Mabel Jordan, Lee County

Mabel Jordan (1879 - ??) was sent to Illinois in April, 1891 and found a home with the George H. Brewer family in Ashton, Lee County, Illinois. The visiting agent visited the home later in 1891 and made a long report. Mabel was twelve years old and had quickly moved to the top of her class in school. Her guardian reported that she was very sunny in disposition, but rather slow in her work. Four years later, the Brewers were even more satisfied with Mabel. She had joined their church and had done well in school. When Mabel wrote in 1896 she was eighteen, and unsure of her own worth. She criticized herself for an unruly temper and seemed unsure of her guardians' satisfaction with her. The Brewers were an elderly couple in 1891, with three grown sons.

In 1910 Mabel appeared to still be living with the Brewers -- at first glance-- she was listed as a 'boarder' with the Brewers in the census that year. She was working as a dressmaker, so had fulfilled Mrs. Brewer's desire to make her into a useful woman. However, in 1907 the Brewer's 50th wedding anniversary occurred, and Mabel was noted in the Ashton Gazette as being an out of town visitor from Marblehead, Massachusetts. In Marblehead, Mabel was listed as a dressmaker from 1900 to 1920. By 1930 she owned her own home at 137 Washington Street and was the owner of a gift shop. (Photo Google street view) The red sign attached to the house says "Brickpath 1727 Former Tory Headquarters." Her shop was called "The Brick Shop" and was last listed at this location in 1957.

Mr. Brewer died in 1912 and Mrs. Brewer died in 1921. They are both buried in the Ashton Cemetery, but no gravesite could be found there for Mabel, or in any other cemetery in Lee County listed with Find A Grave. No gravesite could be found for Mabel Jordan in Marblehead, Massachusetts either.