Bertha Grace Dougherty

Bertha Hurlbut was the daughter of Rev. Jesse Lyman Hurlbut and Mary Matilda Chase Hurlbut. She was born May 13, 1883, in Plainfield, New Jersey. In the 1900 U.S. Federal Census, the family was living in Manhattan, New York, and were listed there as follows: Jesse, 57, Mary, 54, Charles, 28, his wife Louisa, 23, and Bertha's sister, E. Mary, 26, and Bertha, 17. Also living in their home was Elley Logan, 22, who was working for them as a servant. She was born in Ireland. Bertha's brother, Charles, was working as an inspector of steel. The family appeared to be living on 101st Street, in a home they owned free from a mortgage.

Bertha Grace Hurlbut Dougherty attended Vassar College and may have become an artist. She was also a church worker and married George Dougherty in 1906. They had 3 sons, George in 1907, Jesse Lyman in 1908 and Edward Archer in 1910. Following is an article from The Christian Advocate, Volume 81, regarding their marriage: "The Rev. George Prior Dougherty, Pastor of Broad Street Park Methodist Episcopal Church, Trenton, New Jersey, and Miss Bertha Grace Hurlbut, of Bloomfield, New Jersey, were married on June 21, 1906, by Rev. Jesse L. Hurlbut, D.D., the father of the bride. The wedding service was held at the parsonage of the Park Methodist Episcopal Church, Bloomfield, in presence of the relatives and intimate college friends of both parties; the bride having been graduated the week before at Vassar College, and the groom being an alumnus of Taylor University and of Drew Theological Seminary."

From the Cooley Gallery of Old Lyme, Connecticut, there is a photo of an etching on paper entitled Old Lyme Meadows, signed in the lower right by Bertha Hurlbut Dougherty, born in 1883, which was 6-1/2" x 8-1/4" print and sold for $950.00. The drawing is shown above. At one time Bertha was living at 93 Quitman Street, Newark, New Jersey.

In the 1910 U.S. Federal Census for Woodbridge, Middlesex, New Jersey, Bertha, 26, was living with her husband, George P. Dougherty, 30, and their children, George H., 3, and Jesse L., 1 year and 6 months old. They were living at 62 Main Street in a rental home, and George and Bertha had been married for 4 years. George was working as a Methodist Minister. By 1920, they were living at 755 Clifton Avenue in Newark, Essex, New Jersey, and were listed as follows in the census: George P., 39, Bettie, 36, George, 12, Jessie, 11, Edward, 9, and also living with them was Bertha's father, Jesse Lyman Hurlbut, 76, and a lodger by the name of Sarah White, 51 years old. Both Jesse and Sarah were widowed.

A New York Passenger List indicates that Bertha H. Dougherty, 45, arrived in New York City from Bermuda via the ship Araguaya, on February 11, 1926. Traveling with her was her father, Jesse Lyman Hurlbut, 83. Bertha's address was in Plainfield, New Jersey, and her father was living in New York City at the time. Why they had gone to Bermuda is unknown, especially at her father's advanced age of 83.

In the 1930 U.S. Federal Census for Glen Ridge, Essex County, New Jersey, George P., 50, and Bertha H., 46, were living at 74 Park Avenue in a home they were renting for $100 per month with their children, George H., 23, and Edward A., 20, and a negro servant by the name of Gertrude A. MacPherson, 39, who was from the West Indies. George was working as a minister in the Episcopal Church, and his son, Edward was working as an accountant. They had a radio in their home. George and Bertha had been married for 24 years.

A New York Passenger List indicates that Bertha and George Dougherty, 48 and 53 years old respectively sailed on the ship, Sixaola, from Kingston, Jamaica, to New York City on January 27, 1933 George was born January 24th, 1880 in Bordentown, New Jersey, and Bertha, May 13, 1883, in Plainfield, New Jersey. At the time of their arrival they were still living in Glen Ridge, New Jersey.

In 1935, George and Bertha were living at 74 Park Avenue in Montclair, Bloomfield County, New Jersey, and were listed in a U.S. City Directory indicating that George was the rector of the Christ Episcopal Church. A record on Ancestry.com indicates that George Pryor Dougherty died April 30, 1936, in Glen Ridge, Essex, New Jersey, at the age of 56 years old.

A New York Passenger List indicates that Bertha arrived in New York City on October 4, 1959, from Cherbourg, France, on board the ship Queen Elizabeth. At the time, Bertha was 67 years old and had been living at 211 S. Saint Asaph Street in Alexandria, Virginia. The Queen Elizabeth had departed Cherbourg, France, on September 29th, 1950, so it was a five-day crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. It appeared that Bertha was traveling alone. Bertha made another trip alone to Cherbourg, France, from New York City in 1952, and arrived in New York on August 27th. She traveled on the ship Neptunia, and was 69 years old at the time of her travel.

Bertha passed away on October 21, 1969, in Cincinnati, Hamilton county, Ohio. At the time she was 86 years old. She may have moved there to live with her son Edward Archer Dougherty, who passed away January 6, 1969, at the relatively young age of 58 after a long illness, according to his obituary found on Find A Grave.com. He was survived by a wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Freeman Dougherty, and a son, the Rev. Edward A. Dougherty, Jr., of the United Campus Ministry, Ohio University, in Athens, Ohio, and a daughter, Mrs. Regina (Lloyd) Childers of Raleigh, North Carolina and four grandchildren.