The sepia-toned photographs reveal summer celebrations from more than 100 years ago.
Each picture features over 50 people arranged in rows outside tidy homes. Men are clad in three-piece suits while women wear high-collar blouses. Cross-legged children sit still for the camera, the girls in long dresses and hair ribbons, the boys in long sleeves and ties.
American flags and patriotic bunting decorate front porches.
Linda Yates, 68, who lives in Upperglade, West Virginia, found the four portraits in a box that’s been stored for decades in a shed at her home.
“I was going through some of my husband’s grandmother’s things,” she said. “I ran into these old photographs. They’re on cardboard and they’re black and white. Huge family reunions in front of houses. I got an eyepiece and I was able to read ‘Rudgers family reunion.’ ”
Examining the image further, she saw the words “Akron, O.” written on a sign behind the celebrants. So she called the Beacon Journal for help.
“I’m trying to get a hold of this family that looks really prominent,” she said.
Her husband, James Yates, 71, an Ohio native, said the photographs belonged to his grandmother Eloyda Corser Yates (1895-1987), a Cleveland teacher who was born in Michigan. When she passed away at age 91, her son, Robert, discovered the photos in the attic of her Cleveland home, and he eventually passed them down to his son James.
“My dad was an only child, so I never knew his family very well,” James said.
If Eloyda is pictured, she would be one of the teenage girls in the photos.
Akron reunion on Howard Street
The Akron portrait was taken at the North Hill home of Micah S. Rudgers (1845-1932) and his wife, Allah Fessenden Rudgers (1845-1934). They lived on North Howard Street with their daughter, Mabel B. Rudgers.
We were able to pinpoint the date of the reunion because of the “11” scrawled on the sign. That’s shorthand for 1911.
“Rudgers family reunion a pleasant affair,” the Beacon Journal headline read Aug. 23, 1911.
“The annual reunion of Rudgers family was held Tuesday at the home of M.S. Rudgers, North Howard Street,” the newspaper reported. “There was a good attendance, about 50 being seated at dinner, which was spread under a tent erected in the rear of the house. Fifteen family members were present from New York state and eight from Michigan.
“The home of the host and hostess was beautifully decorated for the occasion with flowers and potted plants and the national colors saluted one from every nook and corner. The Rudgers family are descendants of the old Puritan stock. Many of the early ancestry participated in the war of Independence and 1812, while a goodly number of the later members served in the Civil War, there being three in yesterday’s party wearing the button of the G.A.R. A business session and program followed the dinner.”
We can assume that no alcohol was served at the family gathering. Alla Rudgers was president of the North Hill Women’s Christian Temperance Union. She also was president of the General Voris Circle of the Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic and choir director at Trinity Reformed Church.
“Mrs. M.S. Rudgers sang several beautiful solos,” the Beacon Journal noted. “In the report of the secretary, several deaths of the family were noted, among them that of John Rudgers, the last of the original family. The 1912 reunion will be held at the home of William Hazen in Hudson, Mich. A photograph of the party was taken. Most of the guests returned to their homes in the evening but several remained to see more of Akron.”
The article mentions the Akron portrait! Reunion attendees must have received prints.
Micah S. Rudgers served as president of the 1911 reunion. Ida Ritchie, also of Akron, was secretary.
The family gathering took place in a different location each year. The 1910 event, described as the Rudgers-Corser family reunion, was held in Rochester, New York, with more than 125 people in attendance.
Attention, Rudgers descendants
Linda and James Yates would like to give the reunion photos to a Rudgers descendant who knows the family’s history.
In 1913, Mabel B. Rudgers married Cleveland attorney Edwin S. Reinhardt. By the 1940s, they lived in Brecksville with their children Max, Phyllis and Douglas. Mabel, a Cuyahoga County librarian, died in 1967 at age 83.
But the original photos don’t necessarily have to go to that branch of the family. The three other portraits apparently were taken in other states.
Linda Yates said interested Rudgers descendants are welcome to email her at mom_yates@yahoo.com to discuss the images and possibly identify the locations. And, yes, she knows that could mean a lot of people after more than 100 years. Perhaps electronic copies could be arranged.
The Rudgers family can still be found in Northeast Ohio. People with that surname include a dentist, a secretary, a law enforcement officer, a retired teacher and a former high school coach.
The North Hill home still stands, although we’re not divulging the address to protect the privacy of the current residents. With the addition of a new front, the house bears little resemblance to the one pictured in 1911.
Coincidentally, Linda and James Yates just celebrated their 50th anniversary with a family reunion in Arizona.
“It was basically a three-day party,” Linda said. “We had people over and it was really nice.”
Some things never change in the family.
Mark J. Price can be reached at mprice@thebeaconjournal.com
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