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Forest Theodore Luke
Forest Theodore Luke was bom March 29, 1887 in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi the son of Michel Luc and Josephine Guzman. Mr. Luke was one of 10 children; his siblings were as follows: Odile (married John Kachler), Victor (married Katie Damborino), Angeline (married Martin Schneider), Maurice (unmarried), Oscar (married Elizabeth Claire), Victoire (married Hans Rocher), Mitchel (married Myrtle Winkler), Fredrick (married Marie Griffin), and Royal (unmarried). Forest was baptized on August 2, 1887 at Our Lady of the Gulf Catholic Church.
He married Edwina Rebecca Ladner (daughter of Alcide Ladner and Cecile Seube) on September 7, 1907 in Bay St. Louis. The couple remained married for over fifty years. They had 9 children: Ethel Agnes (died at age 3), Juanita Augusta (married Harry Ward), Elsie Cecile (married Bill Jones), Forest Joseph (died in WW II), Leroy Thomas (married Lucille Morel), Foster Michael (unmarried), Edith Angeline (married Lawrence Cox), and Ileana Mae (unmarried).
Forest was an athletic type who excelled in baseball as a young man. Later in life he went on to follow in his father's footstep and became a baker. Standing six feet four inches tall with very large hands, he had was a natural for the sport of baseball and established himself early as a talented pitcher. Known as "Iron Man Luke" for the power of his pitching, Forest first played for the Peerless Stars, a team sponsored by the Peerless Seafood Company, which was located at the present site of the yacht club. The above real photo postcard was taken in 1915 when baseball was the most popular sport in Bay St. Louis. Juanita Luc Ward, the eldest daughter of Forest and Edwina, combining her own recollections with those of some of local residents, wrote a short article that appeared in the May 29, 1977 Sea Coast Echo describing her father's participation in the game. Juanita stated, "Some people say Forest threw the baseball over the water tank that stood where the trains filled with water at the Louisville and Nashville station and then the ball hit Gilmore's Saloon at Keller Avenue and Railroad Avenue (Words by Charlie Banderet)." Further, she stated " Forest had one brother that played ball. He was a great catcher, but "Iron Man" broke Vic's ten fingers. One Sunday, Vic took his catcher's mask off and told Forest he never wanted to catch for him again (Words by Johnny Galoot)." Forest went on to play with the Cotton State League in Lutcher, Louisiana, a team sponsored by the Moore Lumber Company, and even drew some interest by the Atlanta Crackers and Philadelphia Phillies.
Forest died at 10:50 p.m. on Thursday January 17, 1963 at the age of 75 at Hancock General Hospital in Bay St. Louis. Funeral services were held at 9:45 a.m. from Rieman's Fahey-Whitfield funeral Home followed by religious rites at 10:00 a.m. at Our Lady of the Gulf Catholic Church. Interment was in St. Mary's Cemetery. Pallbearers were Gerard Freeman, George Hietzmann, Norman Benigno, Horold Krankey, Gustave Thomas, Willard Gavagnie, Forest Luc, and Albert Grass.
For further information on this family, please refer to The Descendants of Guillaume Guerry, A Study of the Guerry/Luc Guerry/Luc/Luke Family, Circa 1790 to the Present compiled by Harry Ward. This study was prepared for the family reunion in 1989, marking the family's 168th year in Bay St. Louis. A copy has been placed in the Hancock County Historical Society in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.