The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Lutz since 1964 and Pasco since 1981.
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Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Maas Brothers

Time capsule unearths memories in Lutz

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A 60-year-old time capsule unearthed at Learning Gate Community School will be a teaching moment for at least one third-grade teacher.

The battered metal box held items buried on July 18, 1948 during a ceremony to lay the cornerstone for the First United Methodist Church of Lutz.

The congregation now resides in a new church off West Lutz Lake Fern Road.

The former church site came into ownership of Learning Gate in 2014.

The time capsule came to light as workers demolished the old church building. Learning Gate plans to build new administrative offices in its place.

Linda Fuerst, a third-grade teacher at Learning Gate Community School, takes a cellphone shot of a 1948 newspaper found in a time capsule. (Kathy Steele)

Inside the box, school officials found a few, water-logged items, namely: A July 18, 1948 edition of the Tampa Sunday Tribune with full comic section, a Bible, a hymnal and a round glazed window panel.

Using the Tribune issues as a guide, Linda Fuerst foresees a timely history lesson for her third-graders.

One headline captures the connection between then and now: “New Links Found, May Aid Polio.”

In the 1940s and 1950s, polio was a crippling disease that could cause paralysis. The virus frequently attacked children, but it also affected one famous figure, President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Today, the world is battling COVID-19 and is waiting for a vaccine.

Another news item is on “meat rationing,” a part of the Depression and World War II familiar to older generations.

“I talk about my parents a lot,” said Fuerst. “They grew up in the Depression and World War II.”

Learning Gate teachers got a laugh out of one story, in particular, about teachers’ salaries being lower than that of craftsmen. Salaries ranged from a low of $2,812 to a high of $3,150.

Advertisements from Maas Brothers highlighted fashionable clothing on sale at the iconic Tampa department store. The store closed in 1991 and was torn down in 2006.

The comics and some language in the 1948 newspaper reveal some outdated views on race and women.

A brief news item notes the importance of the day for the Lutz church members – a cornerstone ceremony for the then-new church construction.

An aging hymnal from the First United Methodist Church of Lutz was found inside a 1948 time capsule.

The congregation traces its beginnings back nearly 100 years through church mergers and other church locations.

The article described a concrete block building plastered with stucco, an auditorium measuring 30-by-50 feet, and a rear addition of about the same size.

The total cost? Thirty-five thousand dollars.

When Learning Gate bought the property, the vacant church was adjacent to the campus of Learning Gate’s middle school, at 207 W. Lutz Lake Fern Road.

School officials considered keeping the aging structure. But, Learning Gate Principal Michelle Mason said, “It was in a complete state of disrepair, unsalvageable. The financial cost of it was enormous.”

In addition to new offices, Learning Gate also is renovating existing school buildings to upgrade air-conditioning and to enlarge classrooms.

Work is expected to be complete by the start of the new school year.

The discovery of the time capsule was not unexpected.

“They had been told to be on the lookout,” Mason said.

Water had seeped into the box.

It took a while to dry out the newspapers and books.

Mike Reid, the worker who found the time capsule, said about 40 people stopped by to view the church before the demolition.

“A lot of people who came by were married here,” he said. “I think it was pretty cool.”

Victor Alonso remembers his wedding there, and the years he and his family attended the church.

“It was a sweet time,” he said. “It will be sad whenever we drive by and it’s gone.”

But, he added, “I feel better that it’s being acknowledged.”

Mason hopes to pass on the artifacts to church members, and has reached out to church officials.

Now that the word is out, Mason said, “I’ve had so many people reach out who want to see if they can come by and see it.”

Published June 10, 2020

Exploring Tampa’s Jewish history

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Tampa’s Jewish population today numbers more than 25,000 members involved in  more than a dozen synagogues, day schools, and multiple community centers and related organizations.

The of history Tampa’s Jewish community likewise runs deep — dating back more than 170 years.

More than 80 Jewish stores and buildings were in Ybor City during the first half of the 20th century. Max Argintar Menswear was the last Jewish business to survive in Ybor. It opened in 1908 and closed in 2004. (Courtesy of Tampa Bay History Center)

The Tampa Bay History Center, in partnership with the Jimmie B. Keel Regional Library, recently had a presentation documenting the history of Tampa’s Jewish settlers.

The Oct. 26 event was led by Dr. Carl Zeilonka, archives chair at Congregation Schaarai Zedek, who is also a docent at the history center.

He outlined the history of Tampa’s Jewish population, the economic role of Jewish-owned businesses and the role of Jewish residents in politics, during an hour-long interactive discussion that drew dozens of attendees.

Tampa’s first documented Jewish settler is Emaline Quentz Miley, who arrived in 1844 via South Carolina.

Miley and her husband, Bill, settled in the Odessa area, Zeilonka said.

Interestingly, they are believed to have planted Hillsborough County’s first citrus trees.

More Jews, mainly of Eastern European descent, began immigrating to Tampa during the American Civil War, as the Florida frontier became attractive to merchants and businessman. Many operated produce businesses, dry goods stores, oyster bars and lumber mills.

Several Jewish women have been pioneers for their gender in the political realm. Helen Gordon Davis was first Jewish woman from Tampa elected to the Florida House of Representatives. She also served in the Florida Senate.

It led to Jews entering public service in Hillsborough County, beginning in 1871 with Charles Slager and Isidore Blumenthal.

Slager was first appointed as postmaster of Tampa. He later served as Hillsborough County’s sheriff and tax collector, and as a school board member.

Blumenthal, meanwhile, was appointed to the Hillsborough County Commission.

Many Jewish businesses had closed by the mid-1870s due to the presence of a yellow fever epidemic, Zielonka said.

Other factors were to blame, too, he said, including the Franco-Prussian War preventing the export of Cedar, and the cattle industry swelling in Fort Meade instead of Tampa.

“The 1870s were a real era of problems,” Zielonka said.

It wasn’t long until Jewish immigration picked up again, however.

Discoveries of phosphate reserves, a railroad system and cigar factories brought Jewish merchants back to Tampa in the 1880s, Zielonka explained.

“It opened up the community to tourism, to trade, to every type of commerce you can imagine. It really began the explosion of Tampa as a city,” Zielonka said.

Maas Brothers department store was one of the most successful Jewish-owned businesses in Tampa. Founded in 1886 by Abe and Isaac Maas, it grew from a small 23-by-90-foot store to a chain of 39 stores across Florida.

“It provided a lot of good opportunities for Jewish businessman to come in, and they came from all over, either directly of European immigrants or children of European immigrants.”

Two of the most successful merchants were Abe and Isaac Maas.

In 1886, they founded Maas Brothers department store. It grew from a small 23-by-90-foot store to a chain of 39 stores across Florida. The Maas Brothers brand went defunct in 1991 when it was merged into the Burdines department store chain, which later rebranded as Macy’s.

By 1890, there were more than 20 Jewish families living in Tampa.

That spurred the formation of the city’s first synagogue in 1894, Congregation Shaarai Zedek, which means “Gates of Righteousness.” The first standalone building, built in 1899, was located at 1209 N. Florida Ave.

The congregation steered the formation of Tampa’s first Jewish social organization, first Jewish women’s organization and first Jewish cemetery.

“What do we do best? We organize. And, it was time to organize,” Zielonka said of Tampa’s Jewish community in the 1890s.

The early 1900s were also noteworthy for Tampa’s Jewish community.

A second synagogue, Congregation Rodeph Sholom, was founded in 1902.

Tampa’s first synagogue, Congregation Shaarai Zedek, was founded in 1894. The temple is now located on West Swann Avenue.

The city’s first Jewish day school — The Hebrew School — was formed in 1915. The school shut down in 1917 after falling behind on mortgage payments, however.

And, the city’s first Jewish newspaper, Florida Jewish Weekly, was founded in 1924. It was the first of many Jewish newspapers formed over the years in Tampa.

Zielonka pointed out that Jews were very prominent in Ybor City around this timeframe.

He said than 80 Jewish stores and buildings sprouted up in Ybor City during the first half of the 20th century. “They were very common, all over the place.”

Max Argintar Menswear was the last Jewish business to survive in Ybor. It opened in 1908 and closed in 2004.

Fast-forward to the World War II period.

Hundreds of Jewish soldiers came to Tampa throughout the war, being stationed at one of the city’s three air force bases—MacDill, Henderson Field and Drew Field.

Moreover, 39 of the 65 families at Shaarai Zedek had someone who served in the war.

The congregation frequently sponsored Passover Seders at the old Hillsborough Hotel, an effort to support Jewish troops.

“The Jewish community embraced their soldiers that were here, and those that also served in the war,” Zielonka said.

The turn of the 21st century brought more Jewish families to south Tampa, creating the need for a second Jewish Community Center. The Bryan Glazer Family JCC opened in December 2016, at the site of the historic Fort Homer W. Hesterly Armory building on North Howard Avenue.

Following the war, many Jewish servicemen settled in Tampa and established families, further strengthening the community.

The timeframe also marked the early days of Tampa Jews becoming influential political figures.

Zielonka mentioned Judge Harry N. Sandler, who was speaker of the Florida House of Representatives from 1932 to 1935. Sandler is responsible for many laws related to worker’s compensation.

The speaker noted several Jewish women, too, later became pioneers for their gender in the political realm.

Cecile Waterman Essrig was the first Jewish woman elected to political office in Hillsborough County, becoming a school board member in 1967.

Helen Gordon Davis was another, becoming the first Jewish Hillsborough County woman elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 1974. She also served in the Florida Senate.

Sandy Warshaw Freedman was the first Jewish woman elected as Mayor of Tampa, in 1986.

Meanwhile, the Jewish community has seen other developments within the last 40 years.

The TOP (Tampa, Orlando, Pinellas) Jewish Foundation was formed in 1980.

The Jewish Press of Tampa was formed in 1988. The popular paper, started by Jim and Karen Dawkins, still publishes today.

The Hillel Academy, which formed in 1970 at Rodeph Sholom, relocated to a 10-acre campus on Fletcher Avenue in 1992.

The Weinberg Village Assisted Living Facility, too, was established in 1995, in Citrus Park.

The Jewish community most recently celebrated the opening of the Bryan Glazer Family JCC in December 2016.

Located at the site of the historic Fort Homer W. Hesterly Armory building on North Howard Avenue, it now totals more than 4,400 members. “It’s a busy place,” Zielonka said.

The turn of the 21st century saw more Jewish families moving to south Tampa, creating a need for another Jewish Community Center, he explained.

“The demographics of Tampa are very different than they were 20 years ago,” Zielonka said.

“The Jewish community is 50 percent in the south — and growing. New people moving to town want to live in south Tampa because it’s close to where the action is.”

Published November 1, 2017