On August 14, 1911, Pensacola lawyer Richard Pope Reese and his wife attended the funeral of his stenographer and my aunt Miss Maude Mable Majors and offered condolences to her suffering family. Four days earlier, she had succumbed to the scourge of typhoid fever, an ever present evil for the day and times. Little did they know, that eight years later this same evil would strike their own family in a very devastating manner. Richard was the son of John Lewis Reese who had served the Confederacy during the Civil War as an adjutant to the 57th Alabama Infantry Regiment. His unit performed scouting duties until sent to the Army of Tennessee where they participated in the bloodbaths of 1864-65. After John's premature death, his son Richard would appear in Pensacola in 1888 and after passing his bar exams in 1896 became a practicing attorney. In 1899, he married Idelette Waddel West then settled down to start a family of his own. By 1918, Richard and his family had moved to 1724 East LaRua Street in the newly developing section of town called “East Pensacola Heights.” It was further from town than their old residence, but with their newly purchased automobile, trips to the city were only a matter of a few minutes.
Upon his daughter Virginia's recent graduation from Pensacola High School in the class of 1918, she was accepted into Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. When the time came he escorted his wife and daughter to the L&N depot on Wright Street and helped them unload their baggage for the upcoming trip. Naturally, Idelette would escort their daughter to her destination because no decent young lady with the proper upbringing would even consider making such a journey alone. Her mother would accompany her and see to her accommodations and registration. She would introduce herself to the chaperones responsible for the conduct and etiquette requirements of their young charges. When all was properly arranged, Idelette would return by train to Pensacola to her waiting husband and son.
The remaining months of 1918 passed quickly as Virginia completed her first college semester. As the final exams were completed, Idelette arrived to accompany her daughter back home for the Christmas holidays. The family enjoyed each other's company as Virginia sought out her old high school companions and caught up on all of the gossip. Naturally, the signing of the armistice of World War I on November 11, 1918 was the talk of her social circle as many of the eligible young men of Pensacola would be returning home from the war. As the New Year of 1919 appeared on the horizon, Richard and Idelette clinked their glasses of champagne and toasted to health and happiness for their young family and the upcoming year. When the Christmas holidays ended, Idelette boarded the train and escorted Virginia back to school. As Virginia became engrossed in her second semester studies, her father threw himself into the growth and prosperity of his law firm.
Richard's Secretary Maude Mabel Majors (1893-1911)
Died of Typhoid Fever, Buried Ray's Chapel Cemetery
Richard Pope Reese letterhead 1924
Pensacola News Journal AD for the Reese law firm
Location of Judge R. P. Reese home at 1724 East LaRua Street today