Gustave (also spelled Gustaf) Axelson was born on April 10, 1858 in East Bay, Santa Rosa County, Florida, the son of Frederick Axelson and Marguerita Hunter. His parents had settled in the area known as "Robledal" on the bluffs of East Bay and East River in 1856. His father purchased 600 acres along East River where he built a shipbuilding operation in a nearby deep water cove at Axelson Point. With the area attracting settlers and with jobs available at the shipyard the community grew significantly. The area known as Robledal soon changed to "Bilowry," supposedly from the misspelling of a neighbor's name, Bill Lowry. A general store and a post office was added to the new community in the latter part of the 19th century. Eventually, his father passed away in 1883 with his mother following him to the grave in 1887. Both were buried in St. John's Cemetery in Pensacola.
Gustave would grow up to marry 26-year old Esther Newton in 1888. She would bear him two children; Christina (born 1892), a graduate of Pensacola High School in 1911 and John Newton (born 1896) in the class of 1914. But the sea was in the family's blood and Gustave was no different. Thus, he supported his family as a sailor and spent much of his time on the water. By 1900, he and his family was ensconced in downtown Pensacola with his children attending school and Gustave working on the waterfront. With Gustave now the captain of his own boat, the family could afford to move into a house at 318 Florida Blanca Street valued at the substantial sum of $1,500. Since sailing the Caribbean was dangerous work, he called upon his attorney and set his wishes down in his Last Will & Testament. On June 24, 1903, he decried that his sister Margret would receive $2,000 upon his death while his sister-in-law Mary Christina Newton was given $1,000. The remainder would go to his wife Esther under the direction of his longtime friend Daniel Campbell.
In the meantime, he plied the waters and ports of Pensacola, Mary Esther, Key West, Key Largo, Jacksonville as well as Baltimore, New Orleans, Cuba, Belize, and cities in the Yucatan Peninsula. But in 1910, tragedy was fated to strike the Axelson family as he set out to sea aboard the schooner "Doris." He and his crew were now heading for the waters off of Belize, Honduras. Sadly, a huge storm rose up and for whatever reason Captain Axelson was swept overboard and drowned on December 8, 1910. News was relayed to Esther and his children, but there was nothing they could do except grieve. After his death his son would attend the Washington & Lee University and the University of Florida while his sister never married and stayed with their mother.
When World War I broke out, John would enlist in the US Army as a 2nd Lieutenant where he spent his time in Kentucky in 1918. After the war, John became the president of the Pensacola Excelsior Club, a position he occupied until World War II. His mother Esther would pass away in 1931 and was buried in Walton County. John would again answer his nation's call to duty after Pearl Harbor and entered the US Army with an artillery regiment. When the war ended, he returned to his old job before passing away in 1964. His sister never married and followed her mother in death to Walton County for burial in 1971. For a more in depth and excellent history of the Robledal/Axelson Point area click on:
Gustave Axelson aboard the schooner
"Doris" Photo courtesy of Robledal website
Note the community "Bilowry" at East Bay and East River
1950 map shows the "only road in Robledal – the Old Axelson Road. Remains of this road are still visible where it enters Avenida de Galvez from the west side of the lake about 100 feet inland from the benches near the levee. The contours on this map clearly show the depression that became Robledal Lake when the levee was put in. Map and some information taken from "The History of Robledal" at http://robledal.org/history/history.htm "