandfatherColonel William Cabell for his military service that includes:

  • Colonel William Cabell (1699- 1774) 
  • Graduated at the Royal College of Physicians of London
  • Surgeon in the Royal Navy, then emigrated to Virginia about 1723, where he obtained extensive grants of land along the James River
  • Appointed under Sherriff of Henrico 1726,
  • Justice of the first Goochland County Court, 1728-9
  • One of the first Justices of the first Court of Albermarle Co,.1744-1745
  • Capitan in the Indian Wars, 1726
  • First presiding Justice for the United States after the Declaration of Independence,
  • Chosen first Senator from the eighth district
  • Member of the Committee that prepared the Declaration of Rights             

Other sections of Joplin that David Tandy received or bought from heirs are:

Parts of Section Eleven

  • President James Buchanan caused the letters to be made Patent
  • The US Government gave the land to George Houck, Seaman, United States Ship Germantown, United States Navy, Mexican War
  • Houck assigned the land to David C. Tandy on June 10, 1859

Parts of Section Seven 

  • President James Buchanan caused the letters to be made Patent
  • The US Government gave the land to James Gould, Private, Captain Lynch’s Company, Maryland Militia, War 1812
  • Houck assigned the land to David C. Tandy on June 10, 1859

Parts of Sections Ten, Eleven, and Fourteen

  • President Abraham Lincoln caused the letters to be made Patent
  • The US Government gave the land to Benjamin Harding, a private in Captain Leigh’s Company, Virginia Militia, War 1812
  • Harding assigns the land to David C. Tandy on December 1, 1864

Yeats later,  tracts of land were laid out in town lots and sold to such notable people as Oliver H. Pitcher, Oliver S. Pitcher (early spelling for Picher), Mrs. Adelia Moffet, William Sergeant and W. P Davis, Patrick Murphy’s business partner.

As most history chasers would say that the more answers we find, the more questions we have. Colonel William Cabell was the great-great grandfather to both David and his wife Anna Cabell Castleman Tandy.

Sources: 

  • Archives of HMP, Inc.
  • Bureau of Land Management website
  • U. S. Census website captured on October 2, 2012
  • Civil War Registration
  • Congressional Acts – Bounty Land Warrants for Military Service 1775-1855
  • National Archives and Records Administration’s website http://www.archivs.gov
  • Find-A-Grave
  • Ancestry 

The Tale of Joplin’s Two United Service Organizations (USO) during World War II

HMP’s philosophy is to look at historical facts with a neutral eye.  In this spirit, HMP does not honor the practice of segregation, but rather recognizes the history that shaped our nation, state, city, and the armed services, plus those who gave of themselves.

The multi-level building at 306-312 South Wall Avenue borders the Historic Murphysburg Residential District on the east side of Pearl. In the late 1920’s  it was Farmer Motor Company and several mining and smelting companies. In the 1930’s and early 40’s it was the Quality Motors car dealership. Through the years the building was many different businesses such as manufacturing companies, optical laboratory, an insurance company, a wholesale supplier, and more. During World War II, the building housed the United Service Organization (USO) offices and recreation center.   

Because Joplin was a WWII hub for six defense centers and was within close proximity to Camp Crowder in Neosho, Missouri, the United Service Organization designated Joplin for a local USO site.  On March 3, 1942 the USO opened for soldiers, sailors, and 30,000 to 40,000 defense workers!

Mary Anne Phillips and husband James D. Scott have owned the building at 306-312 South Wall Avenue since 2000.  Jim’s business, Scott Electronic Systems, Inc. has operated out of the building since 1979.  Jim says it is a sturdy structure with six metal I-beams that span 40 feet to support the second floor.  Special features on the second floor include a mezzanine surrounded by offices, a large skylight, and transoms above the office doors. Mary Anne believes that many artifacts remained with the building through the years such as chairs, a glass display case, and draperies because they are depicted in a postcard the couple acquired from Paula Callihan.

Pictured here is a 1940’s postcard of the interior of the USO at 310 South Wall Avenue. The other is photo a fabric found years later in the building.  The current owners discovered from the postcard that the fabric they found was a remnant of the draperies used for the USO.

But that is not the end of the story. According to minutes of the Joplin USO Council, 1941-1946, (courtesy of the Joplin History & Mineral Museum), it was not long before the USO Council faced an unforeseen dilemma.  Some “colored troops,” 2000 in number, were scheduled to arrive at Camp Crowder.  Joplin officials questioned how to accommodate them, since the black population in Joplin was small, only 854.

Committee member W. H. Maher made a passionate plea, declaring “Those men are wearing the uniform of the United States…We are talking about American soldiers…and we owe the duty (USO services) to the colored soldiers as much as…the white soldiers.  I believe there should be no racial or religious distinction.”  He did, however, suggest that, “The negroes preferred to have their own group.”

On February 6, 1944 with much ceremony by white and black dignitaries, the Main Street (Negro) USO Club opened in an old building at 221 South Main Street. Less than a year after its opening, due to the reduction in black troops at Camp Crowder, the club was ordered shut down.  An appeal was made to the USO executive in Kansas City to retain the facility.  The colored soldiers stationed at Camp Crowder stated they were appreciative of the Joplin facility and it is better than any they had found elsewhere.

QUICK FACTS

The Wall Street USO closed its doors on June 30, 1946.  The Main Street USO remained in operation for another three months until all of the black soldiers had left the camp.

Over one million soldiers passed through Joplin’s USO clubs during the war years.

While the building that housed the Wall Street USO is still in use today, the Main Street USO building is gone and is now the site of Commerce Bank.

Additional Resources

Click here to learn more about the United Services Organization, Inc., or write  P. O. Box 9680, Washington, D. C. 20077- 7677

Sources:

  • James D. Scott Family Archives
  • Brad Belk, David Cunningham, Andy Ostmeyer, and Leslie Simpson  Joplin Souvenir Album,  St.  Louis, Missouri: G. Bradley Publishing, Inc., 2001. Pages 16-17.
  • Callihan Postcard collection

The Austin Allen House & Virtual Tour of his Designs

Flip Book for a virtual tour of Austin Allen designs

Samuel Austin Allen arrived in Joplin in 1890 at the age of 10. His father was J.W. Allen an early pioneer and successful mine operator in the area.   Austin graduated from Joplin High School in 1898. He received a degree in architecture at the University of Pennsylvania in 1902 and later went to Paris where he pursued his interest in architecture. Returning to the United States Allen became associated with Bruce Price of New York, one of the foremost architects in the United States. After two years in New York he returned to Joplin to begin practicing his craft in 1905. Allen was an extremely successful architect with offices in Kansas City and in the Frisco Building in Joplin. His professional Joplin resume included such handsome structures as the Newman Building, Saint Peter’s Catholic Church, Olivia Apartments, Joplin High School, United Hebrew Temple, Elks Lodge, and many impressive homes. Mr. Allen was a member of the American Institute of Architects. His obituary in their journal noted, “that his work was marked by a “chaste dignity and scholarly restraint.” Mr. Allen married Belle Taylor and had three children.

The land this house sets on was deeded by Lulie Taylor to her daughter, Belle Taylor Allen for “$1 and Love and Affection.”  The house is not first period, meaning two houses were razed and lots combined so Austin could design and build the house you see today.  Belle’s parents, John H. and Lulie Taylor were Joplin pioneers and made their fortune in mining and real estate.  

It is believed Austin added a second floor sleeping porch to his house at some point.  At a later date, the porch was enclosed to create year-round additional living space.  This practice was not uncommon in the Murphysburg district.

The living room is paneled in rich dark oak.  Some of the features include a large brick fireplace, diamond paned bay windows with built-in window seats, beamed ceilings, and a leaded glass bookcase. After Belle and Austin moved to Kansas City, Missouri, this house was sold to Frank Wallower.  The U.S. Census shows Frank, wife Marie, three sons, a private cook, and a private nurse residing here in 1920.  The Wallowers moved out in 1943. 

Beamed ceilings, and a leaded glass bookcase

The Arts and Craft movement heavily influenced Austin Allen when he designed his home in 1905, for it clearly reflects the movements principals, beautiful materials and honest craftsmanship. Prominent feature in the home include the rich polished wainscoting. Curved built-in window seats, massive brick fireplace and leaded glass bookcases. The most impressive feature however is the elegant coffered ceiling, reminiscent of the homes of the English Tudor and Jacobean periods.

 The Allen Mausoleum is located at Mount Hope Cemetery.  Inside Allen’s mausoleum is a resolution from the Kansas City Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. Several family members are interred in the mausoleum. 

The mausoleum architecture features solar disks between the pair of falcon wings at the very top. It represents the sun god, Re and rebirth. Mr. Allen married Belle Taylor and had three children. He died at the early age of thirty-six from typhoid fever.

 Interred S. Austin Allen -3-3-1917, Walter Scott Estes -2-12-1926. Linda McOwen Allen -6-6-1926, Whitby J. Allen -5-22-1930 and Austin Allen Jr. – 12-2-1940

Mr. Allen was a prolific architect who left a lasting impression on the region’s building landscape. He was the most distinguished architect during Joplin’s first fifty years. In a short span of fourteen years, Mr. Allen accomplished what most architects could only dream of in their lifetime. Most of his lasting cherished commercial designs in Joplin, Webb City, and Oronogo are highlighted in this booklet. Many of those buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and some have local designations. Today his elegantly designed buildings, all over 100 years old, remain a testimony to his talent and continue to be some of Joplin’s most admired and honored building blocks. Austin Allen treasured designs. While Mr. Allen created many grand residential houses, according to the March 28, 1916, Joplin News Herald, he also designed and constructed four-room houses in Joplin’s East Town for “home loving people of moderate means.” The houses were modern bungalows with overhanging porches and roofs. According to Jasper County probate documents, the Allen’s children inherited numerous developed and non-developed lots in East Town.

 HMP plans on conducting additional research, partnering with community groups, and identifying houses that may still exist in East Town.

Hard Luck: The Billy Cook Story

William Edward “Billy” Cook was born into a life of violence. It was a hard-luck life that would carry him all the way to the Death Chamber and beyond. He was executed at California’s San Quentin prison before he was 25 years old. Is Badman Billy Cook buried in an unmarked grave just outside of Peace Church Cemetery as local rumors have suggested? Will his spirit ever find peace?

In November 1951, a jury found Billy Cook guilty in only 50 minutes. Cook received the death sentence with a smirk on his lips and hate in his heart. “I hate everybody’s guts.” he said, “and everybody hates mine.” Billy Cook gave them hell all the way to the end. He refused to speak with clergymen or the hordes of eager reporters. He denied everyone just because they hoped to get a last minute exclusive with the condemned killer.

Badman Bill Cook was buried at night in Peace Cemetery according to the headline of a 1952 Joplin Globe story. Cook’s graveside service was held under the cover of darkness to avoid attention. The service was officiated by Rev. Dow Booe of nearby Galena and lasted only 10 minutes. “Brief service held at night with aid of flashlights and lanterns before about 15 persons;” “Funeral cortege, consisting of four cars and hearse, moves to burial place over back roads,” the sub-headlines read. “Just as the graveside rites ended,” Wallace wrote, “the cry of a small child could be heard in the chill of the night air.”

Billy Cook in Popular Media

The Billy Cook case inspired the 1953 film classic The Hitch-Hiker, which details the final leg of Cook’s saga in Mexico and, twenty years later, would be the basis for the Doors’ Top Twenty hit from 1971, “Riders on the Storm,” included on their LP L.A. Woman (“If you give this man a ride / Sweet family will die…”). It was the last song the band would ever record.

Additional Resources:

Free E-Book detailing the story of Billy Cook by Joshua Shackles
Download ebook: Hard Luck-The Billy Cook Story

Peace Church Cemetery is maintained by a fantastic group of dedicated volunteers that are dedicated to preserving the history of Joplin’s Pioneer cemetery! You can find out more about special events and volunteer opportunities on Facebook.

Find a Grave

Wikipedia