by Laurel | March 23rd, 2012
Ives Family Tombstone, Elmwood Cemetery
06 January 1936
Recalled Early Days of Holyoke — Was a Teacher in the City for Many Years — Funeral Tomorrow
The death of Miss Ellen Ives, 91, who died yesterday morning at her home 1966 Northampton Street, Elmwood, removes not only a woman of kind and gracious disposition, but one well versed in Holyoke’s early history and, who until recent years, could recall dates and events with singular clarity. Homestead avenue was in earlier days known as “Back Street” and Northampton Road as “Front Street” or “the Front Street” and the Ives family was in these early days settled on Back Street, moving at some date not recalled to the Front Street as did the Humestons, the Rands, Goodyears, Nortons and others.
Miss Ives was pleased to recount to the casual caller for many years the old days on Northampton Street when the principal residents included the Crafts, Ely, Chapin, Ball and Long families along the old Northampton way.
The family originally came from Bradwell County, Norfolk, England, and she was the daughter of Abraham and Eunice (Day) Ives of whose family Miss Ives was the last surviving member. Her brother Dwight H. Ives, prominent in business, politics and fraternal orders lived with his sister until his death.
Miss Ellen H. Ives
Gives Organ to Baptist Church
On November 11, 1934, Miss Ives made a gift of a new organ to the Elmwood Baptist church of which she had been a member since 1863, at which time she was baptized in the Connecticut River, a not uncommon thing in those days but rarer at present.
Graduate of Normal School
Miss Ives first attended classes at the First district school on Back Street, then the old academy on Northampton Street and the Westfield Road. It has long since been torn down. She then attended Holyoke High School and Westfield Normal School, Graduating there in June 1864. In the fall she was offered and accepted a position as teacher of a school on Northampton Street opposite the Ives home — an ungraded school of 40 pupils. From there she was assigned as teacher in the Lyman Street schools by Dr. Luther Humeston, then superintendent of schools. She later received a grammar school position under Amos Lawrence and following that substitute for several years meantime taking care of her sister Miss Julia Ives. Another sister Ann Ives married Alvin Pratt and all are now dead. She had served on several boards and missions in the First Baptist Church and was on the board of managers of the Holyoke Home for Aged People.
The Ives home is full of old pieces of furniture and there is also in the hall the Ives coat of arms with the following inscription: “From Matthews’ American Amory and Blue book: These arms were used by the descendants of William Ives who came from London in the ship “Truelove” in 1635, one of the proprietors of New Haven; and also by the descendants of Maj. Simon Willard, one of the founders of Concord, Mass.”
The funeral will be held at the First Baptist Church in Elmwood Tuesday afternoon at 2:30. Rev. E. W. Darrow will officiate and burial will be in Elmwood Cemetery.
Adapted from The Springfield Republican.
