By 1900 she, her two siblings, and her parents were all living in a home in Steuben, Indiana, In August and September 1902 she and a friend, Lillie Fisk attended a teaching institute in Auburn and in February of 1903 when Lille stepped down from a teaching position in Butler, Edna became the sixth grade teacher.

In 1904, Edna took a position as a nurse in the City Hospital in Indianapolis and began a nurses training program. She returned home to Pleasant Lake at various times to see family. In 1906 her sister Alice Mary married John Mark Lacey and moved to California. Edna continued her education and graduated in May 1907. Following her graduation she took an extended trip west visiting family in Missouri, her sister in Johannasburg and also travelled to Los Angeles. She returned home in 1908 and took on various nursing positions and was visited by William O Driskell from Los Angeles in July 1909.

On September 12, 1909, Edna travelled to her sister’s home in California where she married William O Driskell, of Los Angeles. Multiple newspaper articles announced their marriage in Sonora, California and Waterloo, Indiana – this one inferring that the couple had met in Indiana.

A romance began in Indiana a few years ago will culminate Sunday afternoon in that pretty residential portion of Senora known as Michigan Heights, when William Oliver Driskell, of Los Angeles, and Miss Edna Grace Shackford, of Pleasant Lake, Indiana, will be made man and wife. The happy event will occur in the home of Mr. and Mrs. J. M. Lacy, Rev. W. H. Wheeler, pastor of the St. James’ Episcopal church will perform the ceremony. The future home of the couple will be in Los Angeles.

We’re not sure when or how Edna and William met but do know that William divorced his wife Cora Quillan of seventeen years on August 27, 1908 after she abandoned him. (They had been living apart for a while — she was living in Pasadena in 1902).

In 1910 we find the newly married couple at 494 E Avenue 28 in Los Angeles with William’s 18 year old son from his first marriage – William is working as an electrician contractor. A year after their marriage Edna gave birth to a daughter – the birth was announced in the Waterloo Press in Indiana. Two years later, in 1912 she registered to vote in the first election when women were eligible to vote in California. The couple raised their three children in Los Angeles. William died on April 2, 1949 in Los Angeles and was buried in the Grandview Cemetery.

Edna lived to the age of 79 and died in Los Angeles. Obituaries were published both in Los Angeles and in Angola, Indiana. We’re sharing the small town newspaper which included many more details of her life.

RECENT DEATHS.

EDNA SHACKFORD DRISKELL.

Edna Shackford Driskell, eldest daughter of Charles and Ada Clark Shackford was born near Pleasant Lake, June 16, 1879, and died at her home in Los Angeles, California, December 11, 1958.
  She was united in marriage with William Driskell in September, 1909.  To this union three children were born.  Mrs. Lois Larsen, of Burbank, California, John Driskell, of San Gabriel, and Mrs Helen Yates, of Los Angeles.
  Mr. Driskell died April 2, 1949. Besides the children there remains five grandchildren and two sisters, Mrs. Alice Lacey, of Los Angeles, and Mrs. Mabel Smith, of Pleaant Lake, Indiana.
  Burial was in Grand View cemetery at Glendale, California.

CHILDREN:

cared for Clyde Newton Driskell (1892-1938), son from William’s first wife who married Jamie Helen Jones

Lois Rowena Driskell (1910-1998) – married John Larson

John Vincent Driskell (1912-1984) – married Julia Campbell Barnes

Helen Marie Driskell (1914-1988) – married Lester D Yates

All posts on this website are a work in progress and are updated and/or corrected as new information is found. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or corrections. We’d love it if you’d like the post below– you can also subscribe to future blog posts below or follow new posts at https://www.facebook.com/ShackfordGenealogy/ if you wish. Thanks!

SOURCES:

1880 United States Federal Census, Steuben County, Illinois, population schedule, Steuben Township, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 4, Page No 20 B, dwelling 201, family 208, Omar I Clark; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 9 November 2013).

1900 United States Federal Census, Steuben County, Steuben, population schedule, Steuben Township, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 109, Sheet No 2A, dwelling 24, family 27, Charles A Shackford; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 9 November 2013).

1910 United States Federal Census, Los Angeles County, California, population schedule, Los Angeles, enumeration district (ED) 58, Sheet No 11, 494 East Av, dwelling 469, family 306, William O Driskell; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 19 April 2026).

1920 United States Federal Census, Los Angeles County, California, population schedule, Los Angeles, enumeration district (ED) 277, Sheet No 1, 494 East Avenue, dwelling 16, family 16, William O Driskell; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 17 April 2026).

1930 United States Federal Census, Los Angeles County, California, population schedule, , enumeration district (ED) 19-762, Sheet No 4A, 494 East Ave, dwelling 89, family 106, William O Driskell; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 17 April 2026).

1940 United States Federal Census, Los Angeles County, California, population schedule, Los Angeles, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District 60-1033, Sheet No 18B, 484 East Ave, dwelling 494, family 494, William O Driskell; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 10 November 2013).

“BIRTHS,” Waterloo Press (Waterloo, Indiana), 20 October 1910; digital images, Newspaper Archive (http://access.newspaperarchive.com : accessed 4 August 2015).

“California Death Index, 1940-1997,” index, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 19 April 2026), William Oliver Driskell.

“EDNA DRISKELL,” Los Angeles Mirror  (Los Angeles, California), 13 December 1958, Edna Driskell; digital images, California Digital Newspaper Collection (https://cdnc.ucr.edu/ : accessed 19 April 2026).

“NEWS FROM THE COUNTY,” The Waterloo Press (Waterloo, Indiana), 10 September 1908, Edna Shackford to Wolf Lake; digital images, newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 18 April 2026).

“PLEASANT LAKE,” Steuben Republican (Angola, Indiana), 18 February 1903, Edna Shackford, teacher; digital images, Newspapers.com (newscomwc.newspapers.com : accessed 18 April 2026).

“PLEASANT LAKE,” Steuben Republican (Angola, Indiana), 8 May 1907, Edna Shackford; digital images, Newspapers.com (newscomwc.newspapers.com : accessed 18 April 2026).

“Pleasant Lake Cullings,” The Waterloo Press (Waterloo, Indiana), 28 August 1902, Edna Shackford; digital images, newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 28 August 2026).

“Pleasant Lake,” The Waterloo Press (Waterloo, Indiana), 6 June 1907, Edna G Shackford heading to California; digital images, newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 18 April 2026).

“Pleasant Lake Cullings,” The Waterloo Press (Waterloo, Indiana), 30 June 1904, Edna Shackford; digital images, newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 18 April 2026).

“Pleasant Lake Cullings,” The Waterloo Press (Waterloo, Indiana), 4 February 1904, Edna Shackford has position in hosptal in Indianapolis; digital images, newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 18 April 2026).

“PLEASANT LAKE NEWS,” The Waterloo Press (Waterloo, Indiana), 1 July 1909, W. O. Driskell and Edna G Shackford; digital images, newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 18 April 2026).

“RECENT DEATHS EDNA SHACKFORD DRISKELL,” Angola Herald (Angola, Indiana), 17 December 1958; Newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 21 August 2019).

“Real Estate Transfers,” Steuben Republican (Angola, Indiana), 11 November 1903, Edna G Shackford land to Ada J Shackford; digital images, Newspapers.com (newscomwc.newspapers.com : accessed 18 April 2026).

Shackford Samuel Burnham, “Shackford Genealogy Manuscript,” #721 Edna Grace Shackford – incorrectly switches her sister Alice’s husband with her husband; SG SHA 5, Folder (56) William Shackford, New England Historical and Genealogical Society (donated 13 Oct 1925), Boston, Massachusetts.

“Steuben. Probate Records 1892–1896, 1896–1897,” digital images, FamilySearch (familysearch.org : accessed 18 February 2025), Estate Omar S Clark.

“U.S., Presbyterian Church Records, 1701-1970,” digital imges, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 7 May 2019), Edna Grace Shackford.

Copyright 2026 Joanne Shackford Parkes (sharing a link to this post is appreciated but please do not copy this material and paste it elsewhere – the blog is updated and/or corrected as new information is found). 

Reviewed/updated on

She was about seventeen when her family moved to Montreal for her father’s work. On June 19, 1912 she married Jacob Henry Ruiter in Montreal. On November 1919 she and Jacob moved to Washington DC where he worked as a machinist for a steel company. Sometime thereafter they moved back to Passaic where they lived at 371 West 3rd Street where he worked as a machinist at a silk mill. He applied for naturalization on October 28 1933 and they remained in Paterson, New Jersey. Edith became involved in the Mary Wallace Lodge and played piano and organ at her church where she also led the choir.

She died in Paterson on September 8, 1953. Obituaries were published in the Paterson Evening News and the Morning Call. We suspect this one in the Paterson Evening News should have included the word “Mrs” before Jacob Ruiter.

Rites Tomorrow for [Mrs] Jacob Ruiter

Funeral services will be conducted tomorrow for Mrs. Edith Wilson Shackford Ruiter, 63, of 138 Bloomfield Ave., who died in St. Joseph’s Hospital yesterday morning. The services will be held at 2 p.m. in the Gorny and Gorny (Plavier) Mortuary, 519 Marshall St. The Rev. Frederick S. Rowland, pastor of the North Haledon Presbyterian Church, will officiate. Interment will follow in Laurel Grove Cemetery. Friends may call after 3 this afternoon.
Mrs. Ruiter, wife of Jacob H. Ruiter, was born in Paterson. She had lived here for 49 years. She also spent some years in Canada. Mrs. Ruiter was a member of Miriam Chapter, OES, and Mary Wallace Lodge, Daughters of Scotis, whose services will be conducted at 8 this evening.
Survivors include her husband, one son, Jacob H. Jr., of Montclair; one sister, Mrs. Isabelle Allison, of Richmond, Va., one brother, William Wallace Shackford, of Waycross, Ga., and two grandchildren.

We’re not sure where Edith was buried. Her husband Jacob died on January 22, 1971 in Paterson, New Jersey.

CHILDREN:

Jacob Henry Ruiter (1917-1992) – married Margaret Eunice Gray

All posts on this website are a work in progress and are updated and/or corrected as new information is found. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or corrections. We’d love it if you’d like the post below– you can also subscribe to future blog posts below or follow new posts at https://www.facebook.com/ShackfordGenealogy/ if you wish. Thanks!

SOURCES:

1900 United States Federal Census, Passaic County, New Jersey, population schedule, Paterson City, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 160, Sheet No 18, Form A, 31 Knickerbocker Av, dwelling 235, family 382, Wm W Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 17 November 2015).

1920 United States Federal Census, Washington, District of Columbia, population schedule, Washington, enumeration district (ED) 99, Sheet No 2B, 16 Third St, dwelling 29, family 37, Jacob Reiter in home of Alice Simms; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 14 April 2026).

1930 United States Federal Census, Passaic County, New Jersey, population schedule, Clifton, enumeration district (ED) 16-9, Sheet No 6B, 371 West Third Street, dwelling 105A, family 134A, Jacob H Ruiter; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 April 2026).

1940 United States Federal Census, Passaic County, New Jersey, population schedule, Clifton, enumeration district (ED) 16-12, Shhet No 5A, 371, dwelling 110,, Jacob H Ruiter; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 April 2026).

1950 United States Federal Census, Passaic County, New Jersey, population schedule, Paterson, enumeration district (ED) 32-195, Sheet Number 5, 138 end, family 49, Jacob H Ruiter; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 April 2025).

“Albion Place,” The Herald-News (Passaic, New Jersey), 16 April 2026, Mrs Edith Ruiter; Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 16 April 2026).

“Busy Schedule Two Big Events Ahead for Westminister Presbyterian,” The Morning Call (Paterson, New Jersey), 11 May 1940, accompanied at the piano y Mrs Jacob Ruiter; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 16 April 2026).

“Mary Wallace Lodge Notes,” The Morning Call (Paterson, New Jersey), 24 April 1937, Edith Ruiter – Mary Wallace Lodge; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 16 April 2026).

“Mary Wallace Lodge Notes,” The Morning Call (Paterson, New Jersey), 27 November 1937, Edith Ruiter, pianist; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 16 April 2026).

The Morning Call (Paterson, New Jersey), 8 April 1944, Mrs Jacob Ruiter, organist; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 16 April 2026).

“New Jersey, Naturalization Records From Various Counties, 1905-1963,” database, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 15 April 2026), Jacob Henry Ruiter.

“New Jersey, U.S. Death Index, 1848-1878, 1901-2017,” digital image, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 14 April 2026), Edith Ruiter.

“Personal and Social Notes,” The Paterson Morning Call (Paterson, New Jersey), 9 July 1908; digital images, Fulton History (http://www.fultonhistory.com : accessed 13 March 2016).

“Rites Tomorrow for Jacob Ruiter,” Paterson Evening News (Paterson, New Jersey), 9 September 1953, Obituary Edith Ruiter; digital images, ProQuest (https://www.proquest.com/ : accessed 14 April 2026).

Shackford Samuel Burnham, “Shackford Genealogy Manuscript,” #543 William Wallace Shackford; SG SHA 5, Folder (56) William Shackford, New England Historical and Genealogical Society (donated 13 Oct 1925), Boston, Massachusetts. Source William Wallace Shackford

“U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995,” database, Ancestry.com (www/ancestry.com : accessed 14 April 2026), Jacob Ruiter; Passaic, New Jersey, City Directory, 1929.

“Veterans at Dedication Service Hear Rev. Dr. Webster Talk on the Immortal Abraham Lincoln,” The Morning Call (Paterson, New Jersey), 12 February 1945, Mrs Jacob Ruiter organist and choir director; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 16 April 2026).

Copyright 2026 Joanne Shackford Parkes (sharing a link to this post is appreciated but please do not copy this material and paste it elsewhere – the blog is updated and/or corrected as new information is found). 

Reviewed/updated on

The marriage of Miss Edith May Shackford and Harry W James was solemnized on Christmas day. The groom and bride are both popular Lakeport young people and carry to their new relations in life the best wishes of a host of friends.

In June 1900, both Harry and Edith were living with Harry’s mother Clara and both working as needlemakers. In 1910 Harry listed himself as an engineer. We know from his 1918 draft registration that he was under the care of a physician for his eyes and had lost a finger. In 1920 and 1930 Harry worked in a machine shop – possibly S & W Company. By 1930 he owned his own home on Endicott Street in the Weirs and had $5000 in savings. Harry died in 1934 of cancer of the colon. He was buried in the Bayside Cemetery in Laconia.

Edith remained in Laconia on Endicott Street eventually moveing to Winnipesaukee Road. She may have moved to Locus Farm Endicott in the Weirs by 1950 and may be the Edit listed as age 70 who was working as a cook at a grade school. She died on January 19, 1959 in Laconia and was buried alongside her husband in the Bayside Cemetery.

CHILDREN:

None

RESEARCH TO DO: Continue to search for an obituary or any other information about Edith’s life. Ancestry users who appear to possibly be related to Harry have posted some photographs on Ancestry that seem to include Edith but we aren’t sure who posted these so have not verified them or gotten permission to share any in this blog.

All posts on this website are a work in progress and are updated and/or corrected as new information is found. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or corrections. We’d love it if you’d like the post below– you can also subscribe to future blog posts below or follow new posts at https://www.facebook.com/ShackfordGenealogy/ if you wish. Thanks!

SOURCES:

1880 United States Federal Census, Belknap County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Gilford, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 5, Supervisor’s District No 82, Page No 2, Dwelling 18, Household 28, Frank M Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 September 2013).

1900 United States Federal Census, Merrimack County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Franklin City, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 164, Sheet No 11, dwelling 163, family 211, Harry James; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 22 September

1910 United States Federal Census, Belknap County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Laconia, enumeration district (ED) 10, Sheet No 18B, Lake Street, dwelling 400, family 483, Harry W James; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 12 April 2026).2014).

1920 United States Federal Census, Belknap County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Laconia, enumeration district (ED) 7, Sheet No 1, Lakeside Ave, dwelling 10, family 10, Harry W James; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 12 April 2026).

1930 United States Federal Census, Belknap County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Laconia, enumeration district (ED) 1-14, Sheet No 17A, 372 Endicott St, visited 456, Harry James; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 12 April 2026); Roll: 1298; Page: 9B; Enumeration District: 7; Image: 130.0; FHL microfilm: 2341033.

1950 United States Federal Census, Belknap County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Laconia, enumeration district (ED) 1-14, Sheet Number 10, 405 Union Avenue, family 80, Edith S James; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 12 April 2026).

Find a Grave, Find A Grave, digital images (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 29 June 2024), Edith Mary Shackford James, Memorial ID 269903049.

“Marriage Edith May Shackford and Harry W James,” White Mountain Reporter (North Conway, New Hampshire), 30 December 1877, Edith May Shackford; Conway Public Library (http://conway.advantage-preservation.com : accessed 12 April 2026).

“New Hampshire, Death Certificates, 1938-1959,” images, Family Search (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 31 October 2014), Edith Mary James; https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1942-29039-4832-61?cc=1876925.

New Hampshire, New Hampshire Birth Records, Early to 1900, https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/FLPC-44G, Edith M Shackford, 24 December 1877; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 22 September 2014).

New Hampshire, New Hampshire, Marriage Records, 1637-1947, , Harry Walter James m Edith May Shackford, 28 December 1897; index and images, Family Search (http://familysearch.org : accessed 14 September 2013); Film 004243164.

Shackford Samuel Burnham, “Shackford Genealogy Manuscript,” # 677 Edith M Shackford; SG SHA 5, Folder (56) William Shackford, New England Historical and Genealogical Society (donated 13 Oct 1925), Boston, Massachusetts.

Copyright 2026 Joanne Shackford Parkes (sharing a link to this post is appreciated but please do not copy this material and paste it elsewhere – the blog is updated and/or corrected as new information is found). 

Reviewed/updated on

Edith was sixteen when she lost her mother. On November 27, 1890 she married George Wilbur Dow, the son of John C and Mary (Lang) Dow. The newly married couple moved to his parent’s farm in Barnstead where she worked on the farm and raised a family. In 1901 her father died and after his probate she and her sister Maud Shackford each inherited $174.05. During this time she also worked as postmaster for North Barnstead from May 1903 to February 1914. In 1904 she was appointed trustee for some money that had been set up as a trust by her grandmother Mahala Holmes to provide for the gravesite of her grandfather Azariah Holmes.

Edith’s husband George died of heart disease on September 4, 1935. Five years later she was living in Barnstead in a home with her son J Harold Dow and his wife Beatrice. We have not found a 1950 census record mentioning Edith who died on August 27, 1954 in Concord of lung cander after a short hospital stay. We’re thankful for this obituary that mentions her involvement in the Crescent Lake grange, the Congregational Church, and the Ladies’ Aid Society.

MRS. EDITH DOW
  BARNSTEAD, Aug. 28 – Mrs Edith Dow, 83, of North Barnstead died yesterday at the Margaret Pilsbury unit of the Concord hospital after a short illness.
Mrs. Dow was born in North Barnstead and has been a lifelong resident of this town. She was the daughter of Horatio and Mary (Holmes) Shackford.
She was a member of Crescent Lake grange of North Barnstead; the Congregational church and the Ladies’ Aid society.
Others in the family include two daughters, Mrs. Mary Jenkins of Manchester and Mrs Mildred Crossett of Barnstead, a son, Harold Dow of North Barnstead; a sister Mrs. Frank Grey of Bristol; five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be held at the North Barnstead Congregational church Monday at 1 o’clock.
Burial will be in Riverview cemetery in Barnstead.
Friends may call Sunday afternoon and evening at the Perkins Funeral home in Pittsford.

CHILDREN:

William H Dow (1892-1895)

Mary Edith Dow (1896-1985) – married Carroll Jenkins

Mildred Dow (1897-1984) – married Ernest William Crossett

John Harold Down (1901-1975) – married Beatrice Cleveland

Velma Kathryn Dow (1902-1928) – married Roland W Gault – birth record shows her name as Velma but she was known as Zelma from a young age.

All posts on this website are a work in progress and are updated and/or corrected as new information is found. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or corrections. We’d love it if you’d like the post below– you can also subscribe to future blog posts below or follow new posts at https://www.facebook.com/ShackfordGenealogy/ if you wish. Thanks!

SOURCES:

1880 United States Federal Census, Essex County, Massachusetts, population schedule, Saugus, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 146, Supervisor’s District No 60, Page No 27, dwelling 239, family 260, Horatio H Shackford; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 26 September 2013).

1900 United States Federal Census, Belknap County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Barnstead, enumeration district (ED) 2, Sheet No 1, dwelling 22, family 23, John Dow; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 11 April 2026).

1910 United States Federal Census, Belknap County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Barnstead, enumeration district (ED) 2, Sheet No 4A, dwelling 91, family 92, John Dow; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 11 April 2026).

1920 United States Federal Census, Belknap County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Barnstead, enumeration district (ED) 2, Sheet 1A, dwelling 6, family 6, George W Dow; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 11 April 2026).

1930 United States Federal Census, Belknap County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Barnstead, enumeration district (ED) 1-2, Sheet No 10A, dwelling 202, family 204, George W Dow; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 11 April 2026); Roll: 1298; Page: 9B; Enumeration District: 7; Image: 130.0; FHL microfilm: 2341033.

1940 United States Federal Census, Belknap County, New Hampshire, population schedule, Barnstead, Edith Dow; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 29 June 2015).

“Belknap. Probate Records 1892–1908,” digital images, FamilySearch (familysearch.org : accessed 12 April 2026), Distribution of assets of Horatio H shackford.

“Merrimack. Probate Records 1891–1923,” digital images, FamilySearch (FamilySearch.Org : accessed 12 April 2026), Trust for care of burial grounds of Mahala Holmes Late Husband to Edith M Dow.

“New Hampshire. Death Certificates 1954,” digital image, FamilySearch (familysearch.org : accessed 2 December 2024), Edith May Shackford Dow.

“New Hampshire, Marriage and Divorce Records, 1659-1947,” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 29 June 2015), Edith M Shackford m George W Dow.

“MRS EDITH DOW,” Concord Daily Monitor(Concord, New Hampshire), 28 August 1954; digital images, newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 7 April 2026).

Shackford Samuel Burnham, “Shackford Genealogy Manuscript,” # 516 Edith May Shackford; SG SHA 5, Folder (56) William Shackford, New England Historical and Genealogical Society (donated 13 Oct 1925), Boston, Massachusetts.

“United States. Military Records 1903,” digital images, FamilySearch (FamilySearch.org : accessed 12 April 2026), Edith M Dow.

Copyright 2026 Joanne Shackford Parkes (sharing a link to this post is appreciated but please do not copy this material and paste it elsewhere – the blog is updated and/or corrected as new information is found). 

Reviewed/updated on

Ebenezer’s mother’s obituary was published in two Boston newspapers on July 31, 1819.

In Portland, Mrs. Eliza, consort of Mr. Eb. Shackford, aged 26

We find Ebenezer’s obituary four days later – August 3, 1819 in the Portland Gazette.

-An Infant child of Mr. Ebenezer Shackford.

Eliza’s Gravestone is found in the Eastern Cemetery in Portland, Maine – it is cracked but we can still read the words Eliza [probably] [wife of] Ebenezer Shackford who died July 19, 1819 AE 26. We’d like to thank Joe took this photograph for Find A Grave and gave us permission to share it in this blog about Eliza’s young son.

We’re not sure if her son had a separate gravestone or was buried alongside his mother .

It must have been a very sad time for Ebenezer – the husband and father to be – two deaths about thirteen days apart. Also for his parents Paul and Meribah Shackford as we think Ebenezer would have been their first grandchild.

Research to Do: Look at documents filed with the Shackford Genealogy Manuscript to find sources for Ebenezer’s birth and death dates as this is the only source for those dates that we can find at this time. Also continue to look for the Portland Vital Records referenced as we have not been able to find those sources via available online records.

All posts on this website are a work in progress and are updated and/or corrected as new information is found. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or corrections. We’d love it if you’d like the post below– you can also subscribe to future blog posts below or follow new posts at https://www.facebook.com/ShackfordGenealogy/ if you wish. Thanks!

SOURCES:

“DEATHS,” Boston Intelligencer & Evening Gazette (Boston, Massachusetts) Newsbank, 31 July 1819, Eliza Shackford consort of Ebenezer Shackford; digital images, Newsbank (https://infoweb-newsbank-com : accessed 5 April 2026).

“DIED,” The Portland Gazette (Portland, Maine), 3 August 1819, Infant Child of Ebenezer Shackford; newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 4 March 2026).

Find a Grave, Find A Grave, digital images (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 17 July 2014), Ebenezer Shackford, Find A Grave Memorial# 101709555.

Shackford Samuel Burnham, “Shackford Genealogy Manuscript,” #123 Ebenezer Shackford; SG SHA 5, Folder (56) William Shackford, New England Historical and Genealogical Society (donated 13 Oct 1925), Boston, Massachusetts.

Copyright 2026 Joanne Shackford Parkes (sharing a link to this post is appreciated but please do not copy this material and paste it elsewhere – the blog is updated and/or corrected as new information is found). 

Reviewed/updated on

Ebenezer married Eliza Abbott on November 16, 1815 in Cumberland, Maine. Sadly she died four years later on July 19, 1819 following childbirth and their newborn baby named Ebenezer died fifteen days later on July 31, 1819.

On August 26, 1820, Ebenezer announced his pending marriage to Frances Jane Springer and they were married on September 14, 1820.

We’re not sure when Ebenezer became a baker but he is listed with this occupation in the Portland City Directory in 1823 but when apparently in 1826 someone hired his apprentices resulting in this newspaper announcement:

EBENEZER SHACKFORD, BAKER, Maine Street,

Returns his sincere thanks to his customers for the good encouragement that he has received from them the past year. We will continue to keep a general assortment of BREAD at his Bakehouse, Maine-street, and also deliver it at the houses of those who would wish it. He flatters himself tht he can supply ustomers with BREAD as cheap as any Baker in town.
As some evil disposed Baker has endeavored to injure him by enticing his apprentices to leave him and offering them wages, he humbly trusts that the public will look upon such conduct in the maner which it deserves and thereby reader “Custom to whom custom is due” July 10, 1824.

He then purchased and sold some land in Portland with Frances Jane cosigning on the sale of the property. In 1826 he became (or was elected?) a tythingman for the city of Portland.

He was still a baker in 1827 and in 1828 sold his pew to Alvah Libby for $105 and sold land in Portland in December 1828. The Bank of Portland filed a case against him in March 1830 but neither party appeared at the court. Sometime around October 1831 he left his wife Frances and their two children – she filed for divorce in November 1836 and was granted a divorce in April 1837.

Ebenezer moved to Boston for a while where he worked as a laborer. While there he was arrested in October 1845 – the event being mentioned in the Vermont Chronicle as “for being very drunk and noisy Saturday night”.

Ebenezer returned to Maine sometime before 1855 when he married Mrs Anna Blair. On January 27, Ebenezer’s new wife purchased land in Saccarappa, Westbrook, Maine from Ebenezer’s brother Daniel for $1500.

Ebenezer died in Saccarappa after six months illness related to consumption on November 13, 1859. This brief death notice was published in the Portland Press Herald:

In Saccarappa, 13th inst., Eben Shackford, formerly of Portland, aged 67. We’re not sure where he was buried.

Ebenezer’s second wife Frances Jane married Oliver E Silsby who died in 1863 – she then married John S Miller and died March 2, 1868.

Ebenezer’s third wife, Anna Blair married Isaac L Knight. She died March 27, 1883 in Biddeford, Maine.

CHILDREN:

with Eliza

Ebenezer Shackford (1819-1819)

with Frances Jane

Elizabeth Springer Shackford (1824-1907)- married Benjamin Hartshorn Fales

James Francis Shackford (1826-????)

Note: Samuel Burnham Shackford’s Shackford Genealogy Manuscript attributes children Edward T Shackford and Francis Jane Shackford to Ebenezer but France Jane’s divorce document lists two living children – Eliza Shackford and James Francis Shackford.

RESEARCH TO DO: Find other Portland, Boston, and Westbrook Directories to look for Ebenezer.

All posts on this website are a work in progress and are updated and/or corrected as new information is found. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or corrections. We’d love it if you’d like the post below– you can also subscribe to future blog posts below or follow new posts at https://www.facebook.com/ShackfordGenealogy/ if you wish. Thanks!

SOURCES:

“Boston Police Court,” Vermont Chronicle (Bellows Falls, Vermont), 22 October 1845, Ebenezer Shackford, for being very drunk; digital images, newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 5 April 2026).

“Cumberland. Land Records 1825–1826,” digital images, FamilySearch (familysearch.org : accessed 6 April 2026), Charles Bartlett sold land to Ebenezer Shackford; Page 269 of 586.

“Cumberland. Land Records 1825–1826,” digital images, FamilySearch (familysearch.org : accessed 5 April 2026), Ebenezer Shackford sold land to Rufus Haines.

“Cumberland. Land Records 1856–1857,” digital images, FamilySearch (familysearch.org : accessed 30 March 2026), Anna S Shackford, wife of Eben purchased land from Daniel D Shackford for $1500.

“Cumberland. Land Records,” digital images, FamilySearch (familysearch.org : accessed 12 April 2025), Ebenezer Shackford and wife Jane sold pew number 61 to Libby.

“Cumberland. Land Records 1828–1829,” digital images, FamilySearch (familysearch.org : accessed 4 April 2026), Ebenezer Shackford sold land in Portland to Matthias March for $1600.

“DIED,” Portland Press Herald (Portland, Maine), 1 December 1859, Eben[ezer] Shackford; digital images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 29 March 2026).

“EBENEZER SHACKFORD, BAKER,” The Portland Gazette (Portland, Maine), 20 July 1824; newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 4 April 2026).

Maine, Maine Vital Records, 1670-1921, >Vital records prior to 1892>Sewall-Sherman>Image 368 of 4256, Ebenezer Shackford m Eliza Abbott, 16 November 1815; database with images, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 14 August 2014).

Maine, Maine Vital Records, 1670-1921, Vital records prior to 1892>Sewall-Sherman>Image 370 of 4256, Eliza Shackford, 19 July 1819; database with images, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 14 August 2014).

Maine, Marriage Records, 1713-1937, , Ebenezer Shackford, 14 September 1820; digital records, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 31 May 2013).

“MARRIED,” Portland Press Herald (Portland, Maine), 26 November 1855, Mr Ebenezer Shackford to Mrs Ana S Blair; digital images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 5 April 2026).

“PORTLAND LIST OF TOWN OFFICERS,” Eastern Argus (Portland, Maine), 6 April 1826, Eben’r Shackford Tythingman; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 4 April 2026).

“Portland. Marriage Records 1814–1855, 1837–1856, Declarations of Intention,” digital images, FamilySearch (FamilySearch.org : accessed 4 April 2026), Ebenezer Shackford intention to marry Frances Jane Springer.

Shackford Samuel Burnham, “Shackford Genealogy Manuscript,” #123 Ebenezer Shackford; SG SHA 5, Folder (56) William Shackford, New England Historical and Genealogical Society (donated 13 Oct 1925), Boston, Massachusetts.

“Standish. Vital Records,” digital images, FamilySearch (FamilySearch.org : accessed 12 April 2025), Ebenezer Shackford of Kennebunk to Mrs. Anna S. Blair of Standish.

Copyright 2026 Joanne Shackford Parkes (sharing a link to this post is appreciated but please do not copy this material and paste it elsewhere – the blog is updated and/or corrected as new information is found). 

Reviewed/updated on

Ebed Lincoln Shackford, also known as Eben, Ebet, Obed, or E. L. or E. Lincoln was born in Eastport, Maine on December 10, 1842, the son of William Shackford and Mary Cutter Lincoln. While Eben’s three brothers John William, Edward Wallace, and Charles Joseph followed their father’s career of sea captain, Eben worked as a painter at age 17, and was a seaman aboard the Revenue Cutter Jackson at 18 but then chose to muster into company D of the Maine Calvary on October 19, 1861 as a clerk. He eventually became the unit’s quartermaster. He mustered out of the unit on Nov 25, 1864.  The picture above is from Edward Parson Tobie’s book History of the First Maine Calvary, 1861-1865.

On on August 23, 1869, Ebed married Lucy Parrit in Eastport, Maine. She was the daughter of Obed and Lucy Ann (Handy) Parritt. He then worked briefly as a clerk in Chicago and eventually settled in St Paul, Minnesota where he worked as a merchant in many businesses including a paper company, Shackford, Hume and Drebert and PRL Hardenbergh, a manufacturer of leather goods, harness saddlery, and saddlery hardware.  

Eben was very active in team sports and other activities in St Paul. In 1883 while he was working for P R L Hardenburg, he participated in a team baseball team match which was described in the local newspaper:

Amateur Base Ball.
  A very interesting game of base ball took place Saturday afternoon on the polo grounds on Western avenue, between the Gotzian nine, under Capt, Tubbersing and the Hardenberg nine, Capt. Shackford  The game occupied three hours, and resulted in the score of 54 to 4 in favor of the Gotzian nine.  Capt. Tubbersing has sent a “tracer” after Capt. Shackford. 

The next year – 1884 he was involved in a St Paul Jobbing event participating with others in the community connecting the P R L Hardenburg company to people in the community.

In 1884 he was elected Captain at the St Paul Boat Club. On June 7, 1892, the St Paul Daily Globe published an article about the city’s new Commercial Club, “An Organization Which Has for Its Object the Industrial Development of the Capital of the North Star State”.  The club had just been created and already had 1,100 members.   Ebed Shackford was one of the individuals portrayed with a penned picture and a description of his business efforts  in the St Paul Daily Globe‘s  list of “Prominent Citizens Whose Unselfish, Enthusiastic Work has Assisted in Creating a Mighty Vehicle for Good”. The blurb entitled “A Old Resident described his business contributions.

 An Old Resident. 

Mr Shackford, of the Firm of Shackford, Hume & Drebert
Mr E. L. Shackford is a member of the firm of Shackford, Hume & Drebert, wholesale paper dealers. Mr. Shackford has lived long enough in St. Paul to be considered an old resident. He came here from Chicago in 1872, and at once engaged in the paper business. The firm he is so prominently identified with is doing a large business in the Northwest, and in keeping its interests to the front, Mr Shackford has largely contributed. Mr Shackford was born at Eastport, Me., in 1845.

Sadly the next year, Ebed lost his beloved wife Lucy who died at home on July 23, 1893. After her funeral, Ebed remained busy – that November, he purchased land in Eastport and moved to Minneapolis. He then hosted a judge, visited family in Bar Harbor, served on a grand jury, attended a Legion event and on occasion traveled back to Eastport to see family and went abroad with his brother John.

Between May 3 1895 and August 23, 1895 he was advertising products from his company Shackford & Hume in the Minnesota French-Canadian newspaper Echo de l’Ouest. Ebed retired from the company Shackford & Hume on July 1, 1897 and formally dissolved his relationship from the firm. The same week he started a new copartnership with P. R. L. Hardenberg and moved back to Saint Paul. However he ensured he scheduled vacation time and in the summer of 1901 traveled to New York and overseas with his brother John and upon his return went on a ten day deep sea fishing trip with his brother Edward Wallace Shackford.

In March of 1907, Ebed finalized his will leaving shares of his P.R.L. Hardenbergh & Co capital stock to his brother Edward W Shackford, his sister Mary L French, his sister Sarah Shackford, his nephew Ferdinard French, his nephew Leslie G Shackford, and the rest of his estate to his nephew Leslie G Shackford. That same year he applied for a pension for his service during the civil war.

Ebed traveled to Eastport for a vacation in August of 1908, returned to Minnesota and was working at his desk at P.R. L. Hardenbergh in St Paul when he died of a stroke on October 1, 1908. He was 65 years old. Obituaries were published in Minneapolis Minnesota, Grand Rapids Michigan, West Lebanon, NH, Stevens Point, WI, and Kennebec Maine and the Harness Review Magazine. We haven’t found an obituary that summarized his life — most seemed to focus on the fact that he died suddenly at his desk such as this one published in Minneapolis on the day of his death:

STRICKEN AT HIS DESK – Eben L. Shackford of St Paul Dies from Apoplexy

Eben L. Shackford, 255 East Tenth street, St. Paul, vice president of the firm of P. R. L. Hardenbergh & Co died today from a stroke of apoplexy which he sustained while working at his desk.
Mr. Shackford came to work at the usual hour today and seemed to be in the best of health. While opening the morning’s mail and attending to his other duties as vice president of the firm, he was taken suddenly ill and medical assistance was immediately summoned. The stroke came at 10 o’clock, and he passed away about an hour and a half later.

Ebed was buried alongside his wife at the Oakland Cemetery in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

CHILDREN: None

All posts on this website are a work in progress and are updated and/or corrected as new information is found. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or corrections. We’d love it if you’d like the post below– you can also subscribe to future blog posts below or follow new posts at https://www.facebook.com/ShackfordGenealogy/ if you wish. Thanks!

SOURCES:

1850 United States Federal Census, Washington County, Maine, population schedule, Eastport, page 486 (handwritten), 243 (stamped), dwelling 267, family 354, Wm Shackford; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 6 December 2025).

1860 United States Federal Census, Washington County, Maine, population schedule, Eastport, Page 28 (penned), Dwelling 167, Family 191, William Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 9 August 2013).

1870 United States Federal Census, Cook, Illinois, population schedule, 12th Ward of the City of Chicago, Page 163-164 (penned), Dwelling 1081, Family 1336, E L and Lucy Shackford; digital images

1875 Minnesota State Census, Ramsey County, population schedule, St Paul City, Ward 1, page 203 (penned), A Shakford; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 19 February 2014).

1895 Minnesota Census, Minneapolis, population, Precinct 3, Ward 4, Minneapolis, Page 22, Shackford E S; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 5 August 2013).

“Amateur Base Ball,” Daily Globe (Saint Paul, Minn.), 19 June 1883; Library of Congress, Chronicling America, Historic American Newspapers (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ : accessed 5 August 2013

“American Civil War Research Database,” database, Ancestry.com (http://asp6new.alexanderstreet.com : accessed 8 August 2013).

Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 5 August 2013).”The Commercial Club Members, An Old Resident. Mr Shackford, of the Firm of Shackford, Hume & Drebert,” St Paul (Saint Paul, Minnesota)

“The Commercial Club Members, An Old Resident. Mr Shackford, of the Firm of Shackford, Hume & Drebert,” St Paul (Saint Paul, Minnesota)Daily Globe, 7 June 1892, Drawing and Short Bio; digital image, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 31 July 2013).

“CoPartnership PRL Hardenbergh/Shackford Dissolved,” The Saint Paul Globe (St Paul, Minnesota), 4 July 1897; digital images, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 6 August 2013).

Daily Globe, 7 June 1892, Drawing and Short Bio; digital image, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 31 July 2013).

“Deeds: Washington. Deeds 1893–1894,” digital images, FamilySearch (familysearch.org : accessed 31 March 2026), Ebed L Shackford purchased land in Eastport from Elizabeth An Jones.

Find a Grave, Find A Grave, digital images (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 4 September 2015), Ebed Lincoln Shackford, Find A Grave Memorial# 144634670.

“DIED.  SHACKFORD,” St Paul (Saint Paul, Minnesota)Daily Globe, 24 July 1893; digital image, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 9 August 2013).

“E. L. Shackford, manager of the P. R. L Hardenberg left for East,” The Saint Paul Globe (St Paul, Minnesota), 17 July 1901; digital images, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 7 August 2013).

“E. L. Shackford, St. Paul Dies.,” Adams County Free Press, 10 October 1908; digital images, Newspaper Archive (http://access.newspaperarchive.com : accessed 8 August 2013

“E. L. Shackford, manager of the P. R. L Hardenberg left for East,” The Saint Paul Globe (St Paul, Minnesota), 17 July 1901; digital images, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 7 August 2013).

“EASTPORT,” Sun-Journal (Lewiston, Maine), 12 August 1908, Ebed W Shackford; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 3 April 2026).

“Firm of Shackford, Hume & Drebert Disposed Paper Business,” St Paul (Saint Paul, Minnesota)Daily Globe, 26 June 1892; digital image, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 6 August 2013).

“GENIUS OF THE UNION Minnesota Commandery, Loyal Legion, Pays its Tribute to Abraham Lincoln,” The Saint Paul Globe (St Paul, Minnesota), 13 February 1900; digital images, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 7 August 2013).

“Jolly Jobbers. Who Rove by Steam Through “The Land of Plenty”,” St Paul (Saint Paul, Minnesota)Daily Globe, 18 June 1884; digital image, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 5 August 2013).

Kilby William Henry, Eastport and Passamaquoddy: A Collection of Historical and Background Sketches (Eastport, Maine: Edward E Shead & Company, 1888), Page 358; digital images,, Chapter, XIV.  CAPTAIN JOHN SHACKFORD AND FAMILY.  By Samuel Shackford, of Chicago, Ill., Google eBooks (http://books.google.com : accessed 5 August 2013; Ebed L Shackford, corporal and quartermaster-sergeant.

Little George Thomas, Rev Henry S. Burrage, and Albert Roscoe Stubbs, Genealogical and Family History of the State of Maine Volume II (New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1909), page 839; digital images, Google Books (http://books.google.com/ : accessed 2 March 2014.

Maine “Maine, Marriages, 1771-1907,” database index, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 5 August 2013), Ebed L Shackford m Lucy H Parritt

Maine State of Maine, “Maine, Births and Christenings, 1739-1900,” index,” database index, FamilySearch (www.familysearch.org : accessed 5 August 2013), Ebed L Shackford, birth, 10 Dec 1842

“MARRIED.,” Sun-Journal (Lewiston, Maine), 28 August 1869, Eben L Shackford and Miss Lucy H Parritt; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 28 March 2026).

“THE MUTINY ON THE REVENUE CUTTER JACKSON,” New York Daily Herald (New York, New York), 10 September 1861, Eben L Shackford; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 28 March 2026).

“The New Boat-House,” St Paul (Saint Paul, Minnesota)Daily Globe, 22 November 1885; digital image, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 6 August 2013).

“NEW INCORPORATIONS,” The Saint Paul Globe (St Paul, Minnesota), 5 January 1904; digital images, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 7 August 2013).

“Ramsey. Probate Records 1849–1980,” digital images, FamilySearch (familysearch.org : accesse 2 April 2026), Will of Ebed L Shackford.

Shackford Samuel Burnham, “Shackford Genealogy Manuscript,” # 195 Ebed Lincoln Shackford; SG SHA 5, Folder (56) William Shackford, New England Historical and Genealogical Society (donated 13 Oct 1925), Boston, Massachusetts.

State of Maine, Annual Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Maine for the Year Ending December 31, 1863 (Augusta: Stevens & Sayward, 1863), Page 14; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 9 August 2013

“STRICKEN AT HIS DESK Eben L. Shackford of St. Paul Dies from Apoplexy,” The Minneapolis (Minneapolis, Minnesota), 1 October 1908, Eben L Shackford; digital images, newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 28 March 2026).

Tobie Edward Parsons, History of the First Maine Calvary, 1861-1865 (Press of Emery & Hughes, 1887), page 515; digital images, Google Books (http://books.google.com : accessed 15 August 2013.

“TOOK TRIP TO EUROPE E. L. SHACKFORD IS BACK FROM AN ENJOYABLE OUTING.,” The Saint Paul Globe (St Paul, Minnesota), 22 August 1901; digital images, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 5 August 2013).

“TOOK TRIP TO EUROPE E. L. SHACKFORD IS BACK FROM AN ENJOYABLE OUTING.,” The Saint Paul Globe (St Paul, Minnesota), 22 August 1901; digital images, Library of Congress Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 5 August 2013).

U.S. Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1865,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 May 2013), Ebed L Shackford, 1st Regiment, Maine Calvalry; citing M543 roll 19

Copyright 2026 Joanne Shackford Parkes (sharing a link to this post is appreciated but please do not copy this material and paste it elsewhere – the blog is updated and/or corrected as new information is found). 

Reviewed/updated on

Around the age of 18 she began working in a factory. She and Robert Ernest Scott who also worked in a factory published their intention to marry on December 23, 1922 in the Cambridge Tribune.

They didn’t marry (perhaps she needed the permission of her parents?). But on September 22, 1923 after she had turned 19, the couple who both were working as candy makers again published their intention to marry.

They married on September 30, 1923 but the announcement of their marriage was not published in the Cambridge newspaper until December 1, 1923, a day before their first child was born. Sadly he only lived for two days.

The couple who lived at 6 Fayette Street had two more children, one who lived and a second who was born in Boston in 1926 prematurely. They divorced sometime after the death of their third child and by 1930, Catherine moved into her parents home at 176 Green Street in Cambridge and was recorded in the census as divorced. By 1940 she was living with her parents at 1 Pearl Place during which time she continued to work as a candy wrapper. They were at the same address in 1950 but she began working as a machine operator in a foundry. Oddly on the census record, she was listed as a cousin of her parents instead of their daughter.

Catherine lived to the age of 82 and died in Cambridge on December 14, 1986. This obituary was published in the Boston Globe doesn’t tell us much about her but does mention that she was survived by her daughter and a brother along with unnamed nieces and nephews.

SCOTT – In Cambridge, December 14, Katherine G. (Shackford) Beloved mother of Elizabeth M. Scott of Cambridge, and sister of Henry Shackford of Holbrook. Also survived by a number of nieces and nephews. Funeral Services The Chapel of the Watson Funeral Home 11 Magazine Street at Central Square, CAMBRIDGE, Wednesday, December 17 at 11:00 A.M. Calling hours Tuesday evening 7-9. Interment in Weare, NH. Contributions in her memory may be made to Joslin Clinic, Diabetes Ctr., 1 Joslin Place, Boston, MA 02215.

Catherine was buried alongside her parents in the Pine Grove Cemetery in Weare, New Hampshire. Her daughter Elizabeth was buried in the same grave site in 1995. Fortunately the photographer of this gravestone, Lorraine Ellis, gave permission for her photos to be used in any not-for-profit way making it possible for us to share this photograph in this blog.

CHILDREN:

Robert Ernest Scott, Jr (1923-1923)

Elizabeth M Scott (1924-1995)

Daughter Scott (1926-1926)

All posts on this website are a work in progress and are updated and/or corrected as new information is found. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or corrections. We’d love it if you’d like the post below– you can also subscribe to future blog posts below or follow new posts at https://www.facebook.com/ShackfordGenealogy/ if you wish. Thanks!

SOURCES:

1910 United States Federal Census, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, population schedule, Boston, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 743, Sheet No 30A, dwelling 377, family 673, William J Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 24 November 2015).

1920 United States Federal Census, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, population schedule, Cambridge, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 58, Sheet No 11A, dwelling 105, family 115, William Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 24 November 2015).

1930 United States Federal Census, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, population schedule, Cambridge, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 9-23, Sheet No 5B, dwelling 83, family 85, William J Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 24 January 2015).

1940 United States Federal Census, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, population schedule, Cambridge, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 16-67, Sheet No 9B, household 161, William J Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 24 November 2015).

1950 United States Federal Census, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, population schedule, Cambridge, enumeration district (ED) 17-79, Sheet Number 5, 1 Pearson , dwelling 39, William Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 March 2026).

“Births: Cambridge. Birth Certificates Oct 12, 1923–Dec 8, 1923,” digital images, 3/28/26 (FamilySearch : accessed 28 March 2026), ——- Scott; FamilySearch.org.

“Deaths: Cambridge. Death Certificates Sep 26, 1923–Dec 31, 1923,” digital images, 3/28/26 (FamilySearch : accessed 28 March 2026), Robert E Scott, Jr; FamilySearch.org.

Find a Grave, Find A Grave, digital images (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 7 November 2015), Katharine G. Scott, Find A Grave Memorial# 154520639.

“MARRIAGE INTENTIONS,” Cambridge Tribune, 23 December 1922; Cambridge Public Library (http://cambridge.dlconsulting.com : accessed 4 June 2013). Robert Ernest Scott/Katherine Grace Shackford.

“MARRIAGE INTENTIONS,” Cambridge Chronicle (Cambridge, Massachusetts), 22 September 1923; digital images, Cambridge Public Library (http://cambridge.dlconsulting.com : accessed 4 June 2013). Shackford/Scott.

“MARRIAGES,” Cambridge Tribune, 1 December 1923, Robert Ernest Scott to Catherine Grace Shackford; Cambridge Public Library (http://cambridge.dlconsulting.com : accessed 4 June 2013). SCOTT-SHACKFORD.

“SCOTT,” The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts), 16 December 1986, Katherine G (Shackford); digital image, Proquest (https://www.proquest.com/hnpnewyorkbostonglobe1/ : accessed 28 March 2026).

Shackford Samuel Burnham, “Shackford Genealogy Manuscript,” # 551 William Josiah Shackford; SG SHA 5, Folder (56) William Shackford, New England Historical and Genealogical Society (donated 13 Oct 1925), Boston, Massachusetts.

Copyright 2026 Joanne Shackford Parkes (sharing a link to this post is appreciated but please do not copy this material and paste it elsewhere – the blog is updated and/or corrected as new information is found). 

Reviewed/updated on

Earl was baptized in Cambridge on February 18, 1917 and announced his pending marriage to Rose Ann Cook on April 14, 1917. She was the daughter of Michael and Bridget (Ryan) Cook, both from Ireland. The couple was married by a priest at 31 Buckingham Street in Cambridge on April 29, 1917 and settled at 128 Adams which was Earl’s address when he registered for the draft on June 5, 1917 and where the new couple continued to live in 1920. Sadly they lost a daughter in 1923.

Around 1927 Earl and Rose moved to 12 Fox in Dorchester but then moved to Watertown in 1931.

In 1935 Earl filed a patent for a Sleet and Mist Eliminating Device for Windshields. His new device included heating the inside of the windshields with air and adding a bracket for the casing to support this air pocket between an inlit and outlet placed against the windshield. The air would then be recirculated. We’re not sure what became of his patent.

In 1936 the Lexington Minutemen newspaper printed a comment that Mr and Mrs Earl Shackford of Bow street were moving to 27 Curve Street in Lexington.

Something must have occurred in the relationship of Earl and Rose around 1939 as Earl was sent to jail for contempt of court for not paying a $25/week support fee to his wife Rose. Apparently he found $200 and was then released from jail. Sometime thereafter he moved to Nashua, New Hampshire from which he registered for the draft on April 27, 1942. He listed his mother in Boston as the person who would be able to always know his address. Rose remained in Lexington where she was very active in the Daughters of the American Revolution – may have been part of the WPA Project where she was employed.

Earl moved to Danforth Road in Nashua that same year (1942) where he is listed living with Phyllis W for many years. In 1948 he was recognized in an article in July 1948 as the manager of an Sheet Metal Products Company that created air handling, dust collecting, and ventilating fans in the old Esterbrook-Anderson shoe plant. In 1950 we find him in the Nashua census listed as never having been married.

Earl died in Nashua on July 3, 1953 at the age of 57 of probable cardiac disease. Obituaries were published in Nashua and Boston. This obituary was published in the Nashua Telegraph. Interestingly the obituaries list his living siblings but do not mention that he had two living daughters at the time of his death. We also believe his father may have been living.

Earl Shackford, Sheet Metal Co Head, Succumbs

Earl W Shackford, owner of the Nashua Sheet Metal Products died at his home on the Danforth rd at a late hour Friday night. He was born in Boston, Mass, on March 17, 1896 son of William J and Alice B. (Wright) Shackford,
Mr Shackford had been a resident of this city for the past15 years.He had operated a successful sheet metal business here and was well known throughtout the state.
The surviving relatives include two sisters, Mrs. George E. Jones, Westwood, Mass; Mrs Catherine Scott, Cambridge, Mass; two brothers, Henry of Cambridge, Mass; Hobart Shackford of Quincy, Mass. Also several nieces and nephews.
Friends may call at the Davis Funeral home 1 Lock st, on Monday and Tuesday evenings during the hours of 7 until 9.

Earl was buried in the Pine Grove Cemetery in North Weare, New Hampshire.

CHILDREN:

Marie Virginia Shackford (1918-1993) – married William J Lucas

Rose Shackford (1923-1923)

Lorraine Alyece Shackford (1926-2009) – married Alexander V Staniewicz

All posts on this website are a work in progress and are updated and/or corrected as new information is found. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or corrections. We’d love it if you’d like the post below– you can also subscribe to future blog posts below or follow new posts at https://www.facebook.com/ShackfordGenealogy/ if you wish. Thanks!

SOURCES:

1900 United States Federal Census, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, population schedule, Boston, enumeration district (ED) 1268, Sheet No 18, family 339, William Shackford; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 1 November

1910 United States Federal Census, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, population schedule, Boston, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 743, Sheet No 30A, dwelling 377, family 673, William J Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 24 November 2015)

1920 United States Federal Census, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, population schedule, Boston, enumeration district (ED) 453, Sheet No 2, 128 Adams, dwelling 17, family 32, Earle W Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 24 March 2026).

“$200 Frees Husband on Contempt Charge,” The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts), 19 September 1939, Earl W Shackford; digital image, Proquest (https://www.proquest.com/hnpnewyorkbostonglobe1/ : accessed 27 March 2026).

Cambridge Chronicle (Cambridge, Massachusetts), 14 April 1917; digital images, Cambridge Public Library (http://cambridge.dlconsulting.com : accessed 4 June 2013).

“Earl Shackford, Sheet Metal Co Head, Succumbs,” Nashua Telegraph (Nashua, New Hampshire), 6 July 1953, Earl W Shackford; digital images, Newspapers.com (newscomwc.newspapers.com : accessed 27 March 2026).

“Eight New Industries Thriving at Old Anderson Shoe Factory Building,” Nashua Telegraph (Nashua, New Hampshire), 29 July 1948, Earl W Shackford; digital images, Newspapers.com (newscomwc.newspapers.com : accessed 27 March 2026).

“LAST OF SCHOOL GRADUATIONS,” The Cambridge Chronicle (Cambridge, Massachusetts), 25 June 1910, Earl William Shackford; digital images, Fulton History (fultonhistory.com : accessed 28 March 2026).

Massachusetts “Massachusetts Births and Christenings, 1639-1915,” database, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 28 June 2015), Earle W Shackford, https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/F4FG-W38.

Massachusetts, State Vital Records, 1841-1920, , Earl William Shackford m Rosanna Marie Cook, 19 April 1917; images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 28 September 2013).

“Massachusetts, U.S., Boston Archdiocese Roman Catholic Sacramental Records, 1789-1920,” database, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 March 2026), Earl William Shackford.

Massachusetts, World War I Selective Service System draft registration cards),” digital images, FamilySearch (FamilySearch.org : accessed 1 November 2025), Earl William Shackford.

“PERSONALITEMS,” The Lexington Minute-Men (Lexington, Massachusetts), 20 February 1936, Mr and Mrs Earl Shackford; digtal images, Cary Memorial Library (https://lexingtonpl.advantage-preservation.com : accessed 27 March 2026).

Shackford Samuel Burnham, “Shackford Genealogy Manuscript,” # 551 William Josiah Shackford; SG SHA 5, Folder (56) William Shackford, New England Historical and Genealogical Society (donated 13 Oct 1925), Boston, Massachusetts.

“U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995,” database, Ancestry.com (www/ancestry.com : accessed 28 March 2026), Earl W Shackford; Boston, Massachusetts, City Directory, 1931.

“United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942,” digital image, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 24 April 2014), Earl William Shackford

Copyright 2026 Joanne Shackford Parkes (sharing a link to this post is appreciated but please do not copy this material and paste it elsewhere – the blog is updated and/or corrected as new information is found). 

Reviewed/updated on

Around the age of eleven she began participating in poultry contests and she won prizes for most eggs hatched. She was also recognized for the best preserves. At the age of twelve she won multiple contests related to canning and on October 25, 1916 when she was thirteen she won awards for her essay “How I Raised My Pig.” She named her pig Pat because he was born on St. Patrick’s day. The photo in the article about her pig was of her taking samples of her canned fruit to a exhibit in Springfield, Massachusetts. That year she sold 218 jars of her canned products.

Dorothy continued to participate in local and County Fairs winning multiple awards for canned products and pig raising.

When WWI started, fifteen year old Dorothy set an example in the community canning 1,159 pints of food products. She was recognized for following all the rules of food administration by using the minimal amount of sugar in her canning processes. The variety of food she produced was long – string beans, green peas, sweet corn, little beets, carrots, ripe tomato, pumpin, sqush, berries, strawberries, rapberries, rhubarb, apple, jellies, chicken, port, mixed pickles, and crabapple pickles. And at the same time she won the county fair in Hancock for the best loaf of bread.

Following graduation from high school in Ellsworth, Dorothy attended the Castine Normal School and where she trained as a teacher. During the summers she opened a tea room at her home and. in the winter of 1922 she taught fifth and sixth grade in Southwest Harbor.

On October 27, 1926, Dorothy married Millard Bowden, son of Herbert Bowden of Bucksport. This wedding announcement was published in The American Ellsworth on November 3, 1926.

  The marriage of Dorothy A., daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Increase Shackford of Ellsworth Falls, and Millard B. Bowden, took place at the home of the bride’s parents on Wednesday, Oct. 27 at 4 p. m.  The double ring service was used by Rev J. E. Besant.
  The bride and groom were attended by little Wallace Foss.  The bride wore a charming dress of gray satin trimmed with marble and carried a bouquet of carnations.  The living room was tastefully decorated with blue and white crepe paper and evergreen, the bridal couple standing under an arch with a huge bell in the centre.
  Following the ceremony, cake and ice-cream were served.  The bride received many presents of silver, cut glass and linen, showing the affection and esteem in which the young couple are held.
  The following were present at the wedding:  Mrs. Gleason Foss, Mrs. Emery Strout, Mrs Chandler Hagerthy, Mr. and Mrs. Allan Walls, Mr and Mrs Richmond Shackford, Mr. and Mrs Increase Shackford, Miss Mabel Shackford.
  Mr. Bowden is a son of Herbert Bowden of Bucksport.  Mrs. Bowden is a graduate of E. H. S., class of ’19, and Castine normal, ’23.  She is at present teaching at Lakewood.

The couple lived with Dorothy’s parents in 1922, and 1930 while Millard worked as a truckdriver. In 1940 we find Millard and Dorothy living on a farm with their son and her mother Myrna. Millard enlisted in the military in 1943 and served in World War II. Sometime thereafter we believe that Millard and Dorothy divorced as we find them living in different residences. We don’t find Dorothy in the 1950 census but find Millard in Portland listed as divorced. We find Dorothy working as a cashier living at 43 Merrill Street for many years.

Dorothy lived to the age of 83 and died on March 15, 1986. She was buried in the Mayberry Cemetery in Windham Center, Maine. Dorothy’s obituary was published in the Portland Evening Express on March 17, 1986. It reads:

Dorothy Shackford Bowden, 83, of 43 Merrill St., died yesterday in a local hospital.

She was born at Ellsworth Falls, a daughter of Increase C. and Myra Grace Shackford, attended Ellsworth schools and graduated from Ellsworth High School. She received a teaching degree from Castine Normal School.

She taught in the Millinocket school system for seven years. She moved here in 1940 and worked for Rines Brothers in the credit department for 30 years. She retired in 1975.

She was a member of the Maine Credit Women’s Association.

Surviving are a son, Leonard Shackford Bowden of Windham, five grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.

This photo of Dorothy’s gravestone was recently added to Find A Grave by DBB who gave permission to share photos taken. We greatly appreciate the opportunity to see and share images of gravestones of the SHACKFORDs we research and blog about.

CHILDREN:

Leonard Shackford Bowden (1928-1995) – married Joan Burnham

RESEARCH TO DO:

Find a copy of Dorothy’s obituary.

All posts on this website are a work in progress and are updated and/or corrected as new information is found. Please contact me if you have any suggestions or corrections. We’d love it if you’d like the post below– you can also subscribe to future blog posts below or follow new posts at https://www.facebook.com/ShackfordGenealogy/ if you wish. Thanks!

SOURCES:

1910 United States Federal Census, Hancock County, Maine, population schedule, Ellsworth, Ward 3, ; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed ).

1930 United States Federal Census, Hancock County, Maine, population schedule, Ellsworth City, Ward 3, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 5-17, Sheet No 3A (penned), 117 (stamped), North Street, dwelling 68, family 68, Increase Shackford; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 December 2013).

1940 United States Federal Census, Hancock County, Maine, population schedule, Ward 3, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration District No 8-24, Sheet No 2A, family 30, Millard B Bowden; digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 30 December 2013).

1950 United States Federal Census, Cumberland County, Maine, population schedule, Portland, enumeration district (ED) 17-40, Sheet Number 16, 248 Cumberland Ave, Millard B Bowden; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

“BORN.,” The Ellsworth American (Ellsworth, Maine), 12 September 1928, Leonard Shackford Bowden; newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

“BOYS’ AND GIRLS’ CLUBS,” The Ellsworth American (Ellsworth, Maine), 23 February 1916, Dorothy Shackford; newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

“CANS 1.159 PINTS OF FOOD PRODUCTS,” Portland Sunday Telegram (Portland, Maine), 6 October 1918, Dorothy A Shackford; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

“CHRISTMAS OBSERVANCE,” The Ellsworth American (Ellsworth, Maine), 27 December 1911, Dorothy Shackford; newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

“Dorothy Shackford Bowden,” Evening Express (Portland, Maine), 17 March 1986, Dorothy S Bowden; Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

“Eastern State Normal School Notes,” Bangor Daily News (Bangor, Maine), 31 January 1922, Dorothy Shackford teaching; digital images, newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/ : accessed 22 March 2026).

“ELLSWORTH FALLS,” The Ellsworth American (Ellsworth, Maine), 22 March 2026, Dorothy A Shackford; newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

Find a Grave, Find A Grave, digital images (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed 6 February 2016), Dorothy S. Shackford Bowden, Find A Grave Memorial# 113483716.

“HOW I RAISED MY PIG,” The Ellsworth American (Ellsworth, Maine), 25 October 1916, Dorothy Shackford; newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

“Maine, Death Index, 1960-1997,” database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 6 February 2016), Dorothy S Bowden.

“MAINE SCHOOLS,” Sun-Journal (Lewiston, Maine), 10 December 1920, Dorothy Shackford; digital images, Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

“METHODIST FAIR,” The Ellsworth American (Ellsworth, Maine), 6 October 1915, Dorothy Shackford; newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

The Portland Suburban Directory (Beverly, Mass: Crowley & Lunt, 1945), page 110, Millard S Bowden; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 13 February 2015).

“POULTRY CONTEST,” The Ellsworth American (Ellsworth, Maine), 7 October 1914, Dorothy Shackford; newspapers.com (newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

“Pre-Nuptial Shower,” Daily Kennebec Journal (Kennebec, Maine), 16 June 1926, Dorothy Shackford – pre-nuptial shower; digital images, Chronicling America (https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ : accessed 3 September 2023).

“SHACKFORD – BOWDEN,” The American Ellsworth (Ellsworth, Maine), 3 November 1926; digital images, Chronicling America (https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ : accessed 3 September 2023).

Shackford Samuel Burnham, “Shackford Genealogy Manuscript,” # 393 Increase J Shackford; SG SHA 5, Folder (56) William Shackford, New England Historical and Genealogical Society (donated 13 Oct 1925), Boston, Massachusetts.

“THIRD CONTEST ON AT ORONO,” Bangor Daily Commercial (Bangor, Maine), 20 December 1916, Dorothy Shackford; Newspapers.com (Newspapers.com : accessed 22 March 2026).

Copyright 2026 Joanne Shackford Parkes (sharing a link to this post is appreciated but please do not copy this material and paste it elsewhere – the blog is updated and/or corrected as new information is found). 

Reviewed/updated on