 |
Gertrude May Wyeth photos are
courtesy of her niece Marian Gertrude Wyeth |
We know of many self-made men in our family. Lesser known, but equally as important, are the contributions of Wyeth / Wythe women. For Woman’s History month 2024, we honor Gertrude May Wyeth. She more than fills the bill of a self-made woman.
Gertrude was born Sarah Lelia Wyeth to George
Wyeth and Jennie Sullivan on 12 Aug 1896 in Nashua, New Hampshire. After service in the U. S. Army, George left Nashua
to fight with the British Army in The Boer War.
George’s abandonment sent Gertrude’s mother over the edge. Already distraught about being disowned by
her family for marrying outside of the Catholic faith, Jennie was unable to
care for her three children and was institutionalized
for more than 57 years until her death at age 93.
Growing up in a series of foster homes, somewhere
along the way, Gertrude lost her birth name.
Without parental support, she struggled
to put herself through the Boston Normal School Teachers College. Throughout her trials in foster homes,
Gertrude did remain close to her grandfather, Oren T. Wyeth. His death on 15 Jun 1920 made her graduation
ceremony on 23 Jun 1920 bittersweet.
Shortly
after Gertrude began her 44-year career in the Boston public school system, on 2
Nov 1920, she was among the first women able to vote in a presidential
election. Although unknown at the time, perhaps
Gertrude drew strength as an independent woman from the Wyeth genes. One particularly strong woman in the family
was Grandfather Oren’s fifth cousin, Susan Brownell Anthony. Susan, who famously played a pivotal role in
the women's suffrage movement, descended from Jonathan Ward. Oren was the third great grandson of Jonathan’s
sister, Deborah Jackson Ward Wyeth. |
| Gertrude on a binder in the Saskatchewan fields |
Gertrude
took advantage of her summer vacations to reconnect with her father while George
was living on the prairie in Saskatchewan, Canada. On visits there, for a city girl, she was
amazingly adept at playing the farm hand. Nevertheless,
Gertrude’s consummate skills were in teaching and administration. Bolstered by earning bachelor's and master's degrees in education from the Teachers College of the City of Boston, Gertrude
held many supervisory positions during her long career in education.
When she
passed away in 1996, just a few months shy of age 100, Gertrude had contributed promise
to countless lives. Undoubtedly, she
knew teachers have the most important job in the world. They not only have the
power to favorably change the lives of the students they teach, but to
positively impact society as a whole.
