Ancestor Spotlight: Bertha Sawyer

 In learning about my family’s history and looking through the archive of pictures my aunt keeps, there are certain people who are just compelling. I can’t quite put my finger on why, the look of their faces, the mystery of their life, the glamor of it, or maybe even the sadness in their wake. Today’s spotlight is one that just caught my eye. I don’t know why, maybe because she’s so stunning. I’d love to introduce you to my great-great-grandmother, Bertha May Watson Sawyer.

Bertha was born to George and Susan Watson in 1879 in Boston. She grew up well, going to the local schools and eventually an all girl’s school. She had one brother, Arthur, who was a businessman and consulate to, what was then, Arabia. She had 2 sons, my great-grandfather Richard and his brother Gilman. As you can see from these two pictures side-by-side, her health deteriorated rather quickly. My Nana told the story of how she had diabetes and it took her life very quickly. A mere 7 years later after her death, insulin would be widely available and THE effective treatment for diabetes. 

The obituaries written for her are beautiful and lovingly written. One such contribution describes her resting place “in Cedar Grove, where the gentle hillside slopes toward the cool Neponset.” Such lovely tender words to remember her by. We even somehow have the engagement announcement *and* their wedding invitations. The home she and Clarence Sawyer were married from still stands to this day in Boston. Road trip, anyone?

At the end of the day, there is something glamorous about the turn-of-the-century hair styles, clothing and hopeful ideals they would have had for the future. They couldn’t know in 1916 that the world would descend into war the following year, that the economy would crash impoverishing millions. The automobile had just been invented, ragtime and jazz were in their infancy, the Titanic was tragically, freshly sunken and settled in the bottom of the Atlantic, advances in flight technology were snowballing and most homes in Boston would have been newly outfitted for electricity.

We remember you as you were, at your best Bertha. Lovely, smiling, happy, and healthy. We remember you.