Obituaries for Esther Ann and Ada C. Aldrich

Notice that Esther’s step-son, Frank Aldrich, is listed as her son in the obituary below.  This was probably intentional, as he was always so good to them.

From the Aldrich Clipping File...

Below are some clippings that were saved by Emma (De Keyser) Aldrich, wife of Charles Wilbur (Bert) Aldrich.  Bert’s sister, Ada Aldrich, graduated from high school on June 2, 1892.  Few people completed a high school education then so she was a well educated woman by the standards of that day.  From her own notes, it appears that she had taught at Ingersoll, Michigan (?) a year before graduation during the 1890-91 school year.  She must have completed her education, then returned to Ingersoll as a teacher in the spring of 1892.  These were very small farming communities and they must have had difficulty keeping teachers.  She went to Sniderville in the fall of 1892, then back to Ingersoll in 1893, apparently teaching there through 1898.  Other places where she taught included Malcolm; Sands, Michigan; East Wrightstown, Wisconsin; and Glenmore, Wisconsin.  It’s uncertain just how long she taught, but sometime after the turn of the century she returned to her home in De Pere, probably to be with her aging mother who was in her seventies by then.  She went to work at the American Writing Paper Company’s mill in De Pere, Wisconsin where Bert also worked.  Ada wrote the poem below during this period of time.  It was published after her death in 1931 and gives an interesting glimpse into what life at the mill was like.