Edith's Marcy Street Neighbors

Edith Amy Duffield was my husband's great-grandmother. She was born November 12, 1864 in South Ottawa Township, LaSalle County, Illinois to William Duffield and Henriette Louise DeSusClades. Edith was the middle child of five and grew up on a small farm near the Illinois River. In 1895 she married Charles Herman Sisson (1868-1927), a carpenter from New York, who promptly built them a home at 408 Marcy Street in Ottawa. Two daughters were soon to join the family; Vera in January 1897 and Edythe in November that same year. 

Edith Amy Duffield Sisson (1864-1926)
Photo from the collection of Edythe Sisson Brown, now in my possession.

Across the street from the Sissons lived the Stiles and the Ohmes families. These three families were comprised of couples that all married and began their families at about the same time.

George (1866-1941) and Carrie (Aussem) Stiles (1870-1930) lived at 403 Marcy Street. George was born in Massachusetts. Carrie, like Edith, was a native of LaSalle County. Carrie's father was born in France, as was Edith's mother. George and his father-in-law, Daniel Aussem, were carpenters and it's likely that the two of them built the house. George Stiles and Charles Sisson, then, had their profession in common. We know that Charles was also an active freemason because of membership cards and artifacts found in the family collection. Mr. Stiles may have been a member of the local lodge as well. 

The Stiles were married in 1891 and had two sons. Milan was born in 1894, followed by Teddy in 1897. Certainly these boys were playmates with the Sisson girls across the street. A collection of postcards saved by Edith from 1908-1914 includes cards from Carrie and both of her sons. Edith also saved some of the Stile's family photographs. Clearly, the families were close and had much in common.

Mr. and Mrs. Ohme lived next door the the Stiles family at 409 Marcy Street. Hans Ohme (1869-) and his wife Engeline (1876-1958) were Norwegian immigrants. He came in 1887, she in 1892. They married in 1896 and were living on Marcy Street by 1900. Hans was a grocer, so the families in the area would have all known him and likely did business with him. Mr. Ohme is also found listed as a cement contractor, so perhaps he had two trades. Cement work may have put him at the some of the same work sites as Charles and George, further cementing the friendships. By 1910 the Ohmes had welcomed 6 children. Harold, like Teddy Stiles and the Sisson girls, was born in 1897. He was followed by Mildred in 1900, Lawrence in 1902, Floyd in 1904, Marie in 1906 and then Donald in 1909.

403 Marcy St., Ottawa, Illinois circa 1910. 
Photo from the collection of Edythe Sisson Brown, now in my possession.

The group photo above includes the Stiles, Sisson and Ohme ladies and some of the children. It looks like it was meant to be a "girls only" picture that one young man may have snuck into. Notice the bicycle leaning against the porch in the background. Teddy may have rode up and jumped into the photo at the last minute! Pictured from left to right, Edythe Sisson, older woman unknown (maybe Carrie's mother or mother-in-law or another neighbor), Mildred Ohme, Carrie Stiles, Marie Ohme, Teddy Stiles, Vera Sisson, Edith Sisson, and Engeline Ohme. I have photos of the Sisson and Stiles families for comparison, but not the Ohme ladies. At least not photos that are labelled as so many in the collection are blank. One important clue in the photo, however, led me to believe it is Mrs. Ohme and her daughters.

In late August or early September of 1910, George and Carrie Stiles moved to Hammond, Indiana. Postcard correspondence between Carrie and Edith confirms the date. In the photo above of the Stiles home, there is a "For Sale" sign posted to the porch column. That was the clue. I believe this is a photo where the women of the neighborhood gathered together for a picture as the Stiles family was preparing for that move. 

The Ohme family remained at 409 Marcy Street until the early 1930's when Hans built a new home on the next block. Edith and Charles made a big move to Los Angeles, California in the early 1920's. The friendships made during the early years of their marriages when they all lived on Marcy Street were surely treasured by all three families.

Sources: 

1900 Federal Census, Ottawa Ward 1, LaSalle, Illinois

1910 Federal Census, Ottawa Ward 1, LaSalle, Illinois

U.S. City Directories, Ottawa, LaSalle, Illinois 1904-1935

Correspondence and Photographs from the collection of Edith Amy Duffield Sisson

Duffield/Sisson Postcards No. 32

Next in the series of postcards from 1908-1914 is No. 32, sent from Valparaiso, Indiana. 

These postcards were discovered last year in the Sierra Madre, California home of Warren Brown after his death. They were saved by his maternal grandparents, Edith Amy Duffield (1864-1926) and Charles Herman Sisson (1868-1927), and passed down to Warren, my husband’s cousin. Charles and Edith were married in Ottawa, Illinois in 1895 and remained there until the early 1920s when they moved west to Los Angeles, California. 

Indiana Ave. East, State Bank, Fire Dept. and Opera House, Valparaiso, Ind.
(E. C. Kropp Co, Pub, Milwaukee, No. 6598)

Postmarked 21 July 1910 in Valparaiso, Ind.

Addressed to:

Mrs Charles Sisson

Ottawa

Illinois

408 Marcy St

Message:

Dear Ede - 

I thought you

might like a card

from here.

I am having a 

good time will

tell you about every

thing soon.

Eva

Little sister Eva and husband Lyle continued to travel through Indiana. This card notes a stop in Valparaiso, Indiana. It sounds like the trip might be about to wrap up and Eva will soon have a chance to share all the news with her big sister Edith. I think it's just a coincidence that both this one and the last postcard from La Porte both feature an "Indiana Ave.". The towns are in neighboring counties, but the road doesn't extend the entire distance. Both towns seem to have an independent Indiana Avenue. As in the last postcard, I pulled up Google Maps and took a little tour. Again, I found the buildings featured in the postcard are still standing today. The bank (with the columns, on the end) looks the same, and even though the other buildings have had modifications since 1910, they are still easily identified. The purpose of Eva's trip is still unknown.

Duffield/Sisson Postcards No. 31

Next in the series of postcards from 1908-1914 is No. 31, sent from La Porte, Indiana. 

These postcards were discovered last year in the Sierra Madre, California home of Warren Brown after his death. They were saved by his maternal grandparents, Edith Amy Duffield (1864-1926) and Charles Herman Sisson (1868-1927), and passed down to Warren, my husband’s cousin. Charles and Edith were married in Ottawa, Illinois in 1895 and remained there until the early 1920s when they moved west to Los Angeles, California. 

North on Indiana Avenue, La Porte, Ind.

Postmarked in La Porte, Ind. on July 19, 1910.

Addressed to:

Mrs Charles Sisson

Ottawa

Illinois

408 Marcy St.

Message:

Dear Ede - 

Will send some cards to

the girls sometime to-day.

We got here at 5 oclock

yesterday and we only started at 

6-15 yesterday morning. Its 140 

miles. We are going to Michigan 

City to-morrow. This is a 

nice place Its a good size 

and lots of nice houses. 

I am having a good time. 

With Love, Eva.

Edith's sister Eva continues on her road trip (see cards 29 and 30) with a stop in La Porte, Indiana. While it's unknown how many stops they made, the 140 mile trip took them just over 13 hours. That equates to less than 11 miles per hour. I don't know how they were traveling, except that it was by road. The red house on the corner featured in this postcard still stands today at the intersection of US-35 (Indiana Ave.) and Osborne Street in La Porte. Since Eva mentioned "lots of nice houses" in her message, I think that's why she chose this card. I looked up and down the street via Google Maps and agree with Eva. There are a lot of large old homes along the street that were surely there over 100 years ago. 

Duffield/Sisson Postcards No. 30

Continuing in the series of postcards from 1908-1914 is No. 30, sent from Crown Point, Indiana. These postcards were discovered last year in the Sierra Madre, California home of Warren Brown after his death. They were saved by his maternal grandparents, Edith Amy Duffield (1864-1926) and Charles Herman Sisson (1868-1927), and passed down to Warren, my husband’s cousin. Charles and Edith were married in Ottawa, Illinois in 1895 and remained there until the early 1920s when they moved west to Los Angeles, California. 

East Side Main Street, Crown Point, Ind. (Photo by Vilmer.)

Postmarked 18 July 1910, Crown Point, Ind.

Addressed to:

Mrs Charles Sisson

Ottawa

Illinois

408 Marcy St

Message:

Dear Ede -

We are this far on our 

way 93 miles at I-30

We came through Joliet

and Chicago Heights

will go from here

to La Porte.

I never rode on any

roads so nice

will write. With Love - Eva

Eva was Edith's little sister, born when Edith was 16 years old. Their mother died when Eva was 7 years old, so her older sisters played Sister/Mom roles in her life. The "we" mentioned in the note probably refers to Eva and her husband, Lyle Green. The Greens made their home just north of Ottawa in Dayton, Illinois. I'm not sure why they were traveling when this card was mailed. In card 28, Eva was so busy with farm work and cooking that she couldn't manage a short trip to Ottawa. Maybe there will be some clues in later correspondence.

That nice road, I-30, later became part of the Lincoln Highway and is now known as U.S. Route 30. The road went through the center of Joliet and Chicago Heights, but Eva and Lyle would have probably have taken a turn at what is today US-55 to go through Crown Point. Also known as Main Street through town, it may have been the same route taken by Eva and Lyle in 1910. Some of the buildings shown on this postcard are still standing, but a few are gone entirely and some have been remodeled or rebuilt. Some of the architectural details are still clearly recognizable. Few awnings remain. The block shown is approximately the 100 block of S. Main Street.

This postcard was labeled on the back, "Published by W.A. Scheddell, Crown Point, Leipzig. Printed in Germany." The Scheddells were a prominent family in Crown Point, operating businesses and serving in volunteer positions in the community. Mr. Scheddell published a variety of local postcards.

Duffield/Sisson Postcards No. 29

Continuing in the series of postcards from 1908-1914 is No. 29, sent from Joliet, Illinois. These postcards were discovered last year in the Sierra Madre, California home of Warren Brown after his death. They were saved by his maternal grandparents, Edith Amy Duffield (1864-1926) and Charles Herman Sisson (1868-1927), and passed down to Warren, my husband’s cousin. Charles and Edith were married in Ottawa, Illinois in 1895 and remained there until the early 1920s when they moved west to Los Angeles, California. 

Glimpse of Tower from Upper Lake, Dellwood Park, Joliet, Ill.

Dellwood Park was built by the Chicago & Joliet Electric Railway Company and opened July 4, 1905. It was one of the most beautiful parks in all of Illinois. Located just north of Joliet in Lockport, it was one of the most popular destinations in the area. The parks location on the rail line tempted visitors travelling to and from Chicago to stop for a visit, which is probably exactly why it was built in the first place.

Postmarked 21 Jul 1910 in Joliet, Ill. 

This postcard isn't addressed, but I believe it's from Edith's little sister Eva (Duffield) Green. She was the author of card 28 and we will visit her again on card 30, where she mentions she passed through Joliet.

Duffield/Sisson Postcards No. 28

Next in the series of postcards from 1908-1914 is No. 28, Grant School, Streator, Ill. These postcards were discovered last year in the Sierra Madre, California home of Warren Brown after his death. They were saved by his maternal grandparents, Edith Amy Duffield (1864-1926) and Charles Herman Sisson (1868-1927), and passed down to Warren, my husband’s cousin. Charles and Edith were married in Ottawa, Illinois in 1895 and remained there until the early 1920s when they moved west to Los Angeles, California. 

Grant School, Streator, Ill. 2896

Streator was a nearby town in LaSalle County. In the 1877 History of LaSalle County, author H.F. Kett states:

Perhaps no city...in Illinois, outside of the great city of Chicago, presents an instance of such rapid and substantial growth as the city of Streator. From a single small grocery house... the locality has grown to be a city of 6,000 prosperous and intelligent people. Churches, school-houses, large, substantial business houses and handsome residences, with elegant grounds and surroundings, now beautify the waste of ten years ago, while the hum of machinery and thronged streets are unmistakable evidences of business importance and prosperity.

The school building pictured on this postcard was built in 1909, one of six schools built that year, to meet the needs of the growing population (from Biography in Black, A History of Streator, Illinois, by Paula Angle).
.

Postmarked in Dayton, ILL on 2 Jul 1910

Addressed to:

Mrs. Charles Sisson.

Ottawa,

Ill.

408 Marcy St.

Message:

Dear Ede,

I don't know when I 

can come down I am

so busy you better

come up. I have from 

3 to 4 men to cook

for every meal and

washed two days this

week and baked bread

3 times besides taking

care of 93 chickens

so I am kind of busy -

but won't be (up)

that busy

for long. we come

to town at

night and 

eat Ice cream

to get cooled off.

Eva

Eva Grace (Duffield) Green was a younger sister to Edith. She and her husband, Lyle, rented and worked a dairy farm in Dayton, LaSalle County, less than 10 miles from Ottawa, It seems that July was a very busy time on the farm! Cooking three large meals a day and baking bread for a crowd would be a big job all by itself. But add in washing using a wringer machine and hanging laundry to dry and all those chicken to care for, Eva was indeed a busy lady. Sitting down to have an ice cream at the end of the day was surely a welcome treat.