The Ridge Historical Society
Houses Designed by Harry Hale Waterman and the People Who Called Them Home: Part 3 – Waterman’s Second and Third Marriages
By Carol Flynn
This is a companion series to the current exhibit at the Ridge Historical Society (RHS): “Harry Hale Waterman, Architect: Unique in Any Style.”
Harry Hale Waterman’s first wife, Ida May Vierling Waterman, died in 1896 at the age of 24, leaving Harry with a one-year-old daughter, Louise Hale Waterman. The family had been living at 10838 Longwood Drive in the “Honeymoon Cottage” that Harry designed, but now Harry and Louise moved back into Harry’s parents’ house at 3929 Vincennes Avenue. A complete look at Louise Waterman will be covered in the next post.
Six years later, in 1902, Harry, 33, married a second time to Carrie Frances Rowse.
According to records on Ancestry, Frances, as she appears to have been known at least in her later years, was born in 1877 in Ohio. On the 1880 U.S. Census, the family is listed as living in Ohio, and in 1900, she is listed as living in Chicago with her parents, Charles H. and Minnie E., and younger brother William M. at 630 46th Place. Her father’s employment is listed as a baking powder manufacturer. Employment for Frances is not listed.
It is likely that Harry and Frances lived with Harry’s family, which included his parents John and Emma, his sister Jessie, and his daughter Louise. This was not an uncommon situation back then, to have extended families living together.
Few details are really known about this second marriage. However, one encounter in 1906 that received media attention showed that there were issues.
It was reported that Harry “borrowed” a horse and buggy without the owner’s permission to chase after Frances who had departed in another buggy. An article about the incident is attached to this post. The last paragraph refers to a meeting planned for Harry, his lawyer, and the man whose carriage Harry took, at which Harry was to explain his actions.
It would have been interesting to have been “a fly on the wall” for that conversation. Alas, we don’t know Harry’s reason for following his wife that day, but apparently the charges of theft were dropped.
However, Harry and Frances divorced in 1907 after five years of marriage.
The following U. S. Censuses list Frances living with her parents and working as an assistant to her father in his retail businesses. She did not remarry. In 1950, she was living by herself as Frances Waterman in an apartment in the grand brick courtyard building at 2330 N. Lincoln Park West.
According to her obituary, she moved to a retirement home in Bucyrus, Ohio, in 1956, where she was an active member of the Presbyterian Church. The Rowse family were an “old” family there going back to the founding of Bucyrus in 1822. In fact, there was another Carrie Frances Rowse who grew up there, which may be why Frances went by her middle name.
She died there at the age of 84 in 1961 and was buried in the cemetery where many of her relations were buried. Her gravestone reads Frances Rowse Waterman.
Interestingly, one of Harry’s Waterman cousins, Mary Ellen or “Nellie,” married a man named Herman Rouse. Whether this was coincidence, or the families were connected is not readily apparent. Herman’s family reportedly originated in New York and came to Wisconsin. The Rowse Family in Bucyrus originated in Pennsylvania and came to Ohio. But their connections could go back farther, of course, to Europe prior to emigration.
Harry remained single for the next two decades, but in 1921, in his early 50s, he married Alice Hale.
Alice was born in 1895 in Stoughton, Wisconsin, and was a good 25 years younger than Harry. She was a distant cousin on his mother’s side. Her father was Percy Isham Hale, the son of Harry Hale, and her mother was Harriet Grubb Hale.
Percy Hale graduated from Lombard College in Galesburg, Illinois, founded by the Universalist Church, then took over his father’s successful dry goods business. He was also known for being very active in the Universalist Church.
Stoughton, part of the Madison metropolitan area with 13,000 residents today, was small enough in 1900 that 5-year-old Alice’s bronchitis was reported in the newspaper, and large enough that this signified the family’s prominence in the community.
It appears that Alice was popular and accomplished. She was president of her high school senior class in 1913. She sold Christmas seals to raise money for charity. She participated in her church.
She attended and hosted parties. In 1911, she hosted a St. Patrick’s Day party as a birthday celebration for herself (March 18 birth date) and a friend with a birthday at the same time.
Her real claim to fame was as a talented vocalist (mezzo soprano), pianist – and whistler.
For many years, Alice was a student of Clara Falk Murphy, who was highly regarded for her own performance, composing, and teaching skills. Ms. Murphy arranged many concerts and recitals in Madison and the surrounding areas, and Alice was prominently featured. Alice was also a soloist for her church.
Alice was mentioned for her whistling skills, which not only entertained friends at parties but were performed on stage. In 1921, she performed “The Stars and Stripes Forever” at a theater.
Alice graduated from Lombard College, her father’s alma mater.
Her engagement to Harry Hale Waterman was announced in 1921. She was given at least three bridal showers by friends and organizations in which she was active. Gifts included a silver vase and a hand-painted fruit bowl.
One party was a handkerchief shower – women always carried a handkerchief back then, and there were special ones for special occasions. Another included an afternoon of the attendees’ hemming napkins for the bride.
Alice was a member of a bridge club and the night before her wedding, one of the women of the club held a party for her.
The wedding took place at her parents’ home in Stoughton in November. The newlyweds spent their first Christmas back there with her parents.
Harry and Alice made their home on Vincennes Avenue. By then, Harry had built several apartment buildings and was now a landlord.
In 1931, they participated in a “flower garden honor roll” for the Chicago Tribune, which was looking for outstanding gardens within a 40-mile radius of the Tribune Tower. They won honorable mention for turning their driveway into a lily pool.
During the Great Depression in the 1930s, it appears Harry had to come out of retirement and return to active work. In 1937, the Executive Committee of the Chicago Chapter of the American Institute of Architects noted in its minutes that health issues prevented Harry from keeping up with his dues. Citing Harry’s high standing in the profession and advancing age, the committee voted to waive his dues and award him emeritus standing.
This past year, Harry’s great nephew, David Hale Hand, age 92, the adopted grandson of Harry’s sister, Jessie, shared some remembrances with RHS researchers of childhood visits with “Uncle Harry” and “Aunt Alice.”
Annually, when he was 2 to 6 years old, his family visited Chicago from California.
David wrote of these trips: “We stayed with Uncle Harry on Vincennes Avenue while in Chicago. At that time, this was a very fashionable neighborhood. Uncle Harry was an Architect and [he built] this block of Victorian style brownstones. He designed them, built them, owned them, and was the landlord. That provided his income for the rest of his life. He was a gruff type that always started his day with a raw egg and finished with a big cigar. His wife Alice was a dear. As little kids, he scared the hell out of us most of the time.”
Anecdotal stories from other sources also report that Harry liked to get together with William Gregson, one of his clients, and others, to smoke a friendly cigar.
Harry died in 1948, leaving Alice a widow at age 53. Alice married Dr. Chester William Darrow in 1961. He was a pioneering psychologist at the Institute of Juvenile Research and invented one of the first lie detector machines. Alice was a lecturer at the Museum of Science and Industry.
Dr. Darrow died in 1967, leaving adult daughters and grandchildren from a prior marriage, and Alice as his widow.
Alice died in 1975 at the age of 80. She was buried back home in Wisconsin.
The next post will look at Harry Hale Waterman’s only child, Louise Hale Waterman Hess.
The exhibit is open to the public for free on Sunday and Tuesday afternoons from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. or by appointment. RHS is located at 10621 S. Seeley Avenue, Chicago