Neva Chase Child
By Spessard Stone
Neva C. Child was a pioneer newspaper editor of Arcadia, Florida.
Neva Chase was born September 13, 1850 in Illinois. She was the daughter of Gamalial and Cynthia Ann (Bradberry) Chase. In Missouri, Neva married Daniel Wright Child, born July 12, 1840, Weybridge, Vermont. In 1869, they moved to Colorado where Daniel was engaged in stock raising for twenty-five years and owned the Apache Ranch at Greenhorn, Huerfano County.
About 1889, Neva traveled 35 miles away to Pueblo where she worked in a newspaper office La Hermandad and learned the printing trade. Printed in Spanish, the paper was edited by Alexander Darley, a Protestant missionary to the Spanish-speaking Mexicans, numbers of whom had settled at Pueblo. About 1890 at the ranch, Neva started a small weekly, The Ranch, the post office address being Greenhorn, Colo. Education in journalism began early with the Child sons, Edward, Daniel, and Royal. Nights after school, the sons published two pages of the 12-page paper on an army press, a very simple and quite slow press.
The economic panic of 1892 resulted in Daniel�s loss of his extensive stock ranch and in June 1894, the family moved from Pueblo, Colorado overland by horses and covered wagons to Bowling Green, Florida. With them they brought forty horses and two wagons loaded with camp outfit and household goods. Most of the printing material was sent on ahead by rail to Bowling Green. While going through Oklahoma, which had recently been opened to settlement, they encountered trouble, not from Indians who were friendly, but from white men who wanted to exact tribute from them. Daniel Child presented a show of arms, and they proceeded despite threats and gunfire. The overland trip ended at Shreveport, Louisiana in September or October. The horses were shipped with the wagons and camp outfit by rail to going via Jacksonville to Bartow.
Along with their household effects were a small printing press and an assortment of type, with which Neva began publishing The Champion at Bowling Green. The Florida Times-Union of Jacksonville of February 4, 1895 noted; �Bowling Green, Feb. 3, There is a newspaper published here called the DeSoto County Champion, edited by Mrs. Child, late of Colorado. It is a very neat and interesting sheet.�
Neva purchased three properties in Bowling Green. On March 23, 1895, she bought (1) from William J. Lightsey Lots 19 & 20 of Block 14; (2) from Benjamin DeVane on March 24, 1895 the South 1/2 of the SE 1/4 of the NW 1/4 of Section 8, Township 34S of Range 25E; (3) on July 27, 1895 from John C. Jordan Lot 15 of Block 14.
In the fall of 1895, the Childs moved to Arcadia, where publication of The Champion, a weekly published on Thursday afternoons, continued until the end of 1910. The office was located on the second floor of the Espenlaub Building, Oak Street, Arcadia. In 1908, the masthead of the paper listed, "Mrs. Neva C. Child, Editor; T. E. & Royal B. Child, Publishers and Owners." In September 1910, editorial management passed to W. D. Bell. By January 1911, ownership of The Champion had passed to F. B. Hartig, and it went out of business.
The Florida Times-Union on October 18, 1896 reported: �The Champion was founded in 1894 at Bowling Green, but removed to Arcadia last year...There are not many women editors in Florida, but Mrs. Childs (sic) ranks with the best weekly paper publishers in the state of either sex. She is a thorough business woman and an able writer. The paper is independent in politics, four page, six column, weekly issued every Thursday, $1 a year. Mrs. Child was for twelve years in the newspaper business in Colorado.�
During the Spanish-American War, Daniel W. Child served with the quartermaster department in Puerto Rico. After the war, he returned to Florida for a short time, but then relocated to Cuba where he for a number of years was engaged in the cattle business. The Punta Gorda Herald of May 20, 1904 commented: "Mrs. Neva Child, the accomplished editress of the Arcadia Champion, favored Punta Gorda with a visit. She was accompanied by her husband who was back from Cuba on a short visit with his family." He later returned to Florida where he had a horse ranch and farm at Murdock. He also had a home at Arcadia and divided his time between the two sites.
Neva regularly attended meetings of the newspaper associations. The Tampa Morning Tribune of March 28, 1899 noted that at the state press association scheduled to meet at St. Petersburg a paper, �A Country Woman Journalist,� was to be given by Mrs. Neva C. Child of the Champion, Arcadia. The Florida Times-Union & Citizen (Jacksonville) of March 31, 1899 reported that at the conclusion of business proceedings of the Florida Press Association at St. Petersburg on March 30, officers elected included J. W. White, Jacksonville, president; .B. B. Tatum of Bartow, vice-president., T. J. Appleyard, secretary, E. W. Peabody, treasurer; .Morgan, McBeath, Hartig and F. E. Harris were elected delegates to the national association, with J. C. Porter, Russell, Mesdames Childs (sic) and Torrey and Miss Beck as alternatives. The Florida Times-Union of Sunday, March 1, 1903 recounted that the annual meeting of the Florida Press Association was to be held at Seabreeze beginning Tuesday, March 24 at 8 o�clock p.m. in William�s opera house and that Thursday, March 26 featured �Woman and the Local Paper, Miss E. Nellie Beck, Journal, Pensacola,� �Woman as a Printer-Editor, Neva C. Child, Champion, Arcadia.� The list of members for 1903 included fifty members, three of whom were women, including Miss E. Nellie Beck, Journal, Pensacola; Mrs. Neva C. Child, Champion, Arcadia; Miss Mary Codrington, News, De Land.
The Champion opposed county division and favored prohibition. In the 1908 gubernatorial contest, it endorsed J. N. C. Stockton, largely because of his stand on prohibition, over the eventual future governor, Albert W. Gilchrist of Punta Gorda. Of Gilchrist, she barbed that he sat in the speaker's rostrum in a rocking chair, fanned himself with a palm frond and ate peanuts like a money. Neva had Carry A. Nation come to Punta Gorda to campaign against Gilchrist. The Punta Gorda Herald of June 18, 1908 reported: "Only one paper in the entire state made any derogatory charge or insinuation against the private character of General Gilchrist and that paper is edited by a woman. We once heard an imminent Kentucky preacher say that a woman cannot tell the truth, and yet he had never read this paper that slandered Gilchrist and we, therefore, cannot imagine why he made the allegation."
The Tampa Morning Tribune of Sunday, January 10, 1909 featured an article, �Arcadia Champion, Popular Paper:�
�It has become a well established fact in all civilized countries that the best way to push a business of any kind, fill a given part of a country with settlers or bring to the attention of the public your schemes, propositions and wares is to advertise them in such a way as to reach the greatest number of readers for the least possible outlay of money. This well established fact in the economic development of our country has become so apparent that today finds every town or city of any size supplied with daily or weekly newspapers, used for the purpose of conveying to their readers the possibilities of their country and the marts in which products of kinds can be had at the most reasonable price and sold to the best advantage.
�It has been proven that there is nothing that wields a more potent influence in the development and upbuilding of a community, making of it a cohesive mass that will act as a single person, whenever anything of an important nature appears on the surface, that bears in any way upon the future welfare of the community, than a clean, fearless, first class daily or weekly newspaper. A paper of this type is deservedly worthy of mention whenever and wherever the facts of its aggressive policy becomes known.
�The Arcadia Champion is such a paper, and has been so for the past fourteen years. The company now publishing the Champion is incorporated, Mrs. Neva C. Childs (sic) being editor and publisher, and T. E. and Royal B. Childs (sic) publishers. The paper was established fourteen years ago by the husband and father of its present owners. For the first eight months of its existence it was published at Bowling Green, DeSoto county. Desiring a wider field for operation, the plant was removed to Arcadia, and has continued there since. Three years ago the entire plant of the Champion was consumed in the fire that devastated the business district of Arcadia. None of its equipment or materials were saved from the flames. However, this did not deter it from coming out with its regular issues, as its headquarters were removed temporarily to Wauchula, and until such time as the new machinery could be placed in position it continued to be issued from that place.
�A full equipment of new and up to-date machinery was purchased, and the Champion of today is better than it has ever been. Its circulation amounts to 1,000 copies weekly, it has correspondents in all the thickly settled portions of the county and has an influence that has been built up wholly through its unchangeable decision to always espouse the right. Its policy is independent; its subscription rates are $1.00 per year; its pages are always filled with a fine line of advertisements, and its jobs department is equipped to turn out as good work as can be had in any printing office of similar size in Florida. It was largely through the efforts of the Champion that the Tribune was able to make the success of this edition of DeSoto which it has.�
The D. W. Child family was enumerated in household 14, Precinct 9 of the 1910 DeSoto County Census. The family consisted of D. W., a stock grower; Neva, editor, newspaper; T. Ed, printer, newspaper. Royal B. Child and family were in neighboring household 14, which consisted of himself, occupation, editor, newspaper; Martha K., wife; and Marie McCready, a 22-year-old boarder, occupation, stenographer, law office.
Neva was active in community affairs during her newspapers career. She was for several years corresponding secretary of the state organization of the Women�s Christian Temperance Union. She was a member of the Episcopal Church.
Daniel Wright Child died May 7, 1919 at his home about one mile east of Arcadia. Rev. H. E. Carlton, assisted by Rev. F. A. Shore, officiated at the funeral. Burial was in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Arcadia.
Neva Chase Child died May 20, 1937, Arcadia. Rev. Bernard Evans, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Arcadia, officiated at her funeral service. Burial was in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Arcadia.
Daniel Wright and Neva (Chase) Child had three sons:
1. Thomas Edward Child, born ca. 1869.
2. Daniel Wright Child, born 1876; died June 29, 1957.
3. Royal Bradley Child, born April 23, 1881; died July 22, 1953, Bronson, Fla.; married (1) Mattie Elizabeth Keigwin, June 18, 1908; (2) Annie Lee Cobb.
The Champion
D. W. Childs (sic) Died Wednesday, Enterprise (Arcadia), Friday, May 9, 1919
Death certificate of Mrs. Neva (Chase) Childs (sic)
References: "D. W. Childs Died Wednesday," Enterprise (Arcadia), Friday, May 9, 1919; "Daniel Wright Child, Dead," Punta Gorda Herald, May 15, 1919; Certificate of Death of Daniel Wright Child, Office of Vital Statistics, Florida; "Death Claims A Pioneer In Mrs. N. Child," Arcadian, Thursday, May 20, 1937; Certificate of Death of Mrs. Neva (Chase) Childs, Office of Vital Statistics, Florida; �The Loss Of Its Publisher,� Levy County Journal, Thursday, July 23, 1953; Tampa Tribune, April 14, 1957. D. B. McKay, �An Editor In The Old Tradition Royal Bradley Child Served 57 Years in Florida Journalism,� Tampa Tribune, April 14, 1957.
An edited version of this profile was published in The Herald-Advocate (Wauchula, Florida), 6C, of October 9, 2003.
August 26 & 28, 2002, October 9, 2003, June 20, 2004
Music is "O mio babbino caro."
