On Nov. 14, 1921, Hugo R. Volland passed away. Six months later, Patrick J. Toomey died on March 12, 1922. Then, Volland’s wife Laura passed away on January 12, 1923. Within fourteen months the president, vice president and secretary/treasurer of Toomey & Volland passed.
The 1914 St. Louis Directory listed Patrick J. Toomey as the president of Toomey & Volland, Hugo R. Volland as the secretary of Toomey & Volland, Laura A. Volland as the vice-president of Toomey & Volland. Toomey was the senior partner, a remarkable and talented man. Volland was also talented, and the key individual who landed many of the Masonic projects. The partnership was extremely successful by 1920, continually landing one large project after another. Although Toomey’s son did not follow in his footsteps, both of Volland’s son’s did follow there father and were working for him in 1920..
That year Louis Jerome Volland and Victor Hugo Volland worked as scenic artists at the Toomey & Volland studio. In the end, they were the two who lost the most, but also gained a firm.
I am intrigued with Laura Volland’s involvement with the company. She was not an anomaly; it was not unusual for a wife to fill the position of president or vice-president at a scenic studio. I think of David Hunt’s wife who was listed at the president of New York Studios around this same time. Many women were involved with the studios, both on paper and in the offices.
Headline when Mrs. Laura Volland passed away.
On Jan. 13, 1923, the “St. Louis Star and Times” announced the passing of Mrs. Laura Volland (page 3). Her obituary notice reported, “Mrs. Laura Volland, 5865 Enright avenue, died in the women’s retiring room at the American Theatre at 10:10 p.m. yesterday a few minutes after she had complained of feeling ill. The cause of death was given at heart disease.
Hers was the third death of persons stricken in local theaters in the past week. Last Saturday night Robert E. Adreon, president of the American Brake Company, collapsed and died at the Orpheum, Joseph Stanhope, an actor in the Woodward Players, collapsed on the stage at the Garrick Saturday evening and died early Sunday morning.
Mrs. Volland had gone to the American with her sons, Louis J. and Victor H. Volland, and a young woman. She complained of feeling faint and went to the women’s rest room, where she collapsed.
Dr. George T. Gaffney, 4942 Laclede avenue was called from the audience to attend her. An inquest will be held Monday.
Mrs. Volland, who was 51, is the widow of Hugo Volland, treasurer of the Toomey & Volland Scenic Painting Company. Volland also died suddenly, in November 1921, of heart disease. His widow lived with her two sons and a daughter, Miss Rose Volland. Funeral services will be held Monday at the home with cremation at Valhalla Cemetery.”
A business can change in the blink of an eye, especially when there is a change in command. From Nov. 1921 to March 1922, the Toomey & Volland lost both of its founders; the death of each one was a surprise.
Toomey & Volland Studio Stamp, 1921
On Nov. 14, 1921, the “St. Louis Star” announced Hugo R. Volland’s passing. His obituary notice reported, “Hugo R. Volland, president and treasurer of the Toomey & Volland Scenic Company, died at his home, 5865 Enright avenue, at 4:40 a.m. today. Volland was a 33d honorary degree Mason. Two weeks ago he suffered a nervous collapse. He is survived by the widow, Mrs. Laura Volland, two sons, Louis J. and Victor, and a daughter, Rose. Keystone Lodge, of which he was a member, will be in charge of the funeral Wednesday, from the Scottish Rite Cathedral, Seventeenth and Locust street. It will be preceded by the Knights of Kadosh funeral service at the cathedral tomorrow midnight.”
On November 16, 1921, the “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” reported, “More than 1,000 persons last night witnessed the unusual midnight, or Kadosh, services of the Scottish Rite Masons over the body of Hugo R. Volland, 55 years old, scenic artist, thirty-third honorary degree Mason and Knight Templar, who died last Monday night at his home 5865 Enright avenue. The services took place in the Scottish Rite Cathedral, Seventeenth and Locust streets. The cathedral auditorium was packed to capacity by the time services began. Many persons, unable to obtain seats, found there was into the balcony. At 11:58 o’clock the lights in the auditorium gradually dimmed until the entirely extinguished, except nine candles placed at the head and foot of the bier. The coffin rested directly in front of an iron cross, behind which was the stage. The only remaining lights were in the choir loft, where red lamps burned for the singers. At midnight a deep booming gong, hidden behind curtains on the stage, sounded, and marked the entrance of the first of thirteen knights, each clad in black gown and hood and carrying a lighted candle. As each minute was marked on the gong a knight advanced until thirteen hooded men surrounded the coffin of their late brother. Silence Follows a Bugle Sound. As the last k night sounded from the gallery, and this was followed by a period of silence. Jesse N. Watson, commander, then recited services for the dead and called on the knights who might feel so deeply moved, to step forward and accuse the dead brother of any wrong done prior to his death. One by one three knights addressed the commander, who stood between the stage and the cross, and, in grave tones, declared themselves, were not perfect. Watson then grasped a small hammer and struck three times on the main shaft of the cross, uttering the words, “Then let the grave be ready to receive its dead.” Two knights stepped forward, lifted Volland’s sword from the lid of the casket, and removed the lid. During the ceremony a violin solo by Fred Sultan, accompanied by O. Wade Fallert, organist, was played softly. Two knights surrounding the bier were called upon to advance and relieve the body of ‘petty baubles and cords that bind the hands and his feet. This part of the service was explained, is symbolic of the soul taking flight to another world. At 1:35 a.m. the hooded knights advanced to the bier and, after dipping their fingers in pure water, touched the breast of the dead brother, at the same time pronouncing the farewell: ‘My brother, now thou art dead to this world and livest in the Lord.’ The choir then sang ‘Nearer, My God, to Thee,’ and the nights, extinguishing their candles departed from the auditorium.”
Patrick J. Toomey. From the “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” on March 13, 1922.
Six months later, on March 13, 1922, Volland’s business partner and friend also passed. On March 13, 1922, the “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” announced “P. J. Toomey, Pioneer Scenic Painter Dies.” The newspaper reported, “P. J. Toomey, 71 years old, one of the pioneer scenic painters of St. Louis, died suddenly at 10 a.m. yesterday as the result of an illness with which he was attacked while at mass in St. Roch’s Catholic Church. Rosedale and Waterman avenues. Physicians said death was due to cerebral hemorrhage. Worshipers sitting near Toomey said they did not observe anything unusual in his actions or appearance during the services, until he began breathing heavily and slumped forward in his seat. Several men who were sitting nearby carried him to one of the schoolrooms, next door, and a physician was summoned. Toomey’s son, Dr. Noxon Toomey, was sent for, but Toomey was dead when he arrived. The son said his father complained of feeling ill. Toomey painted the scenes for the first floats of a Veiled Prophet’s parade. He continued this sort of work for 25 years, giving it up recently, when a corporation formed to do the work took it over. He also did most of the painting for some of the old theaters in St. Louis, among them Pope’s, the Olympic and the Century. He at one time painted scenes for the Knickerbocker Theater, New York City. Toomey was one of the founders of the firm Toomey & Volland, scene painters 3127 Cass avenue. His first studio was opened in St. Louis in the Olympic Theatre Building, in 1867. The room in which this studio was located was destroyed recently. Funeral services will be held Wednesday at 9 a.m. at the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes, St. Louis County, Interment will follow in Calvary Cemetery. Toomey is survived by his widow, Mrs. Mary Vogt Toomey, and the son.”
The last line of Toomey’s obituary noted, “Hugo R Volland, the other member of the firm, died Nov. 14, following a paralytic strike.”
In 1924 Thomas G. Moses wrote, “On the [March] 30th, I stopped at St. Louis, where Kirke met me at the station and we went to Volland’s studio. It is some studio.” Toomey & Volland built a new studio in 1922. Work was pouring in, especially Masonic scenery orders.
New Toomey & Volland Studio, 1922
Moses continued, “They were very anxious to have me come down and help them out, as they had more work that they could handle.” I bet, as they had kept winning bids from Sosman & Landis over the past few years. Moses’ bid for the Chicago-based firm was always higher than their St. Louis competitors, especially in the post-WWI years. Moses was a close friend both Patrick J. Toomey and Hugo R. Volland. He repeatedly mentioned stopping by the Toomey & Volland shops whenever he was in St. Louis, Missouri.
There was another issue at play when Moses’ mentioned stopping by Volland’s in 1924. Both of the studio founders passed away within six months of each other, and Toomey & Volland transitioned into Volland Scenic Studios. Volland’s son Victor was now running the business with his own ideas. The two founders, both skilled scenic artists in their own right, were gone.
It has been a while since I covered the history of the Toomey & Volland Studio, so I’ll do a brief recap. Then I’ll cover the collapse of the original firm between 1922 and 1923.
Volland Studios evolved from an earlier partnership known as Toomey & Volland. Moses was close friends with Toomey. Toomey & Volland evolved from an earlier scenic art partnership called Noxon & Toomey. Thomas C. Noxon and Patrick Joseph Toomey joined forces in approximately 1867. Interestingly, Volland Studio would claim 1869 as their establishment, but Noxon was the firm’s first president and senior partner in the company.
Noxon and Toomey expanded in 1881 and changed its name to Noxon, Albert & Toomey. The famed Ernest Albert was added to the company, while Toomey was reported to be “the itinerant member of the firm” (Richmond Dispatch, 24 Jan 1886, page 3). The company ran regional offices with studios in St. Louis, Missouri, Chicago, Illinois & Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Noxon, Albert & Toomey lasted for almost a decade, but Albert eventually returned to Chicago to partner with Walter Burridge and Oliver Dennett Grover, forming Albert, Grover & Burridge. This was immediately after Moses partnered with Burridge, forming Burridge, Moses and Louderback. By 1891, Albert, Grover & Burridge partnered and built an innovative scenic studio in Chicago with twenty paint frames and a display area to fully light and stage completed sets for clients. Although there was much promise, the firm went bankrupt in two years.
The majority of late-nineteenth-century and early-twentieth-century scenic art partnerships formed quickly; they came and went. In some ways, they were like the type of fire-works that make a big boom and then quickly fizzled to the ground. Very few companies lasted the test of time, with both Sosman & Landis and Volland Studios being the exceptions. However, Toomey & Volland really did not withstand the test of time, as the partnership only lasted two decades. Volland Studios certainly lasted longer, but that it wasn’t a partnership; Volland became a family firm.
