WIE People
Audra Caplan
Audra Caplan was the president of the Woman’s Industrial Exchange in 2013. She then became a library consultant and has since retired.
Barbara Gamse
Barbara Gamse served as a manager of the Woman’s Industrial Exchange from 2005-2007. When she worked in January 2005, the Exchange’s restaurant closed but the consignment shop remained open. The same year, Travis-Lee Moore was hired to design the Exchange’s new interior.
Before she was a manager at the Exchange, Barbara ran the gift shop of the Maryland Historical Society for almost 25 years. She currently serves on the board for the Weekend Backpacks program in Baltimore which provides meals and activities for Baltimore City students. Barbara was also the associate curator for the National Covid-19 Quilt.
Sources:
“About Us.” National Covid-19 Quilt, 2022.
“Beaded Bargains for Brides-to-Be.” Baltimore Sun, March 26, 2007.
“How About Chipotle Mayo on Your Aspic?” Baltimore Sun, October 7, 2005.
“Newsletter Fall 2021.” Weekend Backpacks, 2021.
Bertha Vaughan Merrick
8 May 1857 – 18 December 1919
Bertha V. Merrick was born on August 8, 1857 in New York City, New York. Her parents were Thomas Belsham Merrick and Elizabeth Marie White. She had six other siblings; John Merrick, William Gordon Merrick, Isabella Merrick, Elizabeth Belsham Merrick, Hallowell V. Merrick, and Liewella Merrick. Her father, Thomas Belsham Merrick, went into the import business in Manhattan and had a building for his company in lower Manhattan. Bertha grew up with many family members and in-laws in New York. She graduated from Vassar College in 1879 and studied music at Stuttgart. Bertha never married.
The Merricks were a prominent family in Pennsylvania and New York. In fact, one of Bertha’s notable relatives is Benjamin Hallowell (1726-1809) who was a Loyalist and the Customs Commissioner on the night of the Boston Tea Party.
Very few records of Merrick’s activities exist, but it is known that she lived with Mrs. C.W. Bassett, president of the Women’s Industrial Exchange in 1906, 1910, and 1911, at the end of her life. Merrick was also listed as one of the Exchange’s managers in 1911. Therefore, it can be inferred that she was very involved in the exchange near the end of her life.
Outside of the Exchange, Merrick was a very active and prominent member of society. She was part of the Episcopal Church. Merrick was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and a member of the Sorosis of New York. She was also a member of a women’s cycling club called the Wheel Club.
Merrick passed away at Johns Hopkins Hospital on December 18, 1919 during a surgical operation to relieve pressure on her brain that had caused her to go blind three weeks earlier. She was laid to rest at Ivy Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Sources:
“Member of the Famous Old Hallowell Family Dead.” The Local Portland, December, 1919.
“Miss Bertha V. Merrick.” Daughters of the American Revolution Lineage Books (152 Vols.), 2000.
“Miss Bertha V. Merrick.” Evening Public Ledger, December 19, 1919.
“Miss Bertha V. Merrick.” The Baltimore Sun, December 20, 1919.
The Fourth General Catalogue of the Officers and Graduates of Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York, 1861-1910. Ancestry.com, viewed June 23, 2023.
“Women Form Wheel Club.” The Baltimore Sun, October 30, 1914.
Conradt (Connie) Boyce Whitescarver
Connie Boyce Whitescarver served as the head of the Woman’s Industrial Exchange’s board of managers during the 1990s, specifically in November 1995, when she was interviewed for a piece on the Exchange in the Baltimore Sun. At the time, ten other managers served on the board. Connie’s mother and grandmother had both previously served as head managers at the Woman’s Industrial Exchange as well.
Sources:
“Preserved in Aspic Genteel…” Baltimore Sun, November 9, 1995.
Cornelia Scribner Middleton (Mrs. Harvey)
17 July 1861 – 3 January 1932
Cornelia Scribner Middleton was born on July 17th, 1861 in New Albany, Indiana. Her father, Benjamin F. Scribner was a distinguished General in the Mexican and Civil Wars. He was also the son of Captain Nathaniel Scribner who was the Captain of the Connecticut militia at Monmouth during the Revolutionary War. This made Cornelia the granddaughter of Nathaniel Scribner. Her mother was Ann Martha Maginness Scribner. Cornelia was raised in New Albany, Indiana with her siblings; Horatio D. Scribner, Edmond B. Scribner, Charles H. Scribner, Mary S. Scribner, and George H.T. Scribner.
Cornelia married Harvey Middleton in Indiana on October 22nd, 1881. Harvey Middleton was from a prominent family in Baltimore. Together, they had one son; Nathan Middleton. The couple celebrated their twenty-five years of marriage at the Arundell Club, which was a Baltimore literacy society for women. The members of this club not only read books, but also wrote them. The club also had social, cultural, and philanthropic aims.
One of the guests at the twenty-fifth wedding anniversary celebration was Miss Louise Potter (Mrs, George L. Potter). Middleton and Potter both served as managers of the Women’s Industrial Exchange in 1903– showing that they had similar philanthropic aims of helping the women of their community.
Outside of the Exchange, Middleton was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Middleton was also a successful writer. She wrote a collection of children’s stories including Happy Child Town, Polly for Short, The One Little Girl, and The Flower Family. Her children’s stories even reached the local list of best selling books in January in 1910.
After she was widowed, Middleton lived as a guest with Burt C. Bachus and Evelyn Bachus in Rock Island, Illinois. She passed away on January 3rd, 1932 in Cook, Illinois. Middleton was laid to rest in the Fairview Cemetery in New Albany, Indiana.
Sources:
“Children’s Stories.” The Baltimore Sun, January 30, 1910.
“Cornelia Middleton.” Find a Grave, 2012.
“Cornelia Middleton.” 1930 United States Federal Census, April 15, 1930.
“Cornelia Scribner Middletown.” Cook County, Illinois Death Index, 1908-1988, 2008.
“Cornelia S. Middleton.” Indiana Marriages, 1810-2001, 2013.
“Cornelia S. Scribner.” 1870 United States Federal Census, July 8, 1870.
“Married Twenty-Five Years.” The Baltimore Sun, October 27, 1906.
“Mrs. Cornelia Scribner Middleton.” Daughters of the American Revolution Lineage Books (152 Vols.), 2000.
“Six Best Selling Books in Baltimore for January.” The Baltimore Sun, January 30, 1910.
Elizabeth Boone
September 2, 1857 – August 31, 1920
Elizabeth Boone was born on September 2, 1857 in Baltimore, Maryland. Her father was John Boone and her mother was Aerial Topton Boone. She had one sibling, James W. Boone. Elizabeth spent her childhood and adulthood in Baltimore. She never married which allowed her to dedicate her time and efforts to charity work as well as to her family.
Elizabeth spent a portion of her time with the Woman’s Industrial Exchange. She was even listed as a manager of the Exchange in 1903. Even though Elizabeth was not married, she inherited money and respect from her father and mother. She used her privilege and place in society to help other women who were less fortunate. Therefore, the Exchange was a perfect fit to practice her values.
Outside of the Exchange and her other charity work, Elizabeth lived a quiet lifestyle with her family and friends. After her mother passed away, she moved into her parents’ house to live with her father.
Elizabeth Boone passed away on August 31, 1920 at her home in Lake Roland. She was laid to rest in Green Mount Cemetery. The next year, her father, John Boone, passed away on April 12, 1921. They were survived by brother and son, James W. Boone.
Sources:
“Buys Mrs. Pagon’s Home.” The Baltimore Sun, June 21, 1910.
“Died.” The Baltimore Sun, September 2, 1920.
“Died.” The Baltimore Sun, April 14, 1921.
“Elizabeth Boone.” Find a Grave, December 2, 2017.
“Elizabeth Boone.” The 1920 United States Federal Census, January 15th, 1920.
Miss Helen C. Coale
1869-1933
Miss Helen C. Coale served on the female board of managers at the Woman’s Industrial Exchange specifically in 1891. Her mother, Helen McDowell Coale was the treasurer of the Woman’s Industrial Exchange in and around 1887. Helen was one of the first graduates of Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania. She was married to Henry Crew, a renowned physicist. She and Henry had three children: Alice H., Mildred, and William H., and they had 12 grandchildren by 1961. Helen died in 1933.
Sources:
“Henry Crew.” National Academy of Sciences, 1964.
“Thomas Brothers of Mattapany, Their Ancestry, the Manor House, Their Descendants.” Allen County Public Library, 2019.
Jane ‘Jennie’ Mayer Bradford (Mrs. T. Kell Broadford)
February 27, 1851 – May 21, 1908
Jane Mayer was born in Baltimore, Maryland to Brantz Mayer and Cornelia Poor Mayer. Her sister was Cornelia Mayer Day and her half-siblings were Katherine Mary Mayer, Beata Mayer McDowell, Anna Maria Mayer Roszel, and Dora Mayer Albert. Jane met Thomas Kell Bradford and they married in Baltimore on June 14th, 1883. They did not have any children.
Kell Brandford was born in June 1851 to Augustus Williamson Bradford and Elizabeth Bradford. He came from a prominent Baltimore family as his father, Augustus, was the governor of Maryland during the Civil War. T. Kell Bradford attended private schools growing up and later graduated from Princeton University in 1872. He then entered his father’s law office and was a prominent lawyer until he became unwell. Bradford suffered from Bright’s disease for many years. He passed away on July 15th, 1906 in Concord, New Hampshire where he visited Mrs. Baker G. Eddy for Christian Science treatment.
Jane Mayer Bradford was involved in the Woman’s Industrial Exchange from 1882 to 1904. She was a manager during the years before and after the Exchange’s move to the new building on North Charles Street. Bradford, as a manager, was in attendance at the formal opening of the new building along with other prominent women of Baltimore. When Mrs. M.N. Perry was the president of the Exchange in 1892, Bradford was also one of the managers who helped the Exchange host their first-ever tea. On November 23rd, 1892, this tea was hosted for the two hundred and more subscribers to the organization. The tea was held in the lunch room where the ladies set up beautifully decorated tables, filled with objects and food made by the women consigners. Bradford also helped to organize fundraisers such as the bicycle fete to benefit the exchange.
Bradford spent most of her time and efforts at the Exchange as her husband had passed and she had no children to care for. At the Exchange, she built a fufilling family and social life. She retired from the Exchange in 1904 and lived a peaceful and quiet life for two more years. Jane Mayer Bradford passed away on July 16th, 1906 and was laid to rest in Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland. She was survived by her sister and half siblings.
Sources:
“A Bicycle Fete.” The Baltimore Sun, April 29, 1896.
“Jane Bradford.” The 1900 United States Federal Census, June 5, 1900.
“Jane ‘Jennie’ Mayer Bradford.” Find a Grave, 2012.
“Mr. T. Kell Bradford is Dead.” The Baltimore Sun, June 17, 1906.
“Re-Elect Mrs. Parks Fisher.” The Baltimore Sun, November 11, 1903.
“Thomas K. Bradford.” The 1880 United States Federal Census, June 12, 1880.
“Thomas Kell Bradford.” Find a Grave, 2012.
“Tea at Woman’s Exchange.” The Baltimore Sun, November 23, 1892.
“Woman’s Dainty Work.” The Baltimore Sun, March 2, 1887.
“Women Elect Officers.” The Baltimore Sun, November 14, 1900.
Jessie Van Rensselaer Bond (Mrs. Hugh L. Bond)
May 17, 1862 – November 27, 1942
Jessie Van Rensselaer Beale was born on May 17, 1862 in New York to Charles Lewis Beale and Mary L. Beale. She had one sibling; Marie Eloise Beale. The Beales were a prominent family in New York as Charles L. Beale was a successful businessman and lawyer. On June 4, 1884, Jessie married Hugh Lennox Bond Jr. in Hudson, New York, and they later moved to Baltimore. Together they had five daughters; Eloise Beale Bond Bergland, Anna Penniman Bond, Catharine W. Jackson, Jessie V.R. Thayer, and Eleanore L. Bond.
Hugh Lennox Bond’s father was appointed judge of the Baltimore Criminal Court by Governor Thomas H. Hicks from 1860 to 1867. In 1870, President Ulysses S. Grant appointed him as the first U.S. judge for the 4th Circuit Court. Bond was also an abolitionist and a leader of Maryland’s Union Party during the Civil War. While on the Criminal Court, he helped draft the 1864 state constitution that emancipated 80,000 enslaved persons. As a federal judge, he presided over the trials of hundreds of Klu Klux Klan terrorists in South Carolina and held up the statue under which the Klansmen were accused.
Hugh Lennox Bond Jr. was just as prominent in the state of Maryland as he was in the city of Baltimore. He was the general attorney of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad and was even made the Second-Vice President of the company in 1907. When she married into the Bond family, Jessie became a member of high Baltimorian society. Her family often held luncheons and other parties at their house for both personal entertainment and for fundraising for local charities.
Jessie’s interest in charity led her to the Woman’s Industrial Exchange where she became a manager from 1885 to 1887. During this time, the Exchange moved into a new building and Mrs. M.N. Perry was the President. Jessie helped plan and carry out the grand opening of the Exchange’s new building. She also continued to help advertise the Exchange and its achievements to the citizens of Baltimore.
Outside of the Exchange, Jessie was heavily involved in her daughters’ lives. She and her daughters’ activities were often outlined in the “Society” section of The Baltimore Sun. The Bond ladies were also involved in multiple charitable groups. One daughter, Anna Penniman Bond, even went to France to assist with relief work including aiding refugees and rebuilding neighborhoods.
Jessie Van Rensselaer Bond died in Baltimore on November 27, 1942. She was laid to rest in Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland.
Sources:
“A Marylander to Honor.” The Washington Post, August 17, 2–7.
“Entertainments.” The Baltimore Sun, May 16, 1915.
“H.L. Bond Jr. Dies; Ill Only One Day.” The Baltimore Sun, April 12, 1922.
“Jessie Van Rensselaer Bond.” Find a Grave, 2012.
“Jessie Bond.” The 1920 United States Federal Census, January 10, 1920.
“Jessie Van Rensaeller Beale.” The New York State Marriage Index, 1881-1965, 1965.
“Social Calendar.” The Baltimore Sun, November 19, 1914.
“Society.” The Baltimore Sun, May 16, 1919.
“Woman’s Dainty Work.” The Baltimore Sun, March 2, 1887.
Kathryn Wielech Patterson
Kathryn Wielech Patterson served on the board of managers at the Exchange prior to its initial closing before it became the Woman’s Industrial Kitchen in 2011. In 2013, she and her husband, Neal, wrote the Food Lovers’ Guide to Baltimore: The Best Restaurants, Markets & Local Culinary Offerings. In 2014, she co-wrote Baltimore Chef’s Table: Extraordinary Recipes from Charm City and the Surrounding Counties with Neal. In 2005, Kathryn and Neal began the Baltimore food blog, Minx Eats. She also co-wrote Food Lovers’ Guide to Baltimore: The Best Restaurants, Markets & Local Culinary Offerings, published in 2013.
Sources:
“Baltimore Chef’s Table: Extraordinary Recipes from Charm City and the Surrounding Counties.” Kathryn Wielech Patterson and Neal Patterson, 2014.
“Bring Back the Woman’s Industrial Exchange Lunchroom!” Minxeats, November 9, 2011.
“Food Lovers’ Guide to Baltimore: The Best Restaurants, Markets & Local Culinary Offerings.” Kathryn Wielech Patterson and Neal Patterson, 20.
Lila Jones (Mrs. C. Meredith Boyce)
1923 – October 28, 2003
Lila Jones was born in Missouri to Mr. and Mrs. Meredith Cabell Jones of St. Louis, Missouri. Her father was a broker for a prominent investment company. Both of her parents completed a college education; therefore, grew up in a well-known and prominent U.S. family.
Lila attended Vassar College where she studied English and history. There, a friend from Baltimore introduced her to Charles Meredith Boyce. On October 3, 1942, Lila married Charles Meredith Boyce at the Second Presbyterian Church in St. Louis. Mrs. and Mr. C. Meredith Boyce had three children; C. Meredith Boyce Jr., Lila C. Boyce, and Elizabeth B. Boyce.
Mr. Charles Meredith Boyce, known as C. Meredith Boyce, was the son of Frederick G. Bocye and Sophia M. Boyce. C. Meredith Boyce grew up in Baltimore, Maryland where his family was extremely influential. Boyce graduated from Yale University and soon after entered the U.S. Army for World War II duty. He started as a private and emerged four years later as a major. Boyce was then a Baltimore City Councilman from 1951 to 1955 and was later the city treasurer for Mayor Grady’s office in 1959. Boyce was also the assistant vice president of the Mercantile Trust Company, on the board of the YMCA, active in church work, and involved with the Red Cross and Community Chest Drives. Boyce was so active in the community that he ran for mayor in 1962. Despite the fact that he did not win the race, Boyce and Lila remained prominent figures in Baltimore.
Due to the vast evidence of Mr. C. Meredith Boyce’s community involvement, it is no surprise that Lila Jones Boyce served on the Woman’s Industrial Exchange’s board of managers in 1954. After her time at the Exchange, Lila served as a board member and president of the Union Memorial. She was the president of the Emmanuel Episcopal Church’s women’s organization and a member of the vestry. Her family members describe her as a kind and gracious woman who loved to give back to her community.
Meredith Boyce was president of Robert Garrett and Sons at the time of his death in 1969. The next year, Lila married Richard W. Emory. Lila and Richard spent a quiet late life together and enjoyed spending time with their family.
On October 28, 2003, Lila passed away at age 81 from Alzheimer’s disease at the Blakehurst Retirement Community– one year after Richard W. Emory passed away. A memorial service was held at the Emmanuel Episcopal Church. She is survived by two children, two step-children, eleven grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.
Sources:
“Baltimore Society.” The Baltimore Sun, September 30, 1942.
“Banker Seen Council Choice.” The Baltimore Sun, November 15, 1950.
“Boyce Raps Mayor’s Role.” The Baltimore Sun, June 30, 1963.
“C.M. Boyce Enters Race for Mayor.” The Baltimore Sun, November 22, 1962.
“C Meredith Boyce.” The 1930 United States Federal Census, May 6, 1930.
“Councilman Gets Award.” The Baltimore Sun, January 20, 1953.
“Frederick Grayson Boyce Jr.” Find a Grave, 2012.
“Lila Boyce Emory, 81, Volunteer, President of Board at Union Memorial Hospital.” The Baltimore Sun, October 30, 2003.
“Lila J. Boyce.” The 1950 United States Federal Census, April 7, 1950.
Louisa K. Morris
13 August 1843 – 26 June 1917
Louisa K. Morris was born on August 13, 1843 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her parents were James Cole Van Dyke and Elizabeth M. Van Dyke. The Van Dyke’s were one of the most exclusive families in Pennsylvania. Morris also had two younger siblings; James Cole Van Dyke Jr. and Arthur K. Van Dyke. On July 30th of 1831, Morris married John Boucher Morris Jr. in Baltimore, Maryland. John B. Morris Jr. was born in Baltimore and was very prominent socially. She had three children; John Boucher Morris, Mildred Morris Pendleton, and Louise Hollingsworth Morris Clew.
Louisa K. Morris was very involved in the Women’s Industrial Exchange from 1882 until 1916. She began as a manager in 1882 and later became the Vice President of the Exchange in 1887. She served as Vice President until 1900 and became First Vice President in 1901. She continued to serve in this position until 1911. Morris was even elected President of the Exchange in 1915. Outside of these roles, Morris was on the Executive Committee of a fundraising event in 1891 to gather funds to pay for the Exchange building’s mortgage and other necessary improvements. In 1899, Morris was also a member of the “Special Committee to Purchase New WIE Building.”
Outside of the Exchange, Morris was very active in German American circles. She participated in a multitude of events for German Society at Lehmann’s Hall in Baltimore. Morris also served on several fundraising committees to benefit local charities such as the Maryland General Hospital and the Hospital for Crippled Children. The events to raise these funds were often related to the theater and/or music. Morris was often referred to as a patroness as she was well known for her charity work. Morris also enjoyed traveling and the locals took interest in where she was going and whom she was going with. After her husband died, she often traveled with Mildred, her daughter, and sometimes her son-in-law would join them.
Morris lived a long, fulfilling life and enjoyed her time with the Exchange all the way up to her passing on June 26, 1917. She was laid to rest in Greenmount Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland.
Sources:
“Death of a Well Known Baltimore Citizen.” Lewisburg Journal, October 14, 1898.
“Dorothy Grows Better.” The Baltimore Sun, April 27, 1916.
“Fund for Woman’s Exchange.” The Baltimore Sun, October 13, 1916.
“Industrial Exchange Elects.” The Baltimore Sun, November 15, 1911.
“Mrs. C.W. Bassett Elected.” The Baltimore Sun, November 20, 1907.
“New Home Purchased.” The Baltimore Sun, December 14, 1899.
“Obituary: Mrs. John B. Morris.” The Baltimore Sun, June 28, 1917.
Mary Brown
Mary Brown was a manager at the Exchange during the early 2000s. In 2002, she was interviewed about a project being developed by Johns Hopkins undergraduate students. The business and education students provided financial and marketing advice to the Exchange as the business’ revenues were much lower than its expenses. Mary Brown claimed that this project could help the Exchange revive its popularity and revenue while maintaining its core values of helping women. Brown was a manager for the Exchange during a rough part of its history, nethertheless; she put her all into her work, further proving the love the women had for the institution.
Sources:
“For Shop, an Unlikely Exchange.” Baltimore Sun, March 23, 2002.
Mrs. G. Frank Bailey
Mrs. G. Frank Bailey was on the female board of managers at the Woman’s Industrial Exchange. She began serving on the board following the November 1899 elections.
Sources:
“11.15.1899 Sun WIE Elections.” Baltimore Sun, November 15, 1899.
Mrs. G.W.B. Bartlett
June 4, 1842-June 23, 1928
Amanda Sally Griffith Bartlett more commonly went by Mrs. G.W.B. Bartlett after she married. She was on the female board of managers at the Woman’s Industrial Exchange. She first served on the board following the November 1895 elections and was reelected in 1899. She was married to George W.B. Bartlett; they had a son named Harry Griffith Bartlett, a Marine, and two daughters, Vashti and Alice. Mrs. Bartlett was involved with the greater Baltimore community in many ways: in 1897, she was on the advertising committee for a benefit concert at the Nurses’ Home of the Maryland General Hospital. She and Vashti would visit Atlantic City, New Jersey, for holidays like Easter. The family also visited Bremen, Germany in 1892 and, starting in 1910, spent years abroad in Italy and other European countries. She worked for the Red Cross for the Allied forces. Mrs. Bartlett died on June 23, 1928, and is buried at Rockville Cemetery in Montgomery County.
Sources:
“11.13.1895 Sun WIE Election Results.” Baltimore Sun, November 13, 1895.
“11.15.1899 Sun WIE Elections.” Baltimore Sun, November 15, 1899.
“Amanda Sally Griffith Bartlett.” FindaGrave.
“Ante-Easter Crowds Gather.” Baltimore Sun, March 29, 1900.
“Art and Melody.” Baltimore Sun, January 26, 1897.
“Alice Bartlett Wedding Announcement.” Montgomery County Sentinel, October 29, 1920.
“The European Tide.” Baltimore Sun, August 10, 1892.
“Vashti Bartlett Collection.” Chesney Archives.
“Washington, District of Columbia.” Evening Star, April 3, 1910.
Sallie K. Morris
1842 – August 5, 1882
Sallie K. Morris was born in 1842 to William B. Jones who was a prominent shipbuilder in Baltimore. Jones was born in East Baltimore and spent all his life there. He was president of the Broadway Savings Bank, a trustee of the Eastern Dispensary, and a member of the Broadway Methodist Episcopal Church. Sallie grew up with her father and became a member of high Baltimorean society. She married Thomas Morris and together they had one daughter, Evelyn C. Morris.
Very few records of Morris’ activity exist as she passed away at the young age of 36. However; it is known that Morris was involved in the Women’s Industrial Exchange in 1882. During this time, she was on Board of Managers.
Sallie K. Morris passed away on August 5th, 1882. She was laid to rest in Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland.
Sources:
“Morris.” The Baltimore Sun, August 8, 1882.
“Obituary: William B. Jones.” The Baltimore Sun, February 16, 1898.
“Sallie K. Morris.” Find a Grave, 2012.
“Sallie K. Morris.” The 1870 United States Federal Census, August 1, 1870.
“Sarah K. Morris.” The 1880 United States Census, June 8, 1880.
Virginia Davis Boyce
February 10, 1907 – January 13, 1996
Virginia Davis was born on February 10, 1907 in Baltimore, Maryland to E. Asbury Davis and Jennie Davis. E. Asbury. Davis was the President of F.A. Davis & Sons Inc and chairman of the board of what is now the USF&G Corp. She grew up in Roland Park and graduated from Friends School in 1924. In 1928, she earned a bachelor’s degree from Goucher College. She then became a social worker for the Public Welfare Department until she married Edward Gillet Boyce on July 22nd, 1937.
Gilet Boyce attended the Boys’ Latin School, Tome School, and Johns Hopkins University where he was an outstanding member of the swim team. He started his career with the Union Trust Company but left two years later to form the insurance firm of Boyce and Company. He was even an elected delegate to the Democratic State Convention of 1950. Outside of work, he enjoyed thoroughbred racing and was a member of the Bachelors’ Cotillion and the Maryland Club. Virginia and E. Gillet Boyce had three children; Virginia Conradt Boyce, Gilet Grayson Boyce, and Ann Allston Boyce.
After E. Gilet Boyce passed away at the young age of 46, Virginia began to participate in activities outside of raising her family. She volunteered for more than 40 years at the Woman’s Industrial Exchange. She even served on the board as Vice-President, and later President, just like her mother (Jennie Conradt Davis or Mrs. E. Asbury) and sister before her. At the Exchange, she was often known as “Ginny.” She was a valued and loved member of the Exchange community.
Outside of the Exchange, Virginia was involved with the Aged Women’s and Aged Men’s Home in Franklin Square. She even served as President of the home when it moved to Towson and was renamed Pickersgill. During World War II, she volunteered with the Red Cross. Virginia claimed that her calling to care for the less fortunate was instilled in her as a child by her father. Her daughter, V. Conradt B. Whitescarver, stated that when Virginia went to work, “her father insisted that she take no pay for her job and insisted that she turn her salary back to the city, that it could be used to help those in need.” Besides charity work, Virginia was a member of the L’Hirondelle Club of Ruxton and the Baltimore Country Club and was a communicant of the Episcopal Church of the Good Sheperd. She also enjoyed playing bridge and piano.
Virginia passed away on January 13, 1996 at age 88 due to complications from asthma. She was laid to rest in Sherwood Episcopal Church Cemetery in Cockeysville, Maryland. She is survived by her three children, six grandchildren, and a great-granddaughter.
Sources:
“E.G. Boyce Rites Monday.” The Baltimore Sun, June 7, 1958.
“News of Baltimore Society.” The Baltimore Sun, July 8, 1937.
“Virginia Boyce.” Find a Grave, 2012.
“Virginia D. Boyce, 88, Civic Leader, Volunteer.” The Baltimore Sun, January 18, 1996.
“Virginia D. Boyce.” The 1940 United States Federal Census, April 13, 1940.