Fifth in a series

Famous St. Louisans buried in Calvary

(Editor's note: This is the sixth in a series about famous St. Louisans who are buried in local cemeteries. Information is from St. Louisan Kevin Amsler's book, "Final Resting Place: The Lives and Deaths of Famous St. Louisans.")

Many famous St. Louisans buried in Calvary Cemetery in north St. Louis weren't among the founders of the city. They earned their fame in varied ways, from playwright to major league baseball to a modern day radio genius.

The site of one of playwright Tennessee Williams' best-known plays was a tenement apartment where he lived as a child. Urban Shocker was a pitcher on the powerful 1927 New York Yankees. Robert Hyland led KMOX radio to national fame and was a mentor of some of the nation's best-known sports announcers.

These are just some of the famous St. Louisans who are buried in Calvary Cemetery. A city's cemeteries often provide a useful mirror of the area's past.

If you are interested in the previous four articles in this series, you can go to Past Stories on the home page and click on October, 2006; November, 2006; December, 2006, January, 2007and February, 2007.

(To buy Mr. Amsler's book, visit a local bookstore or visit www.STL-Books.com.)

Tennessee Williams
(March 26, 1911-February 25, 1983)

Tennessee Williams

Noted playwright Tennessee came to St. Louis when he was 7 and stayed for 20 years. He said later that those years here were the unhappiest of his life. He found St. Louisans "cold, smug, complacent, intolerant, stupid, provincial."

But, the focus of one of his best plays, "The Glass Menagerie," was the tenement apartment where he had lived. And his burial place is in Calvary Cemetery.

Williams' father was hard-drinking, overbearing man; his mother suffered most of his abuse. Williams was devoted to his sister, Rose, who spent much of her time in a mental institution suffering from schizophrenia. Rose also is buried in Calvary.

The main character of "The Glass Menagerie," Amanda Wingfield, was modeled after his mother. That play brought his first national attention in 1944. He later won Pulitzer Prizes for the plays, "A Streetcar Named Desire," and "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof."

Williams' literary focus was mostly on human weaknesses and tragedies. During his life he suffered from illness, poor eyesight and a temporary paralysis of his legs. He also was addicted to drugs and alcohol.

His death in his Manhattan hotel was ruled accidental, although he was surrounded by empty prescription and wine bottles. The doctor said he died when a cap from one drug container lodged in his throat and cut off his air supply.

At his funeral in University City, the Reverend Jerome Wilkerson said, "The tragedy of Tennessee seems to be that the revelatory sword of suffering that pierced his heart seemed to be more therapeutic to others than to himself. He would seem to have remained all his life among the walking wounded."

Tom Dooley
(January 17, 1927-January 18, 1961)

Tom Dooley

Tom Dooley lived a short life but became known worldwide for his medical missionary work in Southeast Asia and other parts of the world.

In 1941, after only one year of college, he enlisted in the Navy and served as a medical aide during WWII. After the war, he graduated from St. Louis University's Medical School in 1953.

He rejoined the Navy and served in Vietnam as a medical officer. He aided in a program of evacuating refugees from Communist North Vietnam. He was hospitalized in Japan after losing a lot of weight.

There, he wrote his first book, "Deliver Us from Evil," about his medical service in Vietnam. It was the first of his three bestsellers. Twentieth Century Fox purchased movie rights to all three.

After his Navy discharge, he dedicated his life to service in parts of the world with little or no access to medical care. His first hospital was in Laos, near the Chinese border.

He helped found MEDICO, the Medical International Cooperation Organization. The non-profit group was dedicated to bringing medical care to remote areas.

His health failed and he died in 1961 at age 34. Then president Dwight Eisenhower said of Dooley, "There are few if any men who have equaled his exhibition of courage, self-sacrifice, faith in his God and his readiness to service his fellow man."

Julius Walsh
(December 1, 1842-March 21, 1923)

Julius Walsh was a banker, railroad man and financier who was involved in many developments in early St. Louis. As president of the St. Louis Bridge Co., he financed construction by James Eads of a bridge across the Mississippi that still stands.

When his father died, Walsh inherited four railroads and directorship of the Bank of the State of Missouri. President Ulysses S. Grant gave a dinner at the White House while he and his bride were on their honeymoon.

He was on the board of the Terminal Railroad, the Union Electric Light and Power Co. and the Mississippi Valley Trust Co. He also was on the board of the Botanical Garden and a director of the St. Louis Worlds Fair of 1904.

Joseph C. Cabanne
(October 16, 1846-March 17, 1922)

Joseph Cabanne was a direct descendent of Madame Chouteau. He made his mark in the dairy business, which he entered when he was just 21.

First there was the Mont Cabanne Dairy and later the St. Louis Dairy Company. He was an innovator in that business with firsts in covered milk wagons, a creamery in the city and delivery of milk in bottles. He also sold whole milk at a price less than others charged for skim milk.

An avid amateur athlete, he was president of the Civic Club and a founder of the Missouri Athletic Club.

Urban Shocker
(August 22, 1890-September 9, 1928)

Urban Shocker pitched for the New York Yankees baseball team but made most of his personal bests with the St. Louis Browns.

He was a spitball pitcher whose major league record was 187-117, with an ERA of 3.17.

He was a 20-game winner for three years between 1920 and 1923. He led the American league with 27 wins in 1921.

However, he best single-day performance was on Sept. 6, 1924, when he won complete game victories in both ends of a doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox.

He was back with the Yankees in 1927 when that "Murderers' Row" team swept the Pittsburgh Pirates in the World Series. He died in 1928 at the age of 38.

Robert Hyland
(March 25, 1920-March 5, 1992)

Robert Hyland started KMOX in 1951. At the time of his death, he was a senior vice-president of CBS Radio and general manager of KMOX.

Among his innovations were the "At Your Service" talk radio format and development of some of the nation's most talented broadcasters. Among them were Jack Carney, Bob Hardy, Jack Buck, Jim White, Bob Costas and Harry Caray.

He was the son of a well-known surgeon who was a pioneer in sports medicine. Robert Sr. was surgeon for the St. Louis Cardinals and St. Louis Browns for 30 years. Among his patients were Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb and Lou Gehrig.

Robert Jr. was known for his philanthropy. He founded the Hyland Center at St. Anthony's Hospital for treatment of drug and alcohol addiction.