The Biele and Blatter Families

The families of Charles F. Biele (1854-1930) and Titus Blatter (1858-1912) were intertwined during the late 1880's and early 1900's.

Titus Blatter, originally from Switzerland, emigrated with his family to New York in July 1886.  He married Louisa (also spelled Louise) Schweizer in 1854 and they had a son Eugene Walter in February 1886.  Soon after arriving, a daughter, Mabel, was born in 1887.

According to Titus's application for US citizenship, Charles F. Biele met Titus in July 1986 when he arrived and served as his witness.

Titus Blatter Naturalization Card, witnessed by Charles F. Biele, Aug 26, 1892

Titus Blatter citizenship application, page 1

Titus Blatter citizenship application, page 2, witnessed by Charles F. Biele

Titus Blatter died on April 6, 1913 at his residence at 801 West End Avenue.  The address is on the wealthy Upper West Side of Manhattan in a 12 story building constructed in 1910. 

In 1914, Titus's estate was settled with sizeable wealth passed to his wife and two children. He left each child $10,000 which in current dollars is around $240,000.  His wife Louise received the bulk of the estate, $149,599, which is $3.6 million in today's dollars.

An interesting article soon followed stating his son disappeared the prior year and was believed to be in Uruguay.   

Titus Blatter wealth came from his business that sold lace and other fabrics called Titus Blatter and Company.  The business operated at 164 5th Avenue in Manhattan through the 1940's and later moved to 261 5th Avenue.  It appears to have existed into the 1960's.  Presumably after his death, the business was sold to other operators.  A 1915 directory lists three senior officers and directors with the last name King.      

Titus Blatter & Co at 164 Fifth Avenue circa 1923

164 Fifth Avenue Today

Louise did not remain a widow long.  On November 25, 1914, she and Charles F. Biele were married.  Charles' first wife Fredericke died in 1911.  They were married in a joint ceremony with his daughter Fredericke at the Hotel Savoy in New York.

Marriage certificate for Charles F. Biele and Louise Blatter 1914 (note Louise's daughter Mabel is a witness)

Joint wedding for Charles F. Biele to Louise Blatter (nee Schweizer) and Alma Biele to Rudolph Helbing at the Hotel Savoy in New York City on November 25, 1914.  Charles and Louise are seated at the head of the table.

 Eugene Blatter eventually came back to the United States.  By 1918 he had registered for the World War I draft and listed Mrs. Charles F. Biele as his closest relative.

    By 1920, Bernard had moved to Norwich, NY to live with Charles' sister Anna Biele Naumann.  He is listed in the 1920 and 1930 census living with her and worked at a silk factory.  He died in 1947.

After their marriage, Charles and Louise continued to live on the Upper West Side and a presumably comfortable life.  Almost ever year they traveled together to Europe during the summer.  After Charles's death in 1930, Louisa continued traveling to Europe at least through 1937.

Charles F. Biele died on January 30, 1930, five days after his 76th birthday.  In his will he stated the following regarding Louise:

     SECOND:- I give and bequeath to my dear wife Louise Blatter Biele, the sum of FIVE THOUSAND Dollars ($5,000.00) absolutely and forever.

     The reason why I have not made a larger bequest to my wife Louise Blatter Biele is, because she has expressly requested me during our mutual conversations not to do so, as she is financially well situated and is not in need of any bequest or devise from me, and in not making larger bequest or devise for and to my dear wife Louise Blatter Biele I am complying with her own expressed wish and request; but I have the deepest love and affection for my dear wife Louise.

In the 1940 census.  She is 77 years old and living by herself at 845 West End Avenue.

Louise died on October 22, 1947.  The last record fround to date is a notice from the Daily Argus, Mount Vernon NY that she left $1,000 and a fur cap to her daughter in law Fredericke B. Helbing.   

Daily Argus, Mt. Vernon NY,  November 5, 1947

Ewald Biele became a US Citizen 132 years ago today

On September 1, 1884, one hundred and thirty two years ago today, Ewald Biele (1863-1912) became a citizen of the United States.

This certificate is a recent addition to my collection.  Thank you Brandi!  It was found for sale at an antique shop in Nashville and is believed to have been acquired from an estate sale in the area.  How this certificate of Ewald Biele, who lived his whole life in New York City, is a bit of a mystery.  One theory is that is was passed onto his daughter Edith (1897-1981) who moved from New York City to Daytona Beach, Florida in the late 1920s.  In 1938 she married Winder Cowan who was originally from Franklin, TN which is in the Nashville area.  It is possible that after his death in 1980 or Edith's death in 1981 that a member of his family in Tennessee took possession of it and brought it back there.

More information on Edith and Winder "Red" Cowan can be found a be found in my August 30, 2015 post.

More information on Ewald can be found at the following webpage.

Below is a copy of the naturalization card for Ewald from the NYC archives. It has the same date as the certificate and includes the address he lived at the time, 218 Rivington in New York City.  The Caspar Biele family lived there together when they first emigrated to America.  It is in lower Manhattan and in the 1800's was an area of immigrant tenants known as "Little Deutschland".  Note that the witness was his brother Charles F. Biele who became a citizen in 1878.  His address was 77 Pitt St. which was just around the corner.  More information can be found at the following webpage and more or less the same information at this webpage.  For more Biele naturalization cards, please see my July 4, 2012 post.  

Naturalization Card for Ewald Biele.

Edith Biele and "Red" Cowan

Edith Biele (1897-1981) was the second daughter of Ewald Biele (1864-1912), the third son of Caspar Biele (1823-1875).  She was born in the Bronx on January 24, 1896.  Her father died in 1912 and she lived with her mother Anna and older sister Irene in the Bronx through 1925.

Edith's first marriage was to Eugene A. Gamba, a first generation Italian, on April 29, 1925.  The marriage did not last long since by the 1930 census, Edith was listed as divorced and living in the Daytona Beach, Florida area working as a manager of a hotel.

Edith's second marriage was to Edwin H. Marshal on June 1, 1933 in Florida.  That marriage was also short lived.

Marriage License of Edith Biele and Edwin Marshall June 1, 1933 Daytona Beach

Edith's third marriage was to Winder M. Cowan on June 8, 1938 in Florida.  This marriage had more staying power as they looked to have stayed married until Winder's death in 1980. Edith died a year later in 1981.

Marriage License of Edith Biele and Winder Cowan on June 8, 1938 Daytona Beach Florida

Winder Cowan was known as "Red" and seems to have led a colorful life.  Upon his death in 1980, he was hailed as a "Famed Rum Runner" and a "Prohibition Hero".

During the 1920s Cowan ran an establishment on Daytona Beach called "Red's Place"

Reds Place circa 1925 Daytona Beach, Florida

The "Florida Memory" website describes it as follows:

• Winder "Red" Cowan built this shack on the beach several miles south of the Main Street pier. It operated as a refueling station for aircraft using the beach, as well as a "refueling" station of sorts for those pilots with a taste for whiskey (this during Prohibition). Cowan owned several planes himself, including a Standard (with Hisso engine) used to transport cases of whiskey. A big storm in 1932 floated Red's Place away "like a houseboat."

Additionally, Cowan reportedly interacted with Howard Hughes.  A recent Ebay auction had Hughes memorabilia with the following description:

 "ORIGINAL EARLY PHOTOGRAPHS OF HOWARD HUGHES AND ONE OF HIS AIRPLANES IN DAYTONA BEACH FLORIDA DATED 1928 ON A REFUELING STOP ON HIS WAY TO HAVANA CUBA THESE PHOTOS HAVE BEEN REMOVED FROM SCRAPBOOK, WITH A NEWS PAPER CLIPPING DATED APRIL 6, 1976, A FEW DAYS AFTER HOWARD HUGHES DEATH, TALKING ABOUT " RED COWAN " AND A SCRAPBOOK OF PHOTOS, RED COWAN WAS A LOCAL RUMRUNNER AND AVIATOR IN DAYTONA, PLEASE READ NEWS PAPER CLIPPING FOR FULL STORY, PHOTO IN NEWS PAPER CLIPPING TAKEN ONE PHOTO BEFORE OR ONE PHOTO AFTER ONE OF THE ORIGINAL PHOTO IN THIS GROUP"

A New Find - A Biele Business Postcard from 1892

I am now the proud owner of a Biele business postcard from 1892.  The postcard was sent on February 23, 1892 from C. F. & E. Biele of New York City to The Seymour Manufacturing Company of Seymour, Connecticut.

C. F. & E. Biele was the predecessor company of Charles F. Biele and Sons.  "C. F."  was Charles F. Biele and "E" was Emil.  Emil was the younger brother of Charles and he later left the business to pursue a successful real estate career in Brooklyn.

Seymour Manufacturing Company was founded in 1878 by the Matthies family, later renamed the Seymour Specialty Wire Company. The company produced brass products, at several mills along the Naugatuck River, for over one hundred years before closing in 1991. In 1984 workers at the company purchased the declining business from its owners, and it became the biggest employee owned industrial firm in the  United States. Due to declining production however, the company closed in 1991.

Click on the photos to see an enlarged view.

A Biele Makes the Business News

Last week David Biele was mentioned in the sale of Pacific Wave System where he serves as President.  David Biele had previously sold Pacific Wave Systems which is founded in 1990 to a private equity firm in 2008.

An excerpt of the June 2, 2015 sale follows:

COM DEV International Ltd. (TSX:CDV) today announced an agreement to acquire Pacific Wave Systems (PWS), a leading manufacturer of waveguides for the global satellite industry, for US$20.1 million. Founded 25 years ago in Garden Grove, California, PWS has a solid track record of quality and delivery, and relationships with most of the large satellite prime contractors. The transaction strengthens COM DEV's portfolio with a complementary space product that is expected to benefit from market trends including the growth in high-throughput satellites.

"We are very excited to become part of the COM DEV team," said David Biele, president of Pacific Wave Systems. "We anticipate the introduction of high throughput satellites to drive a significant increase in demand for waveguides. We will be well positioned to capture and deliver on these larger orders as part of a major organization with COM DEV's reputation."

An excerpt of the 2008 press release follows:

April 4, 2008 - Levine Leichtman Capital Partners (“LLCP”), a Los Angeles-based private equity firm, announced today that LLCP has partnered with management to complete the acquisition of Pacific Wave Systems, Inc. (“PWS”). PWS, based in Garden Grove, California and founded in 1990 is a market leader in the manufacturing of machined microwave products, rigid waveguide assemblies and low-loss waveguide transmission lines for the global satellite industry. PWS sells its products to the largest domestic and international satellite manufacturers.
The PWS investment was made from Levine Leichtman Capital Partners California Growth Fund, L.P.  According to Lauren Leichtman, Co-Founder and CEO of LLCP, “We are delighted to partner with David Biele and the rest of the PWS management team in making this acquisition.  PWS’ leading global market position in the waveguide manufacturing industry highlights the impressive business that Mr. Biele and the management team have built over the last 17 years. We look forward to PWS continuing its strong tradition of providing high quality waveguide products to its longstanding customer base and are excited to provide the capital needed as Mr. Biele takes PWS to the next level.” 

Happy Memorial Day - Biele Family Members in the Military

Many Bieles served in the US military over the years, from the Civil War to today.

The first record is for George Biele, who served in the Ohio militia during the Civil War.  The National Park Service has a database of Civil searchable records.  I have found other records that list Henry Biele of Missouri as a Civil War veteran as well (see pension list below)..

Along with the various pay genealogy databases, the free Family Search website has many collections that include military records including:

United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918

United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942

United States World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946

New York, Records of the State National Guard, 1906-1954

United States Index to General Correspondence of the Pension Office, 1889-1904

United States Civil War Soldiers Index, 1861-1865

United States Headstone Applications for U.S. Military Veterans, 1925-1949

United States Registers of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914

United States Veterans Administration Pension Payment Cards, 1907-1933

United States General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934

United States Civil War and Later Pension Index, 1861-1917

United States Muster Rolls of the Marine Corps, 1798-1937

Another website is the US Navy Memorial that that maintains the Lone Sailor database.  Listed there are:

Captain Charles Edward Biele

Captain Charles Edward Biele Jr.

Captain Edward Casper Biele