Thursday, August 7, 2014

1876-1881 Autograph Album of Nellie M. Waters of Cincinnati, Ohio, while student at Cincinnati Normal School


1876-1881 autograph album that belonged to Martha Ellen Waters, or as she preferred, at least in her youth, Nellie M. Waters, of Cincinnati, Ohio, with most pages inscribed by her fellow students at Cincinnati Normal School.

The album was published by Ed. W. Welcke & Brother of 176 William St., New York.  It's the "Centennial Memorial" album and includes two pages of the Declaration of Independence and three pages of images the signatures of the signers of same.



The album is approximately 7-3/4" x 5-1/4" and contains the sentiments of 41 of Nellie's relatives, friends and schoolmates.  An alphabetical surname list and alphabetical list of the signers, with any personal information they added, appear at the end of this post.

From online research, hopefully correct:   [corrections and additions welcome!]

Martha Ellen Waters, "Nellie", was born about January 1859 in Maine, possibly at Winthrop, the daughter of Jabez Mathews Waters and Martha Ellen (Webb) Waters, who were born at Waterville, Maine, and Winthrop, Maine, respectively.  The family moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, where Jabez was a prominent businessman, inventor and school board member.

Two of Nellie's brothers signed pages in her album.  George Mathews Waters signed a page at Westwood, Cincinnati, Ohio, on January 1, 1881.  He was born 22 May 1861 at Cincinnati, Ohio, and married Julia Kiechler in 1890.  They moved to Indiana and were involved in the lumber manufacturing business.


Nellie's brother Frederick J. Waters signed the last page in the album.  He was born 16 December 1869 at Cincinnati, Ohio, and became an educator/administrator in Washington state.


Frederick's photograph from his passport.


Nellie's older brother, educator and school administrator William Everett Waters, born 20 December 1856 at Winthrop, Maine, did not sign a page in her album, but, interestingly, his future wife did.  Alma Filia Oyler, daughter of George Washington Oyler and Caroline (Pruden) Oyler, was Nellie's schoolmate, at least at Hughes High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, if not also at Cincinnati Normal School.  Perhaps William and Alma met as a result of Alma's friendship with Nellie.  They married June 28, 1888.


Another interesting signer in the album was Nellie's future husband Lewis Francis Phipps, born at Cincinnati, Ohio, on 18 January 1852, son of William and Lydia (Reynolds) Phipps.  They would marry 8 June 1882 and make their home at Cincinnati, Ohio, where Lewis was a merchant and manufacturer.


As noted above, many signers indicated that they were students at Cincinnati Normal School.  Some of the signers may have been faculty there.  Carrie Newhall Lathrop later became principal at Cincinnati Normal School, but I don't know what her status was - student, faculty, or administrator - when she signed a page in Nellie's album.


Three women named Webb, possibly related to Nellie through her mother Martha Ellen (Webb) Waters, shared a page inscribed in October 1876 with three others.  If these were relatives, perhaps Nellie had taken a trip East, or the five signers a trip West.  The signers were Annie Webb; Fannie D. Webb; May E. Webb; Frank W. Prince, who mentioned the Webb Museum at Winchester, Massachusetts; Alice D. Nason; and H. F. S. Wood.


If you have corrections and/or additions to the information above, or information on any of the signers listed below, please leave a comment or contact me directly.

Surnames in the album

?
Barrett
Bennett
Billings     [2]
Burby
Burwell
Clark
Clary
Coleman
Cooper
Crone
Dalton
Davidson
Gass
Howell
Huntington
Lathrop
Mickleborough
Nason
Nickles
Oyler
Paden
Pappenheimer
Phipps
Prince
Rice
Richey
Russell
Stine
Stoops
Thompson
Van Buren
Vaughn
Waters     [3]
Webb       [3]
Wood
Wright

Signers in the album         [Note: Given names within a specific surname may not be in alphabetical order.]



?

  • Joseph T. G?, signed on August 29, 1878
B
  • H. A. Barrett, signed on January 14, 1877
  • Grace Bennett, signed at Cincinnati Normal School on June 3, 1880
  • Fred I. Billings, signed on Sunday, September 16, 1877.  Frederick Isacc Billings, whose wife Nellie Clara (Clarke) Billings shared the page.
  • Nellie Billings, signed on Sunday, September 16, 1877.  She was Nellie Clara (Clarke) Billings, whose husband Frederick Isaac Billings shared the page.
  • Anna Burby, signed at Cincinnati, Ohio, on June 22, 1880
  • Caro G. Burwell, signed at Brooklyn [no state written] on October 5, 1876. Not sure of surname, but possibly Caroline G. Burwell, daughter of Amistead and Priscilla Withers (Manlove) Burwell.
C
  • Jessie Clark, signed at Cincinnati Normal School on June 14, 1880
  • Eddy Clary of Newport, Kentucky, signed on June 23, 1880
  • Anna E. Coleman, signed at Cincinnati, Ohio, in June 1880
  • Harry H. Cooper, signed on August 29, 1878; he or someone else, possibly F.D., signed later and mentioned G.G.S. on Sunday, November 24, 1878
  • Laura A. Crone of West Walnut Hill, Cincinnati, Ohio, signed at Cincinnati Normal School
D
  • Harry M. Dalton [not sure of surname], signed at Westwood, Cincinnati, Ohio, on February 8, 1878.
  • Cynthia A. Davidson, signed at Cincinnati Normal School on June 1, 1880
G
  • Grace H. Gass, signed at Cincinnati Normal School at Cincinnati, Ohio, in May 1880. She wrote this on a card that she affixed to a page in the album.
H
  • Millard C. Howell, signed on May 23 [no year written]
  • Sallie A. Huntington, signed on June 8, 1880
L
  • Carrie Newhall Lathrop. She was principal at Cincinnati Normal School at Cincinnati, Ohio, but I don't know if she had yet become principal during the era of this album.
M
  • John Mickleborough, signed at Cincinnati Normal School at Cincinnati, Ohio, in June 1880
N
  • Alice D. Nason, signed on October 15, 1878; on a page shared with May E. Webb; Frank W. Prince; Annie Webb; H. F. S. Wood; and Fanny D. Webb
  • Alice Nickles, signed on April 20, 1880
O
  • "Alma Filia", signed in 1879. She was Alma Filia Oyler, a teacher who married Nellie's brother William Everett Waters, a Yale graduate, educator and college administrator, on June 28, 1888 at Cincinnati, Ohio.
P
  • Mamie S. Paden, signed at Cincinnati Normal School at Cincinnati, Ohio, on July 7, 1880
  • Oscar Pappenheimer
  • L. F. Phipps. Presumably Lewis Franklin Phipps, who would become Nellie's husband on 8 June 1882.
  • Frank W. Prince, signed at October 15, 1876, Winchester, Massachusetts, Webb Mansion, Sunday evening; on a page shared with May E. Webb; Alice D. Nason; Annie Webb; H. F. S. Wood; and Fanny D. Webb
R
  • Annie L. Rice, signed at Cincinnati Normal School at Cincinnati, Ohio, on June 28, 1880
  • Clemie Richey, signed on May 24, 1880; Clementine Richey
  • Charles R. Russell, signed at Cincinnati, Ohio, on Mary 23, 1877
S
  • Susie H. Stine of Newport, presumably Kentucky, signed at Cincinnati Normal School on June 3, 1880
  • Mary Stoops, signed at Cincinnati Normal School at Cincinnati, Ohio, on June 22, 1880
T
  • John Thompson, signed at Westwood, Cincinnati, Ohio, on March 10, 1878; middle initial could be A or N or ?
V
  • William A. Van Buren, signed at Yale on October 8, 1876. A Yale University publication indicates that William A. Van Buren, from Indianapolis, Indiana, was in the Class of 1878
  • Ida L. Vaughn, signed at Cincinnati Normal School in 1880
W
  • Martha Ellen Waters, or Nellie M. Waters of Cincinnati, Ohio; album owner
  • "Your Brother, Geo", signed at Westwood, Cincinnati, Ohio, on January 1, 1881. He was Nellie's younger brother George Mathews Waters, who became a lumber manufacturer.
  • Fred J. Waters, signed on October 7, 1881; Nellie's younger brother Frederick J. Waters
  • May E. Webb, signed on October 15, 1876; on a page shared with Frank W. Prince; Alice D. Nason; Annie Webb; H. F. S. Wood; and Fanny D. Webb
  • Annie Webb, signed on October 15, 1876; on a page shared with May E. Webb; Frank W. Prince; Alice D. Nason; H. F. S. Wood; and Fanny D. Webb
  • Fanny D. Webb, Mizpah; on a page shared with May E. Webb; Frank W. Prince; Alice D. Nason; Annie Webb; and H. F. S. Wood
  • H. F. S. Wood, Sunday Eve, signed on Wednesday, October 25, 1876; "Fair Banks".  On a page shared with May E. Webb; Frank W. Prince; Alice D. Nason; Annie Webb; and Fanny D. Webb
  • Charles H. Wright, signed at Cincinnati, on April 1, 1877, or Charles A. Wright
Cincinnati, Ohio



3 comments:

  1. Aunt Nellie (Martha Ellen Waters Phipps) is the person I was named after. Thank you for the great descriptions of the people who signed the album. I am looking for someone, presumably a woman, with the initials L .C.W, presumably Waters. I seem to have inherited her silver backed hairbrush. Since all my
    Waters relatives that I know of were in Cincinnati, and the hairbrush came to us after Aunt Nellie's death in Cincinnati in the 1950s, I think LCW is probably from there, too. Any ideas?

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  2. Wish I could help but New England is more my area of knowledge - purchased this album on eBay some years back. My research is mostly online, through FamilySearch, Ancestry, FindaGrave, Google, etc. Thanks for your comment - so neat that you can see something of the person you were named for!

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    1. I am the brother of the person who asked about this album on 10/16/2020, and Martha Ellen Phipps was an ancestor of ours. I would like to know if this album might be for sale?

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