The Street Seen: Edwin James Vawter (1848 – 1914)
Ocean Park
Born in IN, Vawter comes to Pasadena with his father, W.D. Vawter (1815 – 1894) and elder brother W.S. Vawter (1845 – 1917) in 1875. From Pasadena, the Vawters open the first general merchandise store in Santa Monica. Operating as the Santa Monica Commercial Company, W. D. Vawter and his two sons are involved in many real estate, banking, rail roading and other Santa Monica businesses.
E.J. Vawter organizes the First National Bank of Ocean Park. He serves as a member of the board of city trustees, the library board and the school board. He is president of the Ocean Park Water Company organized in 1896 to supply Ocean Park with water. In 1899, he is president Ocean Park Floral Company and begins growing of carnations and other flowers for the wholesale market.
He marries Laura E. Dixon (1851 - 1886) in Indiana in 1869 and they are the parents of E.J. Vawter, Jr. (1871 - 1926). In 1888, Vawter marries ????Isabelle Louise Cummings (1857 - 1946)?????Isabelle Louise McCarbe Nelson widow?????. Their home is in the midst of flowers at Marine and 4th. Vawter dies unexpectedly at his mountain home in Monrovia in 1914.