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Eighth Generation
102.
Francis Frederick (Fred) DEJACO145 was born on 25 Apr 1884 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
243 Broadway. He was baptized on 4 May 1884 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin at old
Saint Mary Catholic Church by Rev. D.F. Thill. His Godparent was
Johanna Thoeny. Although much of his early life remains undocumented, it is
believed that he attended grammar school at Saint Stephen Parish in Newport,
Kentucky.
Fred had a natural sense of music, and is said to have been able to play the
piano and other musical instruments without lessons. In 1905, he was an organizer
of the Primrose Orchestra made up of his brothers and other musician friends.
Later the Primrose Orchestra was reorganized and became known as the
Peerless Orchestra. The orchestra continued to provide music and entertainment
at social events in and around the Newport area. It is said that Fred met his
future wife, Bertha Schaefer, at an event sponsored by the Newport Turners Club,
where the Peerless Orchestra was providing the entertainment.
In 1901 he is a fresco painter at the age of 17 in Newport, Campbell County,
Kentucky. He and his brothers founded the DeJaco Brothers Company,
Inc. around 1918. They opened a retail paint and hardware store at 103 Sixth
Street in Dayton, Kentucky and later at 908 Monmouth Street in Newport, Kentucky.
The firm's advertisements stated that they were painters and decorators specializing
in "house painting, graining, glazing, cleaning, hardwood finishing, interior
decorating, enameling, and gilding."
The DeJaco Brothers Company was awarded several contracts to paint and decorate
the interiors of several churches in the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky
area. These included St. Mary of the Assumption Church in Alexandria, Kentucky
(1917); the Church of the Good Shepherd in Frankfort, Kentucky; the Church of
the Annunciation in Paris, Kentucky; Corpus Christi Church in Newport, Kentucky
(1919); Saint Francis Xavier Church in Falmouth, Kentucky; Saint Patrick Church
in Mount Sterling, Kentucky; Saint Joseph Church in Camp Springs, Kentucky;
Immaculate Conception Church in Newport, Kentucky; Saints Peter and Paul Church
in Reading, Ohio; Saint Michael Church in Ripley, Ohio; Saint Joseph Church
in Ironton, Ohio; Saint John Church in Wilder, Kentucky; Saint Joseph Church
in Cold Springs, Kentucky; Newport Baptist Church; York Street Congregational
Church; Saint Joseph Orphanage Chapel in Cold Springs, Kentucky; Saint Ann Church
in Cincinnati, Ohio; Saint Joseph Church in Winchester, Kentucky; Saint Bernard
Church in Dayton, Kentucky; Blessed Sacrament Church in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky;
Saint Phillip Church in Melbourne, Kentucky; Newport Methodist Church; Saint
James Church in Brookville, Kentucky; and Villa Madonna Academy Chapel in Villa
Hills, Kentucky. Influenced by their father's Tyrolean heritage, they specialized
in religious fresco imagery reminiscent of Byzantine religious art. Finally,
just prior to its 1960 Centennial celebration, the remaining DeJaco Brothers
(Fred DeJaco, George DeJaco, and Edward DeJaco) renovated the interior of St
Mary Church in Alexandria, Kentucky; their brother Fr. Frank DeJaco was pastor
at the Parish for both the 75th Jubilee and the Centennial.
In commemoration of the ordinations of his two brothers, Fred rendered two identical
oil-on-canvas paintings of Christ the Priest done in a faux mosaic
art style (Exhibit I, pg. A15). He presented the first framed artwork to Fr.
Francis DeJaco upon his ordination in 1922, and the second artwork was presented
to Fr. Louis DeJaco upon his ordination in 1923. It is said that Leonard Lippert
(1863-1947), a talented and well recognized artist from Bavaria and then a member
of St. Stephen Parish, was instrumental in the development of Fred's oil-on-canvas
technique. Fred also experimented in other religious artwork rendered in the
mosaic tile media.
About 1926 Fred resigned from the DeJaco Brothers Company, and started his own
commercial and residential painting business, the Fred F. DeJaco & Co., along
with another painter associate, Mr. Frank L Gamel. The enterprise was located
at 217 E. Tenth Street in Newport. Around 1934, Fred joined the John Shillito
Company, in Cincinnati, Ohio as an interior decorator. He later became the supervisor
of their decorating crew. He retired from the John Shillito Company in 1959
after 25 years of service. He and his wife Bertha moved to the then newly developing
Bonita Springs area in Florida.
He lived at 637 Monroe Street in Newport, Campbell County, Kentucky between
1919 and 1941. He and his wife Bertha purchased the Monroe Street
house and lot in James Taylor's East Row addition for about $4,000 [DB: 119/646-647].
Other places of residency included an apartment on Monmouth Street in Newport,
Kentucky (1908); a residence on Pleasant Street in Cynthiana, Kentucky (1908-10);
1007 Isabella Street in Newport, Kentucky (1911-12); 330 Hodge Street in Newport,
Kentucky between 1913 and 1919 [DB:108/346 & 119/526]; 637 Monroe Street
in Newport, Kentucky between 1919 and 1941 [DB: 108/346 & 119/526]; 14 Ridgeway
Avenue in Fort Thomas, Kentucky between 1941 and 1959 [DB: 193/92 & 335/546];
and in Bonita Springs, Florida. (1959-62). Between 1937 and 1946, Fred and Bertha
owned a small farm about six miles south of Alexandria on State Route #10 along
Twelve Mile Creek [DB: 74/544 & 85/59].
He died on 17 Mar 1962 in Bonita Springs, Lee County, Florida.
From his obituary in the Kentucky Post on Monday, March 19, 1962: FRED
DEJACO - Solemn requiem high Mass for Fred F. DeJaco, 77, a brother
of Rev. Francis DeJaco, pastor of Saint Mary Church, Alexandria; who died Saturday
at his home in Bonita Springs, Florida., will be sung at 10 AM. on Thursday at
Saint Mary Church. He was associated with the DeJaco Brothers firm in Newport,
which contracts for painting. In addition to his brother, he leaves three daughters,
Mrs. Della Cassini, Cincinnati, Ohio; Mrs. Mildred Wise, Dallas, Texas; and Mrs.
Lucille Hoenemeyer, Madison, New Jersey; four sons, Norbert, Alexandria; Jerome,
West Palm Beach, Florida; Ferdinand and Gerard DeJaco, both of Cincinnati, Ohio,
and two other brothers, George DeJaco, Alexandria, and Edward DeJaco, Fort Thomas
and 27 grandchildren. Friends may call at the Muehlenkamp Funeral Home, Newport,
between 3 and 9 PM. Wednesday. Burial will be in the Saint Mary Church cemetery.
He was buried on 22 Mar 1962 in Alexandria, Kentucky, at Saint Mary Cemetery.
Francis
Frederick (Fred) DEJACO and Bertha Bernadina SCHAEFER DeJaco were married on
27 Oct 1908 in Newport, Kentucky, at Corpus Christi Catholic Church.
Rev. M. J. Leich officiated at the wedding ceremony; Francis DeJaco, Jr. and
Joanna Brockhaus were witnesses.
They appeared in the census in 1930. Name: Fred Dejaco - Home
in 1930: 637 Monroe Street, Newport, Campbell, Kentucky; Age: 44; Estimated
Birth Year: abt 1886; BirthPlace: Wisconsin; Relation to Head of House: Head;
Spouses's Name: Bertha; Race: White; Occupation: Decorator-Painting Firm;
Household Members: Fred Dejaco 44, Bertha Dejaco 44, Della M Dejaco 19, Mildred
F Dejaco 18, Norbert F Dejaco 16, L Jerome Dejaco 13, Lucille Dejaco 8, Ferd
H Dejaco 7, Gerard E Dejaco 4 4/12.
Bertha Bernadina
SCHAEFER DeJaco146 (daughter
of Bernadina (Dina) SCHAEFER) was born on 20 Aug 1884 in Cincinnati, Hamilton
County, Ohio.
She died on 9 Jan 1961 in Bonita Springs, Lee County, Florida.
From her obituary in the Kentucky Post & Times Star: MRS. BERTHA
DEJACO - Requiem High Mass for Mrs. Bertha DeJaco, 77, sister-in-law
of Rev. Francis DeJaco, pastor of St. Mary Church, Alexandria, will be sung at
9:30 a.m. Saturday at St. Mary Church. Burial will be in St. Mary Cemetery,
Alexandria. Mrs. DeJaco, a native of Newport, died Monday at her home in Bonita
Springs, Florida. She leaves her husband, Fred; three daughters, Mrs. Della
Cassini, Covington; Mrs. Mildred Wise, Dallas, Texas, and Mrs. Lucille Hoenemeyer
[misspelled Lucy Horway], Whippany, NJ; four sons, Norbert DeJaco, Alexandria,
Jerome DeJaco, West Palm Beach, Florida, and Ferd and Gerard DeJaco, both of
Cincinnati, and 22 grandchildren. Prayers will be said at 9 a.m. Saturday at
Muehlenkamp Funeral Home, Alexandria. Friends may call there from 3 to 9 p.m.
Friday. She was buried on 14 Jan 1961 in Alexandria, Kentucky, at Saint
Mary Cemetery.
Francis Frederick (Fred) DEJACO and Bertha Bernadina SCHAEFER DeJaco had the
following children: