Captain John Joseph Lattimer Freitus

John Joseph Lattimer Freitus was born on May 27, 1873, in Buffalo, New York. He was the third-oldest child. John followed in his father's footsteps by becoming the captain of several tugboats. He was a colorful figure in the maritime world. It wasn't easy work, as Capt. John experienced broken ribs when helping a tug break ice in Buffalo. He suffered a bruised spine and even survived being thrown into the lake by a tugboat explosion. In 1911, Capt. John and his team raised Commodore Perry's flagship, the Niagara, from the bottom of Misery Bay near Erie, Pennsylvania. This flagship sank during the War of 1812. He continued his salvage business as the President of the American Towing Company, which included raising both sections of the steamer Francis Widlar, which went aground on Pancake Shoals in Lake Superior, tearing away 72 feet of its bottom and finally breaking into two. John was the captain and owner of the tugboat Alva B, which saved the lives of several crew members. The Alva B was wrecked near Avon Lake, Ohio, where the bell of the tug is displayed today at a local park. John insisted that the family's surname was spelled Freitus and could be heard arguing this with his older brother, Capt. George, who insisted it was spelled Freitas. John divorced his first wife, Eva Orr Freitas, in 1917, after which she sued him for non-payment of alimony. An arrest warrant was issued, and a local judge would mediate between the two parties. In 1931, he became the director and vice president of Midland Steamship. John died on May 12, 1947, in Lakewood, Ohio, at the age of 73, and is buried in Sandusky, Ohio.

Isabelle (Freitas) Roller

Isabelle 'Belle' Freitas was born in September 1869 in Buffalo, New York. Her father, John, was 24, and her mother, Mary, was 15. She was the oldest child. Isabelle married John George Henry Roller on November 28, 1889, in her hometown. George was a grocer by trade. They had 10 children (6 boys and 4 girls). Family memories were shared of the children coming home from school and getting to choose anything they wanted for their lunch. Grace picked tomato soup, and George Jr. would pick a can of beans. On Sunday afternoons, the family would take a buggy ride through the country, where they would pass by a gypsy campsite. George would always stop to barter, pretending he would sell them his horses. When economic times were tough, Isabelle (known affectionately as ‘Ma Belle’) would accept the few pennies that were left on the counter by her customers in exchange for the supplies they needed. Isabelle's family (including her mother, Mary Ann) lived at 193 Hamburg Street (original house on the Seawall strip). She died on February 18, 1937, in Buffalo, New York, at the age of 67, and is buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery.

Mary Ann (Lattimer) Freitas

When Mary Ann Lattimer was born on 6 December 1853, in Buffalo, New York, her father, John, was 26, and her mother, Jane, was 33. She was the third oldest of seven children. Mary Ann's father was born in England and her mother was born in Clones, Monaghan, Ireland.  

Mary Ann's father was one of the first to settle on the seawall strip of Buffalo, Erie, New York in 1844.  By the early 1900s, this piece of land was known as the seawall strip ~ the land of the 'squatters' or 'beachers.' Eventually the city of Buffalo 'acquired' the land in order to give it to the railroad.

In 1916 Mary Ann testified before the city commission of how her parents made a home for their family.  When describing the railroad actions in bullying her family and neighbors, Mary Ann had this to say:  "Imagine a silly woman brought a pail of tar into the kitchen and left it on the stove.  It caught fire and burned up the house.  It was a great while later that a big blow took the barn completely away."  Mary Ann was given $3,000 for her seawall home.

At the age of 14 years old, Mary Ann married John P. Freitas on 23 December 1867 in her hometown of Buffalo, Erie, New York at Grace Episcopal Church. John was 22 years old at the time of their marriage. Mary Ann lived with her parents during the first six months of her marriage. They had twelve children with nine of her children living through adulthood. She told of her husband being paid in gold, never banked it and could hardly hold it in her large apron. She would give food to the needy and at her "wake" so many people told of the good she did.

Mary Ann died on 26 January 1937, in Buffalo, New York, at the age of 83, and was buried at the Holy Cross Cemetery.