Fred W. Brockman was born in Westphalia, Germany, June 10, 1849, and as a child emigrated with his family to the U.S. On September 16, 1874, he married Mary E. Cook, with whom he had 4 children: Lydia, Lotta, Elsah, and Irma. Brockman began his career as a clerk at a stationery and bookstore, and over the next several years held a variety of positions at different companies. In 1896, he founded the F.W. Brockman Commission Company, a wholesale business specializing in produce, poultry, and dairy, located at 815–817 N. 4th St. in downtown St. Louis. Brockman was actively involved in numerous professional associations and community groups. He died May 15, 1915, of heart problems. Laura Fetzer was born on March 25, [1875-1880], in Missouri, and lived much of her life in Dallas, Texas. In the early 1900s, she donated a one-mile stretch of land for a railroad switch in Texas. The area still bears her name. Brockman and Fetzer began their correspondence in 1904 when he wrote to her concerning their adjacent land in Texas. Both were interested in drilling for oil and selling the timber on their properties. By early 1905, their relationship became romantic, and Brockman obtained a P.O. box under the name E.F. Fitzwilliams for Fetzer to send letters to him. Brockman visited Fetzer in Texas multiple times over the next two years until in early 1907 she moved to St. Louis to be closer to him. In the last years of his life, they remained in contact, primarily regarding business affairs and financial matters.