“The banquet given last night at St. John’s Guild house by the juniors of the High school to the seniors was a perfect success.”
“Miss Florence Wells of the class of ’99 acted as toast mistress and gave an address of welcome to the seniors.”
--The Saginaw Evening News, June 18, 1898.
Florence Wells’ association with Arthur Hill High School started before the school was known by that name. When she was a student in the school’s class of ’99, it was known simply as the Westside Saginaw High School. As a teacher at Arthur Hill High School, her career extended to the school’s relocation to the new building on Mackinaw Street.
Miss Wells’ obituary provides a concise outline of her life, community involvement and accomplishments and reminds us that her influence extended beyond the walls of Arthur Hill High School:
Wells, Miss Florence E.
903 Court Street.
Former teacher in the Saginaw school system for over 40 years passed away at St. Luke's Hospital Monday morning. Age 87 years. She was born Sept. 18, 1880, in Saginaw, and had lived here all of her life, graduating from Arthur Hill High School and Columbia University Teachers College. She established the Domestic Science and Home Economics Department in the West Side schools about 1905, and later headed that department at Arthur Hill High School until her retirement in 1945. She was a member of St. John's Episcopal Church and taught Sunday School. She was a member of the Episcopal Women’s Service League, and been president of the West Side Teachers Club, and also was a member of the Saginaw Area Home Economics Group, and the American Association of University Women and was an active member of the D.A.R. and the Daughters of 1812.
While it fails to record the lives she impacted during her teaching career and her community involvement, it at least hints at the breadth of her work and accomplishments.
The Recipe: Miss Florence Wells’ Scalloped Sweet Potatoes and Apples
2 c. boiled sweet potatoes, cut in ¼ inch slices
1½ c. thinly sliced sour apples
4 T. butter
½ c. brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
Put ½ of the potatoes in buttered baking dish. Cover with ½ of the apples. Sprinkle with ½ of the sugar, dot with ½ of the butter, sprinkle with ½ of the salt. Repeat and bake in a moderate [375 degree] oven for 1 hour. From Savoring Saginaw.
Notes:
-For once the CTK staff did not encounter any challenges. Of course, the recipe does not require any unmolding, and this was not the first time we prepared it.
-Note From Tom Trombley –
Several years ago, I made Miss Florence Wells’ Scalloped Sweet Potatoes and Apples for a Thanksgiving dinner. A few days later, while organizing a bookcase, in a frenzy of pre-holiday house cleaning and reading, I was thumbing through my aunt’s 1925 Legenda and discovered Miss Wells’ signature in my aunt’s yearbook – prior to that I was only familiar with the accomplishments of Florence Wells’ well-known sister, Dr. Agnes Wells. My Aunt, Pearl Laundra Baldauf, grew up in Kochville Township and made the daily trek to Arthur Hill High School in the city. She would go on to become a teacher in the Saginaw Township School System. While I do not remember her mentioning Miss Wells, I can imagine her in Miss Wells’ Domestic Science class taking precise, careful notes.
Comments