Martha Gasquet Westfeldt
Martha Gasquet Westfeldt (1884–1960)
Martha Gasquet Westfeldt was an artist, philanthropist, political activist, and civic leader. Her tearoom and book shop on Royal Street, the Green Shutter, was a center for arts and culture in New Orleans. It served as the temporary headquarters of the Arts and Crafts Club, of which she was a charter member. A pottery expert and collector, Westfeldt coordinated numerous exhibitions and funded pottery classes for underprivileged children. Her innovation and generosity also made possible a lending library of artworks at the New Orleans Public Library.
During the First World War, she served as a private in the New Orleans chapter of the Red Cross Ambulance and Motor Corps, transporting German prisoners of war held in Louisiana. In the 1930s, Westfeldt entered the political sphere as a leading member the Louisiana Women’s Committee, which was organized to oppose the political corruption of the Huey Long administration.
During the Second World War, she transformed the Green Shutter into the Free French Shop, a craft and secondhand store that served as a center for fundraising and the gathering of supplies to alleviate the suffering of European civilians. An active member of the Free French and France Forever groups, Westfeldt assisted French merchant marines under the Vichy regime to defect.
Her wartime efforts on behalf of France, Belgium, and other European allies earned later recognition from France, which awarded her the Legion of Honor, and from Belgium, which awarded her the Silver Medal of the Order of the Crown.