El Paso Herald-Post from El Paso, Texas • 13

'4 Eccentric Made and Lost Several Fortunes Papers Photos Add to Kern Place Founder's history By NANCY HAMILTON A personal letter from Franklin Delano Roosevelt and photos of early construction in Kern Place are among memorabilia of Peter Edward Kern given to El Paso Public Library recently by the Home for Aged Masons at Arlington Tex Kern was living at the home at the time of his death in 1937 The photos and personal papers add significantly to the Southwest Collection's material about Kern He had presented the library a copy of his "Kern which he published in 1917 Originals of some of the photos in that book are found in the items from the Masonic Home AT THE TURN of the century Kern was considered eccentric for his interests in astrology archaeology psychic phenomena and reincarnation He made and lost two or three fortunes being mainly interested in the jewelry business and land development Kern Place in El Paso was his grandest dream Although it met with success as a residential development he ended up penniless Among his early plans for Kern Place were an artificial lake and his own chalet on the crest' of Craiy Cat Mountain with a streetcar line running up toil AT THE TIME he was working on the development in 1914 and 1915 townspeople looked on his entrance gate as a sign of his eccentricity He looked on it as symbolizing "the hardships trials' and tribulations he experienced along the trail of life to the achievement at last of the beautiful reality now christened The gate or arch which stood at Kansas street and Robinson avenue he said "is intended to remain forever a monument and his legacy to the generations here and who will come after THE SYMBOLS on the arch included what he called the Kern Crest two interlocking circles in which were parallel horizontal bars and atop which was a vertical bar with three crossbars He said the symbolism involved the brotherhood of man Two swastikas one reversed represented male and female aspects and meant life health and wealth which the Sun-god has and gives at his Circles squares and compasses also were used in the symbolic gate which had 444 light globes Wartime measures included turning off the lights which had illuminated the Kern Place entrance for about a year THE REMARKABLE Pete Kern was bom in Ohio in 1860 and went west at 19 working in Denver for the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad Moving to Santa Fe he served an apprenticeship with Lucas and Hickox jewelers After a disappointing experience as a herdsman in Durango Colo he came to El Paso in the fall of 1881 and opened a jewelry store on El Paso street at the site of Hotel Paso del Norte As his business prospered he expanded it in the Gem Building He married a St Louis woman and their daughter Madeline was born the following year In 1893 he and three friends camped at the present site of Elephant Butte dam and Kern began encouraging the building of a dam in the natural basin AS A RESULT of the Panic of 1893 Kern lost his fortune and his marriage also came to an end In 1896 he moved to Skagway Alaska where he prospered as a jeweler and built an unusual Castle Kern where his visitors included the Prince of Wales After 14 years there he returned to El Paso and became involved in his dream for Kern Place Typical dwellings there he wrote were homes of five to eight rooms costing $2000 to $10000 with some as high' as $50000 Flint arrowheads were plentiful in Kern Place noted its founder especially at a small hill in Inspiration Park KERN again lost his fortune and in 1931 was working for 30 cents an hour caring for lawns in the subdivision be had originated He entered the involving the brotherhood of man light life health and wealth This photo was in Kern's personal papers which recently were presented to El Paso Public Library by the Home for Aged Masons at Arlington Tex where Kern was residing at the time of his death in 1937 KERN PLACE GATE Kern erected this unusual fate at Kansas street and Robinson avenue when he began developing Kern Place before World War I The arch was illuminated by 444 light globes Its symbols included one he described as the Kern family crest and several awasUkas with the main symbolism Masonic home in 1932 A 50-year member of El Paso Lodge No 130 Kern treasured his life membership card which is among the items presented to the library In 1884 he had a character chart drawn up by an astrologer which read "You will make more money for other folks than for yourself and in general need to cultivate THAT PREDICTION came true His obituary in the Arlington Tex Journal said that in his last years Kern his entire time in working on many plans to benefit humanity and doing kindly deeds for everyone with whom he came in His thoughtfulness of his friends lives on in the street names of his development In his "Kern are photos of many of his friends BUILDING GATE Kern developer of Kern Plaee wrote on the back of this photo "Construction gang erecting gate at Xern Place" It is among photos and personal papers he left at the Home for Aged Masons Arlington Tex where he resided at the time of his death in 1937 The home recently presented the items to El Paso Public Southwest Collection1 IN OLD AGE Friends in Arlington Tex where he lived his final years called Kern Pete" He enjoyed telling them about his years in Alaska He died in 1937 at 79 live on in Kern Place still one of the choicest residential areas EARLY PHOTO Kern looked like this in February 1W in a photo taken by pioneer El Paso photographer Francis Parker Kern came here in 1981 Hixson honorable in the jewelry business Their names and his including Kelly Ben Moore Thomas O'Keefe Galloway his attorney and Is the bright spot lor November savings i ''Reg 125 to 150-Save to 67 Sport Duos! 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