Ivy Julia Cromartie Stranahan

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=10929917

Known as The Mother of Fort Lauderdale. Ivy Stranahan, born in 1881 near the Georgia-Florida line, she moved with her family as a young girl to Lemon City (which became part of Miami), Florida. She then moved to Fort Lauderdale in 1899 to become the town's first school teacher. She married Frank Stranahan in 1900 and lived in what originally had been the Indian trading post founded by her husband (Mr. Stranahan remodeled it into a home for his bride.) Stranahan taught school formally in Fort Lauderdale (still considered part of the Dade County School System at that time) for one year. She also informally taught Seminole Indian children for more than 15 years. Stranahan was active in social affairs, including women's suffrage, the Audubon Society, and the establishment of the Everglades National Park. Her most noted accomplishment was the foundation of the "Friends of the Seminoles" and her role in persuading some of the Seminoles to move to the newly created reservation at Dania, Florida. The U.S. Government contacted Mrs. Stranahan, knowing of her amiable relationship with the Seminoles, for her assistance in setting the groundwork for their move to the reservation.

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