53Ancestors52Weeks Week 7 Theme: Unusual Source. Or, How a Weird Tale Solved a Family Mystery (Harriet Bluett Hurd)

 3 June 1935 Nevada State Journal

  This week's theme is "Unusual Source".  Genealogists use many sources to find out facts about their relatives' lives:  Census reports, birth certificates, death certificates, funeral records and city directories can give up a great deal of information to a family historian and help create a basic outline or timeline of a person's life span. But, these resources can be a little "dry".  How do you add a little personality to the dry facts? 

  One of my favorite resources lately has been local newspapers.  They give wonderful and  personal details that  help make people that lived their lives long ago all the more real.  You can really get a feel for  their personalities, their beliefs, their interests and sometimes even hear things in their own words if they are quoted. You may be really  lucky and get to see a photograph! 

  Using newspaper articles as a resource is not that unusual in genealogical research. But,  newspaper stories can  give up unusual details that might help answer questions that have gone unanswered through the usual methods.   I found out something very unusual from a little snippet  in the Nevada State Journal just the other day, when I was searching for articles about another cousin, Alta Powers.  It was certainly a weird story, but it helped confirm a fact that I thought was true, but couldn't prove with the usual resources. 

  For the last several years I have been researching my Hurd/Bluett families that came from Pennsylvania to California and Nevada in the mid 1800's.  They were a hardy bunch that ended up living in the mining town of Virginia City, Nevada.  My Great Great Great Grandmother was Harriet Bluett Hurd.  She and her husband had a total of 10 children, and she came to the west from Pennsylvania not once, but twice.  The first trip the family made was across the Isthmus of Panama and up the coast to San Francisco, and then by stage to Nevada City, California.  Her husband died in a mine accident in Virginia City in 1876, after the family had gone back to Pennsylvania and made yet another trip back out west to settle in Virginia City.    She lived there with her remaining children until her death in 1893 at the age of 58.  

  I had several nice resources on her life to work from, including 40 years worth of US  census records, census population records from Pennsylvania, and local County birth and death records.  I even found several newspaper snippets about her trips to visit family in Nevada City, and her last illness and eventually her death.  I did not, however, have any records of her place of burial.  I had many records of her children's final resting places, but not hers nor her husbands.  The family story was that she was buried in Virginia City, but no one could locate her actual grave. 

  My mother tells  the story of how she and her uncle and grandmother (my GGG Grandmother Harriet's granddaughter)  drove up to Virginia City, Nevada  from Nevada City, California (a day trip to be sure) in the 50's.  They went to the cemetery trying to find where the grave was.  My mom recounts the story..."I can see all of us tramping around the cemetery with the wild winds whipping the long grass around.  Spooky, especially when you are a kid!"  I too, have been tramping around that cemetery looking for relatives, with no luck.  And yes, the cemetery can be spooky with its constant winds, weeds and sagebrush. 

The Silver Terrace Cemetery Virginia City, Nevada.  From Travel Nevada.

  As I was looking for articles with the name of Alta Powers (I had been researching her story at the time) on Newspapers.com during their latest free weekend,  this headline jumped out at me. GROUND COLLAPSES AS RENO GIRL PUTS FLOWERS ON GRAVE. What? Whose grave? Was she Ok? I didn't even have Harriet Bluett Hurd on my radar that day. As I read on, the article gave the exact relationship to the deceased...her grandmother.  That would have been Harriet Bluett Hurd!  It also gave the location of the grave as "near the old Mexico Mine" in Virginia City.  Well, that would have been very close to the vicinity of the Silver Terrace Cemetery.  The grave was probably over one of the many tunnels from the mine, and the ground gave way.   And, thank goodness, my first cousin 3x removed was ok after the ordeal. 

   Considering that there are hundreds of unmarked graves in this cemetery, and at that time the ground was still under threat of collapsing, I will probably never determine the exact location of her burial.  But, now I do know that she was, in fact, buried in Virginia City in 1893.  Her husband is most likely there, too.  Too bad this very strange and weird story didn't get passed on to my Great Grandmother! 

  

Relationship Reference:  Me->Margaret Hansen Boothby->Harold Hansen->Vere Burrows Hansen->Elizabeth Jane Hurd Burrows->Harriet Bluett Hurd

Alta Powers was the daughter of Hattie Hurd Powers, whose mother was Harriet Bluett Hurd. Harriet was a younger sister of Elizabeth Jane Hurd Burrows. 

The Hurd Family: Valuable Heirlooms Donated To Bowers Mansion (Hurd)

 

An excerpt from the article published in the Nevada State Journal 7 March 1951

  Imagine my surprise when I found this gem of an article in the Nevada State Journal!  As I did more research, I learned that more than 500 families have donated period furnishings that are now housed in Bowers Mansion.  Within this story is a mention of the famous Steinway that was moved from the Meacham house to the Piper Opera House the night Emma Nevada gave her concert in Virginia City (3 December, 1885).  The Hurd and Powers families were very proud of that piano.  

Bowers Mansion taken in the 1860's Nevada Magazine July-August 2014

  Bowers Mansion was built by Sandy and Eilley Bowers who made their fortune in silver mining on the Comstock.  They chose to build their grand home at the base of the Sierra Nevada Mountains overlooking Washoe Lake in 1862.  By 1868 the silver mines had played out and before Sandy could sell his mine he died of a lung condition. Eilley turned the mansion into a public resort to help pay the bills.  She advertised the mansion as having fine baths, a piano, an extensive library, a billiard table and all the comforts of home. Two manmade ponds were available for use and there were landscaped grounds to enjoy. By 1873 the Mansion had become a premier destination with picnickers and "Pioneers" who came every year to reminisce about the early days on the Comstock.  Sadly, by 1876 Eilley lost everything at a public auction, but for the next quarter century owners and managers opened the mansion to the public.  The V &T Railroad offered affordable excursion tickets allowing locals to swim, dance and picnic as they did in the past. (Nevada Magazine July-August 2014). 

  The  Historic Bowers Mansion continues to be a summer respite for locals, as it is now located within Bowers Mansion Regional Park (Washoe County, Nevada). You are able to take tours of the home,  picnic, swim, play and enjoy the grounds May through October.  School tours are very popular, also.  

 Here is the article as it appeared in the paper.....

Original Bedstead, Other Valuables Given To Bowers By Hurd Family

 "Last week, Mrs. B.R Addenbrooke, curator of the Bowers Mansion, received some precious heirlooms that were part of the mansion's original furniture." 

  "They were gifts of the 'three Hurd girls', two of whom are living today in Reno.  Mrs. Annie Hurd Smith and Miss Edith Hurd, two of the well known 'three Hurd girls' in Virginia City in the heyday of the Comstock, live at 120 Stevenson St. in Reno.  Unfortunately many of the pictures of those historic days which the sisters had were destroyed in the flood last winter."  (The Thanksgiving Flood of 1950)

  Piano Cover

  "Now, on the piano in the Bowers Mansion is the piano cover that covered the Steinway piano sent around Cape Horn to James Fair, one of the 'Big Four' of those early days. This is a gift of Alta Powers, of Oakland."

  "It is a large cover, 6x7 feet, of beautiful tapestry. Its colors are blue and tan, and completely around the cover is a deep fringe. The piano was purchased by Robert Meacham, the only coal and wood dealer in Virginia City at that time, and by him given to Alta Powers, his granddaughter, a daughter of Mrs. Ina Powers Sample, of Pasadena, California. (Correction:  Ina was Alta's older sister, not her mother). Mrs. Sample died a few years ago, and the piano was disposed of, but Alta Powers kept the piano cover, which is now the property of Bowers Mansion."

Other Gifts

  "From Mrs. Annie Hurd Smith and Miss Edith Hurd, the mansion received some exquisite pillow slips, bordered in crocheted lace seven inches wide, with insertions set between clusters of hand run tucks.  At the same time Miss Hurd and Mrs.  Smith gave Bowers Mansion some pillow shams, less ornate, embroidered in turkey red thread, and some splashers, fringed and embroidered in turkey red hem are handmade, indicating that the women of that day had much time to spend on work of this kind."

  "But probably the most valued gift received from the members of the Hurd family was one of the original bedsteads that was purchased for the mansion by Eilley and Sandy Bowers, bought from them by Robert Meacham and in turn turned over to the Hurd family. The chair, table and bureau of the early days that were part of the bedroom suite are in Pasadena, but the original bed has never left Nevada, and in the spring will be placed in a suitable room in Bowers Mansion."

 Former Teacher

  "Edith Hurd, who came from Pennsylvania to Virginia City when she was six months old, knew the 'Big Four' of that era very well.  She taught school later in Virginia City.  Her father, William Hurd, was a mining engineer in Virginia City and her brother, John H. Hurd, ran a hoist in the old C and C Mine."

  "The 'Three Hurd Girls' are the survivors of a family of 11.  Their father, William Hurd was killed in an accident in Virginia City.  Mrs. Hattie Hurd Powers was one of the three sisters and Alta Powers is her daughter."

  "Both Miss Gloria Mapes, president of the furnishing committee, and Mrs. Addenbrooke, curator of Bowers Mansion, were very happy yesterday when they got the history of the old bedstead, one of the original pieces of furniture in the mansion.  The response of the 'old timers' who wish to see the mansion restored to its original splendor has been remarkable, and the work of completing the job has been speeded up through the cooperation of many to whom the early day history of Nevada has become highly important."

  All genealogists have to do lists.  Making a phone call to the curator of Bowers Mansion in May (they are currently closed) is now on my list of things to do.  I would love to see if they have any of these items still in their possession, and determine exactly which bedstead belonged in our family.  With COVID restrictions being lifted, I may even get to take a tour!  I have to admit; I have lived in this area for almost 40 years and I have not yet been inside Bowers Mansion.  Now, I have an extra special reason to do some exploring.  Field trip!!

  There are several interesting articles and videos on the Bowers Mansion website through Washoe County.  I especially recommend the article from Travel Nevada entitled Legendary Nevadans: Eilley Bowers of Washoe Valley and the video from Wild Nevada (Episode 509) where you can see the furnishings and accessories inside the mansion.  The clip is about 8 minutes into the video.  The site can be reached at: 

https://www.washoecounty.us/parks/specialty_facilities/bowers_mansion.php

  These are just more tidbits of information I have found from my research that remind me everyday of what a unique connection my family has to this area I have called home and have loved for 36 years.  I hope my grandchildren down the line will  appreciate this also.  I bet my Great Grandmother Hansen never once thought about having a great granddaughter of the future who would be so interested in learning about where she came from and the people that helped get her there!

Relationship Reference:  Me->Margaret Hansen Boothby->Harold Hansen->Vere Burrows Hansen->Elizabeth Jane Hurd Burrows.  

The "Three Hurd Girls" were Elizabeth Jane's younger sisters.  Her sister Hattie Hurd Powers was the mother of Ina and Alta Powers. 

The Hurd Family: A Night with Emma Nevada, a Relic of Historic Import and Sentimental Treasures from the Comstock (Hurd)

 

 Emma Nevada in Paris circa 1880 from Nevada Magazine March-April 2020

26 November 1885 Nevada State Journal

  Emma Nevada has several connections to the Hurd family, oddly enough.  She was born Emma Wixom February 7, 1859 in the Alpha Mining camp near Nevada City, California.  The Hurds were living in Nevada City at the time.  Emma's father moved to Austin, Nevada a few years later where Emma's singing talent was discovered when she was just 5 years old. She went on to study voice and language at Mills College in California.  Her beautiful soprano voice took her from Oakland to Europe.  In 1880 she changed her name to Emma Nevada and began an illustrious European career singing in prestigious operas and performing for royalty.  In 1885, she returned to the US and performed in Austin and Virginia City.  In 1902 she performed at her Alma Mater Mills College, as well as in Nevada City.   She died in 1940 at the age of 81, the pride and joy of Nevada. (excerpts taken from Nevada Magazine March-April 2020 issue by Eric Cachinero).  

  An article written in the Reno Evening Gazette 31 July, 1943 gives some insight into the other connection to Emma Nevada.  The family piano is part of the story, and I am sure the Meacham and possibly the Hurd families were in attendance at the opera house on November 26, 1885 to hear the great Emma Nevada.  The family must have been very proud of this event, as it comes up in several stories related through the years.  The article also gives us a  glimpse of what kind of art and furniture was found in Hattie Powers' home!  It is a long, flowery article, and I have condensed it a bit,  but is worth the read.  

ARTS AND ARTISTS

"A relic of historic import and many sentimental treasures which whisper of yesterdays on the Comstock lend special interest to the home of Mrs. Hattie L. Powers, 120 Stevenson Street, Reno." 

 "Strains of 'Tis the Last Rose of Summer', 'Home Sweet Home', and other loved old-time melodies stir one's mind while viewing an impressive large square Steinway piano whose solid ivory keys still gleam their whiteness.  In the early days of Nevada's history, it was shipped from New York, traveling the long distance around Cape Horn to grace the home of James G. Fair, one of the 'Big Four' on the Comstock. Later when Fair's household furnishings were being sold, it was purchased by Mr. Powers' step-father, Robert S. Meacham, pioneer lumberman of the Comstock, who began supplying lumber to the mines in the late 60's  and lived there until 1912."

  "The piano was once used on the stage of Piper's Opera House for it so happened that when Emma Nevada came to Virginia City to sing, those many years ago, there was no Steinway piano for her accompanist.  Since this famed Nevada singer would have none other than a Steinway, Meacham's piano was moved into the opera house for her performance."

 

  "In the Powers' parlor are old time paintings by Mrs. Meacham and by another member of the family, Carrie A. Hurd, sister of Mrs. Powers. There is also a flower study in watercolor by Kate Mansfield, a Comstock painter of the Gay Nineties.  We remembered reading in the Comstock's famous newspaper, 'The Territorial Enterprise', under the date of November 27, 1895, an item which read, 'Miss Kate Mansfield has opened a studio on the corner of B and Taylor streets in the Mallon building and is prepared to give lessons in all kinds of art work, also a special class in drawing for children.  All kinds of decorative work done reasonably.  Portraits in oil, watercolor and crayon.  For particulars, call at the studio.' "

  "........Attracting attention in the dining room is a very interesting oil painting by Mrs. Meacham painted under the tutelage  of Kate Mansfield..it depicts a dining table  spread with embroidered white cloth and laden with various fruits and dainty cakes."

  "In the bedroom is a sturdily constructed marble-topped dresser of the Civil War period, brought down from the Comstock, which boasts a secret drawer. A fine desk in the dining room is a Virginia City relic which has happily withstood the wear of many years."

 

  "Adorning a bedroom in the Powers' home is a large plate glass mirror whose very wide silvery frame displays the joint artistry of Kate Mansfield and Mrs. Meacham in the form of a lovely spray of chrysanthemums painted in oil, a few of whose autumn tinted blooms extend onto the mirror. It is a charming example of home decoration in the Gay Nineties."

  "In those 'oil-lamp' days, it was the mark of a lady to follow some artistic pursuit and Grandmother Meacham painted on china as well as canvas. Her many fine articles of hand-painted china attest to her marked aptitude for the work.  Whole sets of decorative china, some of which are the exquisite, fragile 'egg-shell' have been handed down to her granddaughters, Miss Alta Powers of Reno and Ina Powers Sample of Pasadena, California. Unique indeed to the present generation is a kidney-shaped set of 'bone' dishes used to receive bones from meat courses and there is a score of butter pats bearing charming decorations by this pioneer Comstock mother who sought beauty for her home in this frontier community." 

 "Mrs. Meacham devised a design which included the Meacham monogram and this was used on a set of silverware made at Schreve's in San Francisco from bullion she had sent down from the Comstock Lode."

  "Mrs. Powers possess a necklace whose pendant is a five-dollar gold piece marked on one side with Grandfather Meacham's monogram R S M."

  "Still another heirloom which has descended to one of the granddaughters is a quaint heart-shaped locket on which is pivoted a gold nugget taken from the Ophir Mine on the Comstock and it is surrounded by tiny turquoise stones and chip rubies.  A token of affection, it was presented years ago by Grandfather Meacham to Grandmother Meacham." 

  

 According to Alta Powers in her memoirs (previous post) the piano was handed down to first Alta, and then went to Ina's house in Pasadena. After Ina's death, Alta sold the piano to a "Pasadena lady whom I knew would treasure it and take care of it".  I hope she did.  

  Schreve and Company is still in business in San Francisco on Post Street.  They have been in business since 1852.  By the 1860's they had established their reputation as the finest silver and goldsmith in America, and became one of the more elite jewelry businesses in San Francisco. Their building on the corner of Post and Grant was a brand new "earthquake proof" building which opened in March of 1906, and was one of the few buildings to survive not only the earthquake, but the fire on April 18, 1906.  After the earthquake the company reopened and eventually  introduced their first line of  flatware, as well the publication of  their first series of illustrated catalogs. (shreve.com/our-story).  Grandma Meacham died in 1912, so she could have devised her design for the set of silverware from Schreve's after 1906.  

  If you have lived in or visited Reno or Sparks you may remember this Golden Rooster from John Ascuaga's Nugget.  It is solid (not hollow) 18 carat gold. Weight is 15 pounds.  Newman's Silver Shop of Reno and Schreve's of San Francisco teamed together to create this masterpiece for the Nugget Casino.  It was auctioned off in 2014, selling for $234,000.  (Reno Gazette Journal  27 July, 2014). 

What a unique connection to the treasures of Grandma Meacham!

  

The Hurd Family: Stories From the Comstock During the Turn of the Century (Hurd)

Ina and Alta Hutchinson Virginia City, Nevada Circa 1900  Shared by Mimi Swaney on Ancestry.com

  Ina and Alta Hutchinson were the daughters of  Hattie Hurd Powers and Avery Rhodes Powers.  They were both born in Virginia City, Nevada.  Ina was born in 1895 and Alta was born in 1899.  In 1900 the family lived on the east side of "C" Street with Robert Meacham and Altana Powers Meacham.  Robert Meacham was the step father to Avery, and owned the local lumber yard in town.  Avery also worked at the lumberyard as an accountant.  

                                                     Ina Powers circa 1897-8 shared by Mimi Swaney on Ancestry.com

  Ina attended the Fourth Ward School and graduated in 1912 in a class with 6 students.  She went on to graduate from the University of Nevada, Reno, and then taught at Southside School before continuing her education at the University of California, Berkeley in 1932.  She worked as a speech therapist, and as a teacher of the deaf.  She was affiliated with the John Tracy Clinic for the Hard of Hearing.  She also taught at Pasadena Junior College.  She passed away in 1948 at the age of 53.   

  

Ina Powers before 1920 shared by Mimi Swaney on Ancestry.com

  Alta Powers worked as a telegraph operator, a stenographer and a bookkeeper in Reno, Nevada.  She lived with her parents in Virginia City and then later with her aunts Annie and Edith in Reno.  She lived with her mother in Reno when her parent's  marriage ended and Avery remarried.  Later in life, she moved to California, living in Oakland and Pasadena.  She led a very busy social life, and was a member of several social and business groups.  She and her friend Lois Cloud were mentioned in many newspaper snippets during the 30's and 40's.  She loved to travel and was an amateur photographer.  She was even on a basketball team in 1932...

13 February 1932 Nevada State Journal

  Alta was also a keeper of the family stories.  I was fortunate to find her typed memoirs on Ancestry.com.  These are priceless, as they really give a feel for living on the Comstock at the turn of the century.  Pay attention to the story of the piano, as it comes up later in the story of the Hurd girls.  This is the second set of Memoirs; I cannot find the first set.  This was shared by an Ancestry member named azbombero in 2014.  

  

    

Alta Powers as a young lady shared by Mimi Swaney on Ancestry.com

Alta Powers shared by Mimi Swaney on Ancestry.com

  Alta passed away in 1999 at the age of 99, and is buried in Inglewood, California. It looks like she and her friend Lois Cloud were residents of a residential care facility in Jackson, California towards the end of their lives.   Alta was buried in the same mausoleum section as Lois at the Inglewood Park Cemetery. 

Relationship Reference:  Me->Margaret Hansen Boothby->Harold Hansen->Vere Burrows Hansen->Elizabeth Jane Hurd Burrows.  Hattie Hurd Powers was the second to youngest sister of Elizabeth Jane.  

  What's next? .....Alta was also a keeper of "the stuff".  What happened to the Hurd belongings?  And where was Harriet Hurd buried?