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Notes for Catherine Kyes: Birthdate from Cradle Roll Certificate for the Unitarian Sundy School in Peterborough New Hampshire. The certificate was signed on April, 1915, by both Isobel and Samuel L. Elberfeld, the pastor as well as future parents in law. [Broderbund Family Archive #110, Vol. 1 A-L, Ed. 5, Social Security Death Index: U.S., Date of Import: Mar 14, 1998, Internal Ref. #1.111.5.69486.72] Individual: Elberfeld, Catherine Social Security #: 012-36-2966 SS# issued in: Massachusetts Birth date: May 23, 1913 Death date: Oct 3, 1990 ZIP Code of last known residence: 01581 Primary location associated with this ZIP Code: Westborough, Massachusetts Worcester Evening Gazette 11/13/72 Retired Couple Finds Plenty of Adventure By BARBARA BALFOUR The Evening Gazette WESTBORO -. Mr. and Mrs. John Elberfeld of 26 Grove St., who both retired last spring, don't miss the old jobs at all. ''We're having a ball,'' Mrs. Elberfeld said yesterday. The couple sailed a new 22-foot fiberglass Venture from Boston along the Maine coast on a two-week trip this summer. Wednesday they returned from a 10-day trip to Morocco. Friday they left on a swing around New England colleges to recruit transfer students for the Central New England College of Technology. This is the new college which grants a four-year degree, and is an extension of Worcester Junior College. Dean for 26 Years The technology college is Elberfeld's baby. For 26 years as dean of Worcester Junior College he felt the need of an additional, degree-granting institution for technical and engineering students. Although he retired in June, he is still a consultant and on the board of Trustees. Mrs. Elberfeld for 15 years was librarian at Westboro High School. 'Though I enjoyed the school tremendously, I was glad to retire," she says. 'Fifteen years of getting up at 6:30 am. is enough. Where John and I had always worked in educational institutions, we were used to 1ong summers, so there wasn't the feeling some wives of retired men have of what to do with a man around the house all day, that I-married-not-for-lunch bit." One of the nicest things about retirement, the Elberfelds think, is that you can do things on impulse. Trips don't have to be fitted into schedules and planned a long time. Impulse Trip The Moroccan outing came about because of a brochure Elberfeld received about a charter plane trip sponsored by the Massachusetts Society for Professional Engineers. It seemed off-season and inexpensive, so in a matter of days, they were up and running. The Elberfelds are fascinated with Morocco. They saw big cities such as Tangier and Casablanca that don't seem much different from big cities anywhere. And they got inland to small villages and a town like Marakeesh. "I felt as if I were walking around in the Bible in Marakeesh," Mrs. Elberfeld said. "Women holding babies ride on donkeys with their husbands walking beside, just like Mary and Joseph. Camels pull plows, women wash at the river's edge. In the market place at Marakeesh, the country people come in for miles around to watch acro-bats, trained birds, and snake charmers. They even cluster around story tellers, which touched me." A high point of the trip was a get-together with Doug Teschner of Westboro, now serving with the Peace Corps in Rabat. He took the Elberfelds to a French restaurant and helped them buy a rug. Bargaining is an exhausting performance in Morocco, Mrs. Elberfeld said. But she said she got cannier with each purchase. In almost no time, a string of Sahara amber that was $10 came down to $2. Article written for the Willows Retirement Community Newspaper around 1989 in Westboro, MA Catherine Kyes Elberfeld "John, no more base ball today," warned Mrs. Elberfeld. "Catherine, the new baby next door, is out and you might hit a ball into her carriage." Ten year old John reluctantly shouldered his bat and sought a distant place in Peterborough, N. H. to practice. He probably thought all babies were a nuisance, especially the one next door. Catherine grew into a healthy three year old, and John became an even better ball player when Rev. Elberfeld, a Unitarian minister, and his wife moved to another parish. Catherine's parents were good friends of the Elberfelds and kept in touch with their old neighbors. Dr. Kyes was the dentist in Peterborough and counted the populace as his patients. The Kyes lived in town, but had a cottage on Sunset Lake at the base of Crotched Mountain. They spent the summers there just a twenty minute drive from the doctor's office. Later, Catherine's children had happy times there, often treated at breakfast to hot homemade doughnuts by their Grandmother Kyes. Now it is a favorite place for Catherine's grandchildren. Only three weeks ago she opened the cottage so her Radcliffe granddaughter and friends could have a skating party on the frozen lake. Catherine remembers her own happy time of growing up in Peterborough, the school's good teachers, the good behavior of the students and the fine academic standards. An added joy for her was dancing school. Her only complaint about life: too much parental supervision. But being an only child she had to put up with it. Imagine her delight when, at fifteen, she was allowed to go to a summer conference of young Unitarians on Star Island, off Portsmouth, ten miles out in the Atlantic. Her anxious mother had taken her to the boat. Re-lieved she was to see John Elberfeld among the crowd. "I'm glad there's some-one I know among this group," she greeted him. "Please take care of Catherine." That evening when Catherine came down the hotel's great winding staircase to the lobby, John was waiting for her. The first dance was his. Because a man who had been to Harvard approved of her, other young men asked for dances too. It was a wonderful week for her. Soon came college days at Radcliffe. She graduated with a major in English. Her career councilor suggested that she become a librarian. She had worked in the college library for fifty cents an hour and in the summer she had been an appren-tice in a public library. She was ready to enroll in the famous one year course in library science at Simmons College to become a professional. Opportunity came for her to work in a new branch library in Rochester, N.Y. In 1928 John Elberfeld graduated from Harvard with a major in Mechanical Engineer-ing. He returned the next year to get a degree in Electrical Engineering. He had no trouble getting work with General Electric. The Great Depression was readying to shake up many careers. The lay-offs began, first at GE, at Western Electric, American Steel and Wire and on and on, until he became disillusioned with the industrial system. He thought his education might fit him for teaching. In Boston, he passed the necessary examinations and registered on the list of substitute teachers. John was living with his parents in East Boston. To see if there was a day's work for him on that list he had to be at the Board of Education by seven in the morning. One lucky break: a teacher was away for a year. John had that class. Finally through a teachers' agency he heard that Rochester Institute of Technology needed someone who could teach science and also coach the basketball team. John won the job which took him to Rochester, N.Y. At a Home Dance at R. I. T. John saw Catherine and cut in on her indignant partner. John wanted to know all about her life. They renewed their interest in the Unitarian Young People's group, went to church together and to the many activities of the church and college. Catherine was always careful to bring another girl along so John could have a great choice of friends. He seemed to be looking for someone. At last he said, "Catherine, don't bring any more friends. It's you I want to be with." And so they were married by John's father on July 8, 1939 in the biggest wedding Peterborough had ever seen. Dr. Kyes had lived there all his life. Lest they unwittingly forget a name, they printed the invitation in the newspaper, in-viting everyone. A caterer in Fitchburg managed the refreshments. On their wedding trip John and Catherine drove to Montreal, to Quebec, east to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, then home down the coast of Maine. Catherine could see how much John loved to travel. In Rochester Catherine began her career as full time wife and mother. Ann Kyes was born in 1941, John Carl in 1945. The Elberfelds enjoyed Rochester. Catherine pushed her perambulator through the parks when the city's famous lilacs were in bloom. But when John became Dean of Engineering at Worcester Junior College he and Catherine were glad to return to New England. House hunting showed up the shockingly higher prices of the area. Someone suggested the charming little town of Westborough. "Splendid!" said Catherine's mother. "Be sure to look up Cousin Mary." "Mother," Catherine remonstrated, "this is a house hunting expedition, not a time for visiting." They couldn't locate the house whose address the agent had given them. They did stop to ask Cousin Mary Brigham where to find the house. "You wouldn't want that one. It's down by the railroad tracks. Let me call Gustaf Carlson at the bank. Bankers know everything that's going on." She returned, smiling. "Mr. Carlson says a woman came into the bank today saying she mast sell her house. Her husband is being transferred. Go look at it now." "The house at 46 Grove Street was perfect for us," said Catherine. "It was within walking distance of our needs and interests. John drove our car to work in Worcester. We moved in. I lived there over forty years until the day I moved to The Willows." "Ann went to the private kindergarten run by the Woman's Club. It was in the Community House, now the headquarters of the Council on Aging. It didn't take me long to get acquainted with the parents of the other children. My life followed the pattern of many mid-twentieth century mothers. I was a Den Mother, a Girl Scout leader, member of the PTA, took my turn in the offices of the Women's Club and was active in the Unitarian Church. In 1958, during the building of the new high school way out on Fisher Street, Mr. Robinson, the school Superintendent, came to me. 'You have your degree in library science; you worked three years in a public library in Rochester. So you have your certification. Could you help me plan the new library? I'll set up a little office. You be thinking what you should do.' My John was a reasonable, considerate man. 'You worked in the children's department of a branch library and you had one course in school library work,' he pointed out 'you are within walking distance of the school. Why don't you give it a try?' "I joined the Massachusetts School Library Association and found out what they were doing. I spent half a year collecting sample and gift books given to the teachers. I managed to have something on most subjects when we moved. I orga-nized the students interested in library work into the Library Club. By June I really enjoyed the work. I enjoyed the teachers and the principal, Florence Wetherell's husband. I had to show every new class how to use the card cata-logue and the reference books. I also had to show the teachers 'the books we had which would add interest and information to their classes. The Library Club met once a month for discussions, projects and parties. We had a Snow Sculpture Contest which was judged by citizens of artistic talent. Mr. Paige, the jeweler, gave us a plaque, and always engraved the name of the winning class on it. When the next school was built I planned the library. We also had a lovely office and workroom. When my husband retired, I retired too. I had worked for fifteen years. "Ann had graduated from Radcliffe, John from Harvard. We were free to travel. We had had many trips in the fine little camper that John had built for us. Everything was as carefully organized as in the sleekest racing yacht. We taught the children to keep it so. Each of us had a particular task which made arranging camp easy. We had our first "international trip" when Ann was fourteen and John was ten years old. We drove to California with side trips to Mexico and Canada. Now John and I could have world wide trips with the travel clubs of Harvard and Radcliffe. "John really settled into retirement by buying a 1924 model T station wagon to restore to its once dashing elegance. There was adventure, perseverance and luck in finding seasoned oak for the wooden body, the right curtain material and up-holstery. He did all the work himself. We joined the Worcester Old Car Club, entered the car in shows, drove in parades and never missed the Fourth of July in Shrewsbury. John also had ideas about boats. As a young man he had sailed on the ocean. A constant visitor to boat shows, he found the perfect sailboat -a 22 foot Venture sloop, perfect for two people to sleep and to crew. We linked the initials of our two older granddaughters and called it the Heejah. Little Amy, following after, was the tender. We sailed in all kinds of weather, once making safe harbor just before a threatening hurricane. We always took a mooring at a Yacht Club and went ashore for dinner. We sailed out of Boston up and down the coasts of Massachusetts and Maine. John continued to serve on the Boards of various civic and educational organizations. He began the program of having citi-zens volunteer to help in the schools. This is the reason some Willows residents cross the street to the Hastings Elementary School to bring their skills to the teachers and children and, in turn, to receive pleasure and a few chuckles. John was tutoring three handicapped children when it was time to leave on a long planned trip to Alaska. The third day of a Wild Life Bus Tour brought them sixty-five miles into the wilderness of Denali National Park, the home of moose, mountain goats and caribou. The clouds lifted to give John a chance to snap a picture of Mt. McKinley. The bus driver was a novice. He pulled off the side of the mud road into the soft berm to let a herd of caribou cross the road. Attempt-ing to drive back onto the road brought swift tragedy: the bus rolled over and over down the slope. Mr. Elberfeld lay on the tundra for two and a half hours, Catherine beside him, until he was rescued by helicopter. His back had been broken in three places. He lived for two and a half weeks before an aneurysm ended his suffering. Life seemed shattered too for Catherine. Her children, grandchildren and the people of Westborough have been a support and comfort. Now she carries on her former activities: the Unitarian Church, the Women's Club, a bridge group, Harvard/Radcliffe organizations and her own Radcliffe Class. She is happy to see granddaughter Julie playing her violin in Harvard's Mozart Society Orchestra. Catherine's move to The Willows has been rewarding for everyone. As President of the Residents' Association she has, with kindness and diplomacy, made us a reasonably happy society. After two years in office she'd ready for that "ease and relaxation" promised us. Sally Kenah Catherine K. Elberfeld WESTBORO - Catherine K. (Kyes) Elberfeld, 77, of 1 Lyman St. died Wednesday at Marlboro Hospital. Her husband, John Elberfeld, died in 1981. She leaves a son, John Elberfeld of Rochester, N.Y.; a daughter, Anne E. Huberman of Buffalo, N.Y.; and three granddaughters. She was born in Boston, daughter of Karl S. and Violet J. (Burgess) Kyes, and lived in Westboro many years. She graduated from Peterborough, N.H., public schools. Mrs. Elberfeld was a librarian at Westboro High School for 15 years and established libraries at the Fisher Street and Main Street high schools. She graduated from Radcliffe College in 1935 and Simmons College School of Library Science in 1936. She was a member of the Westboro Women's Club, Harvard-Radcliffe Club of Worcester, Westboro Historical Society, Greenfield, N.H., Historical Society, International Center of Worcester, Mechanics Hall of Worcester, Massachusetts Retired Teachers Association, the YWCA, Isles of Shoals Association and Westboro Chapter AFS. Memorial services will be held Saturday, Oct. 20, at 2 p.m. in the Unitarian Universalist Church, 64 West Main St., with Rev. Mack Mitchell officiating. Burial will be in Pine Hill Cemetery in Peterborough at a later date. There are no calling hours. The family requests flowers be omitted. Memorial contributions may be made to the Westboro High School Library Club Fund, care of Westboro High School, 90 West Main St., Westboro, 01581. Rand and Harper Funeral Home, 62 West Main St., is directing arrangements. A dentist who wouldn't send bills, and a daughter who tried Paul Cummings, Senior Publisher Peterborough Transcript, October 18, 1990 The waterfront colony at Sunset Lake Greenfield lost one of its most senior residents recently with the death of CatherineElberfeld. It could be that Catherine held the record for most vacation time spent there. The Elberfeld cottage (actually more than one, sort of a compound) dates to the early part of this century and her parents, Karl and Violet Kyes. Dr. Kyes had a dental office in Peterborough (Granite Block, second floor) for more than 60 years, and I've always understood he built his camp out of wood pallets and paper skids from the Transcript, The Kyes family lived on Concord Street, next to the Town Library. Their house, on the north side, borders the ugly New England telephone building. Its present owner is lawyer Catharine Sage, who lives across the street. Dr. Kyes began his practice here in1899, the year he was graduated from Harvard Dental School. He could have been, at one time, the only dentist in town (I've lost count of how many there are today). The last time I saw Catherine was a little over a year ago. This was when she was entertaining a classmate from her high school days, Warren "Tyke" Lounsbury, and his daughter, from Olympia, Wash. Tyke hadn't been east in decades, and it was a joy to hear first-hand about his career at the University of Washington where he was a professor of stage design and related subjects. Tyke Lounsbury grew up here (his parents were Lincoln and Mae Lounsbury, of Nubanusit Lane), and he got his start in the theatre as an apprentice at Peterborough Players. Tyke is the author of textbooks on back-stage management, though to be with him you would never know that he is an authority on this topic. The meeting with Tyke was at Sunset Lake, and there for that happy event were several from PHS '31. The surroundings, many of us noted, were far different from what Dr. Kyes had created the early part of this century and named "Just-A-Camp." John Elberfeld, Catherine's husband, I learned, like his father-in-law, enjoyed carpentry and was responsible (as were their son, John, and daughter, Ann) for the many new buildings on the Kyes site. John Sr. was an educator and died in 1981 as a result of a bus accident near Mt. McKinley in Alaska. John also had Peterborough connections, his father having been minister of the Unitarian Church. I can't conclude this piece without mention of the summer, or summers, when Catherine worked in her father's office. It seems that Dr. Kyes had no assistants, was casual about scheduling appointments, and never billed his patients. Walks-ins with a toothache, or what-ever, always received attention, and you either paid Dr. Kyes on the spot, or not at all. Catherine thought her father's policy was not only unbusiness-like, but furthermore, he could use the money. So she volunteered to help out as receptionist and bookkeeper. My memory is that Dr. Kyes tolerated, but was not enthusiastic, for such assistance, and he was pleased when Catherine was off to Radcliffe. Maybe this explains, partially anyway, why Peterborough was so proud in 1960 when Dr. Kyes was chosen as the town's "Citizen of the Year." Yes, I was a patient of Dr. Kyes. And Catherine was a teenage girlfriend of mine. Tyke's too. Happy memories. Telegram and Gazette, Worcester, MA Oct 9, 1990 Obituary for Catherine K. Elberfeld WESTBORO - Catherine K. (Kyes) Elberfeld, 77, of 1 Lyman St. died Wednesday at Marlboro Hospital. Her husband, John Elberfeld, died in 1981. She leaves a son, John Elberfeld of Rochester, N.Y.; a daughter, Anne E. Huberman of Buffalo, N.Y.; and three grand- daughters. She was born in Boston,; daughter of Karl S. and Violet J. (Burgess) Kyes, and lived in West-boro many years. She graduated from Peterborough, N.H., public schools. Mrs. Elberfeld was a librarian at Westboro High School for 15 years and established libraries at the Fisher Street and Main Street high schools. She graduated from Radcliffe College in 1935 and Simmons College School of Library Science in 1936. She was a member of the West-boro Women's Club, Harvard-Radcliffe Club of Worcester, Westboro \ Historical Society, Greenfield N.H., Historical Society, International Center of Worcester, Mechanics Hall of Worcester Massachusetts Retired Teachers Association, the YWCA, Isles of Shoals Association and Westboro Chapter AFS. Memorial services will be held Saturday, Oct. 20, at 2 p.m. in the Unitarian Universalist Church, 64 West Main St., with Rev. Mack Mitchell officiating. Burial will be in Pine Hill Cemetery in Peterborough at a later date. There are no calling hours. The family requests flowers be omitted. Memorial contributions may be made to the Westboro High School Library Club Fund, care of Westboro High 3. School, 90 West Main St., Westboro, 01581. Rand and Harper Funeral Home, 62 West Main St., is directing arrangements. Full Context of UMI Obituaries, 1990-1997 Headline: Catherine K. Elberfeld Publication Date: October 09, 1990 Source: Telegram & Gazette Worcester, MA Page: A7 Subjects: OBITS Region: Massachusetts Obituary: WESTBORO - Catherine K. (Kyes) Elberfeld, 77, of 1 Lyman St. died Wednesday at Marlboro Hospital. Her husband, John Elberfeld, died in 1981. She leaves a son, John Elberfeld of Rochester, N.Y.; a daughter, Anne E. Huberman of Buffalo, N.Y.; and three granddaughters. She was born in Boston, daughter of Kark S. and Violet J. (Burgess) Kyes, and lived in Westboro many years. She graduated from Peterborough, N.H., public schools. Mrs. Elberfeld was a librarian at Westboro High School for 15 years and established libraries at the Fisher Street and Main Street high schools. She graduated from Radcliffe College in 1935 and Simmons College School of Library Science in 1936. She was a member of the Westboro Women's Club, Harvard-Radcliffe Club of Worcester, Westboro Historical Society, Greenfield, N.H., Historical Society, International Center of Worcester, Mechanics Hall of Worcester, Massachusetts Retired Teachers Association, the YWCA, Isles of Shoals Association and Westboro Chapter AFS. Memorial services will be held Saturday, Oct. 20, at 2 p.m. in the Unitarian Universalist Church, 64 West Main St., with Rev. Mack Mitchell officiating. Burial will be in Pine Hill Cemetery in Peterborough at a later date. There are no calling hours. The family requests flowers be omitted. Memorial contributions may be made to the Westboro High School Library Club Fund, care of Westboro High School, 90 West Main St., Westboro, 01581. Rand and Harper Funeral Home, 62 West Main St., is directing arrangements JKE Notes: Pinehill Cemetery, Peterborough, NH Gravestone - "John Elberfeld 1903-1981 His wife Catherine Kyes 1913 - 1990" |
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