NEW ORLEANS, La. (KTAL/KMSS) - The names of Patsy Shaw, Patience Jorum, Joanna P. Moore, Margaret Jones, Harriet Taylor, and Sallie Henderson would have likely been lost to history had it not been for a homeless shelter in post-Civil War New Orleans that cared for homeless, elderly women who had previously been enslaved. Thanks to a book written in the early 1900s, we can now look back at our own Louisiana history and see where women helped one another get off the streets and find peace. While remembering the early years of an 'Old Ladies' Home' in New Orleans that would later be known as Faith Home, Joanna P. Moore stated that after the Civil War, some of the saddest cases in the homeless community in Louisiana were that of "the old freed women women out with years of slavery." Joanna wrote that these women were "usually rag pickers, and had a little but where they lodged at night, and ate old scraps they had begged during the day." Joanna stated that there was on "Old Ladies Home" in New Orleans after the Civil war, but women of color were not allowed. And there were no alms for the poor in the freedman and freedwoman homeless communities. "These old people you sometimes found on the streets, because for some reason they had been turned out of their little corner and had nowhere to go. Sometimes the police took them up and lodged them in the parish prison," wrote Joanna. But because these people were guilty of nothing, "save age, poverty and sickness," the police did not keep this vulnerable group of people in prison for long. Joanna wrote that people had tried to collect money for a suitable home before 1878, but in 1878 she "called together those whom (she) thought the most interested, both (black and white) friends." For several weeks, the group of friends all asked their Maker for help. In Jan. 1879, a house was found and the first story of the home was made ready for elderly, homeless women. The second story of the house was for the missionaries who were to help. "I first prayed for someone to take care of and to cook for these pilgrims," wrote Joanna. "Katie Lewis was the answer to this prayer. I wish you could have seen her. She was about seventy years old, tall and as dignified as a queen, and wore her turban as gracefully. While a slave she was a head cook and general manager in the home of a rich planter." Joanna said that Katie came to the home and said she'd had a vision that she needed to come and cook for the elderly women, which she called "those little babies." Katie herself was elderly, but she said she had good health and knew how to cook and wanted to help in "this low-ground of sorrow." Katie stayed for years. Joanna said the very first woman that Faith Home helped was Sallie Henderson, who moved into the home on Feb. 1, 1879. "She had been unkindly treated so long that she thought no one loved her, and I am sure she did not love any one." Joanna described Sallie as being cross, sick, old, and dirty. She also said Sallie had great difficulty parting with her old, worn, dirty clothes. "Poor Sallie had several bags of them. I succeeded in burning some of them, but it almost broke her heart. I offered her nice new garments, but she preferred the old rags, because she said I am used to them." Joanna said the issue was common with most of the women who stayed at the home. She also wrote that there were a few real saints in the group of women. Within a month after opening their doors, Faith Home was caring for five women. They had a motto written above a mantle in the home that said "The Lord will provide." Money arrived from around the city and donors in northern states. "The first year we sheltered 22 weary pilgrims; none of them were well; six were cripples, one blind and two unable to leave their cots were cared for like babies," wrote Joanna. Harriet Taylor was addicted to alcohol when she was first brought to the house. Harriet was convinced that she would die if she stopped drinking. She found sobriety and became a caretaker in the home, too. Margaret Jones was a hundred years old when she came to Faith Home. She couldn't walk. "I wish you could have heard her say for every favor she received, 'I thank you, Master Jesus,' and often with tears of gratitude rolling down her withered cheeks she would turn and thank the one who brought the gift from Jesus," wrote Joanna. Harried helped take of Margaret. Joanna said that some people did not feel empathy for others. "He did not see the immortal soul that now shines in glory," Joanna wrote about a driver who would not allow an old blind woman named Lucy in his carriage because she was so dirty. Lucy was taken to Faith Home and even one of the people who worked there were afraid that Lucy would bring dirt and disease into the home. Lucy's life completely changed. Lucy finally had a home on earth, and according to Joanna, Lucy dreamt of a home in heaven. Patsy Shaw was a literate woman who was raised in Virginia. She and her husband were sold and eventually auctioned off in New Orleans, where they were temporarily separated. After the Civil War, when the grown children that Patsy had helped raise couldn't take care of her anymore, they brought Patsy to Faith Home. Patience Jorum was quite course when she arrived at the home. "She would take her staff and strike the others if they offended her," wrote Joanna, who was broken-hearted about Patience's struggle. More than forty women moved in while Joanna was at Faith Home. She wrote that she wished she could write about more of them, and she said that anonymous letters with money often arrived. She wrote letters about the work being done, and she published reports at the end of each year. Joanna also wrote of a lesson she learned at Faith Home. "You must love before you can comfort and help." Joanna also said she had hoped to accomplish three things when she started the home. She wanted to care for the aged poor, to teach greater faith in God's promises, and to teach people the Bible plan of giving. Joanna described that plan as "to lay by from their income a portion to the Lord as He had prospered them, each according to his ability..." As of 1914, Joanna was still helping freedwomen. She succeeded in her efforts for more than fifty years before she died. Today we know the story of Joanna, Katie, Sallie, Patience, Patsy, and Lucy because of a book written by William Hicks. History of Louisiana Negro Baptists describes the formation and growth of early black churches in Louisiana between the years of 1804 and 1914. Black Baptist church history also ties in directly with the history of the white Baptist church in Louisiana. It also ties in with the civil rights movement in Shreveport, Louisiana. This story is the first in a series of articles that will highlight kind souls who defied racial tensions and made positive differences in Louisiana after the Civil War and before the corresponding civil rights movement. Sources: The Atlanta University Publications, No. 16, copyright 1912 by Atlanta University. Edited by W. E. B. DuBoise, Ph. D., pp. 100. History of Louisiana Negro Baptists From 1804 to 1914: Electronic Edition. Written by William Hicks, B. A., D. D.; National Baptist Publishing Board, Nashville, Tennessee. Jaclyn Tripp took the lead on this article.