Fred Asher Wentworth was the son of Harriet Parsons and Albert Noyes Wentworth. Harriet was Lona Parson's sister and Albert was James Carver Wentworth's brother, so Fred and my grandmother, Emma Wentworth, were first cousins--in fact, double cousins, as my mother likes to say. I don't know if they ever met.
Fred was born 21 September 1887 in Belfast, where his parents lived. By 1910 he was living in Clinton with his parents and two siblings, Carrie and Alton. He was a laborer at odd jobs and could read and write.
He married Lilla Mearle Cookson 25 May 1910. They had two children together: Leon Merton and Phyllis Beatrice.
In June of 1917 he registered for the draft. He was living at 9 Connor Avenue, Fairfield, at the time. The building no longer stands having been replaced with a little house that was built in 1950.
His WWI draft registration form shows he was of medium height, medium build, with light brown hair and gray eyes. It also says he was bald at the young age of thirty. (It never occurred to me that my thin hair might come from both sides of the family.) He was working as a laborer for the Waterville, Fairfield and Oakland Railway, an electric railroad. Here is a picture of the streetcar in operation:
Stephen Plocher wrote a history of Waterville that contains information about the railroad:
By 1930 he was a car repairman for an electric railroad (probably the WF&O), his house was worth $1500, and he owned a radio. Next door, at 7 Connor Avenue, lived his father and mother and brother Alton. His 18-year-old son, Leon M., was a loom cleaner for a cotton mill, probably the Lockwood Manufacturing Company, a textile mill that was built in 1873 and lasted until 1955. Below is a postcard from around 1920 showing the massive factory.
In 1940, the Fred Wentworths were still living in their house, but it was worth only $1400 by then, which I suppose is not too bad considering they'd been through a depression. Fred was a carpenter (maybe because by this time the railroad was out of business) and his daughter Phyllis was working for a shirt factory as a sewer, although she worked privately, according to the census. I wonder if this means she was outsourced? If so, she was probably better off, considering factory working conditions.
No doubt Phyllis worked for the C.F. Hathaway Shirt Company, which had been making shirts in Waterville since 1837. In fact, the company stayed there until 2002, when they finally moved operations overseas. Here is a postcard taken from E-Bay's website, showing the factory as it was circa 1912:
By 1940, Fred's son Leon was married with four little children. He lived in Fairfield, too, at 28A Island Avenue; he was working as a street construction crew member.
I've lost track of Fred after this, except to note that he apparently died in 1958, although exactly when I haven't been able to determine.
Fred was born 21 September 1887 in Belfast, where his parents lived. By 1910 he was living in Clinton with his parents and two siblings, Carrie and Alton. He was a laborer at odd jobs and could read and write.
He married Lilla Mearle Cookson 25 May 1910. They had two children together: Leon Merton and Phyllis Beatrice.
In June of 1917 he registered for the draft. He was living at 9 Connor Avenue, Fairfield, at the time. The building no longer stands having been replaced with a little house that was built in 1950.
His WWI draft registration form shows he was of medium height, medium build, with light brown hair and gray eyes. It also says he was bald at the young age of thirty. (It never occurred to me that my thin hair might come from both sides of the family.) He was working as a laborer for the Waterville, Fairfield and Oakland Railway, an electric railroad. Here is a picture of the streetcar in operation:
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| Waterville, Fairfield & Oakland Railway |
The Waterville and Fairfield Railway began a streetcar service between the two communities in 1888. The first cars were each pulled by six horses, but within a few years the system was converted to run on the newly available electric power. Another electric trolley service opened in 1903, the Waterville and Oakland Railway; the two railways consolidated in 1911. The fare for the half-hourly service was five centsBy 1920 Fred was a foreman on the railroad and had his two children, Leon and Phyllis. He owned his house at 9 Connor Avenue but with a mortgage.
By 1930 he was a car repairman for an electric railroad (probably the WF&O), his house was worth $1500, and he owned a radio. Next door, at 7 Connor Avenue, lived his father and mother and brother Alton. His 18-year-old son, Leon M., was a loom cleaner for a cotton mill, probably the Lockwood Manufacturing Company, a textile mill that was built in 1873 and lasted until 1955. Below is a postcard from around 1920 showing the massive factory.
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| Lockwood Mills c. 1920, taken from Wikimedia Commons |
In 1940, the Fred Wentworths were still living in their house, but it was worth only $1400 by then, which I suppose is not too bad considering they'd been through a depression. Fred was a carpenter (maybe because by this time the railroad was out of business) and his daughter Phyllis was working for a shirt factory as a sewer, although she worked privately, according to the census. I wonder if this means she was outsourced? If so, she was probably better off, considering factory working conditions.
No doubt Phyllis worked for the C.F. Hathaway Shirt Company, which had been making shirts in Waterville since 1837. In fact, the company stayed there until 2002, when they finally moved operations overseas. Here is a postcard taken from E-Bay's website, showing the factory as it was circa 1912:
By 1940, Fred's son Leon was married with four little children. He lived in Fairfield, too, at 28A Island Avenue; he was working as a street construction crew member.
I've lost track of Fred after this, except to note that he apparently died in 1958, although exactly when I haven't been able to determine.
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