Sarah Wilhelmina (Bernie) Porter (1904 - 1981)

Born 29 Feb 1904 in Berlin, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

Ancestors

Wife of Byron Henry Porter — married 24 Sep 1936 in Manhattan, New York County, New York, United States

Died 18 Nov 1981 at age 77 in Pittsfield, Berkshire, Massachusetts, United States

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Biography

Sarah was born 29 February 1904 in Berlin, Ontario, now called Kitchener. She is the daughter of Albert Bernie and Jane Amelia Dinsmore. ^[1] Her father died in 1911 and her mother died in 1918. On 24 Oct 1919 she went from her Aunt Wilhelmina Jennings in Gore Bay to her half sister Edith Whicher in Greenwich, Connecticut. She travelled with an unidentified cousin and had no bag. ^[2] Sarah visited her aunt, W. Jennings of Gore Bay and returned 27 Aug 1925 to her sister, Edith Whicher who lived then at 395 Central Pk. St., New York. She crossed by ferry from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario to Sault Ste. Marie Michigan and having paid the head tax, she had $25. She was described as 5 ft. 9 1/2 in. tall, of medium complexion and dark brown hair and brown eyes. ^[3] She was educated at the Presbyterian School of Nursing in New York. By 1930 she was known as Sally and was a nurse living at the Medical Center, a teaching hospital in New York with nearly 500 resident staff and trainees. ^[4] She went abroad in 1933, arriving in New York 25 Jul 1933 aboard the S.S. Pennland. ^[5] Sally worked as an anesthetist at the Presbyterian Hospital. On 24 Sep 1936, Sally Bernie and Byron Porter were married in Manhattan. ^[6] They settled in Pittsfield City, Berkshire about 1937. Sally was able to have a domestic servant in 1940. ^[7]For about $45,000, Sally purchased the Coburn Building at 431-439 North St. in 1960. It was a three storey building with shops on the main floor and apartments on the upper floors. ^[8] Byron died in 1972. Sally died 18 Nov 1981 in Pittsfield and was interred in the Pittsfield Cemetery following a funeral service in St. Stephen’s Church. ^{[9] [10]}

Children of Sally and Byron:

Peter Porter was born c.1939, l. Philadelphia 1981

Byron H. Porter l. Pittsfield 1981

Sources

1. ↑ Ontario. Birth registrations, Sarah Wilhelmina Bernie registration no. 045202 (1904); digital image, Ancestry.ca (http//www.ancestry.ca : accessed 4 Apr 2009) citing Archives of Ontario microfilm MS 929, reel 170.
2. ↑ "New York, Northern Arrival Manifests, Buffalo, New York," online images, Family Search (accessed 20 Apr 2020), 10/24/19, Sarah Bernie.
3. ↑ "Michigan, Detroit," online images, FamilySearch, (accessed 19 Apr 2020), manifest, ferry, 8-27-25, Sarah W. Bernie.
4. ↑ 1930 U.S. census, New York, New York, population schedule, Manhattan, enumeration district (ED) 1082, sheet 1A, dwelling Medical Center, Sallie Bernie; digital images, Family Search (accessed 19 Apr 2020); citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm T626, roll 1579.
5. ↑ Sally Wilhelmine Bernie; S.S. Pennland manifest, 25 Jul 1933; National Archives and Records Administration.
6. ↑ "New York City Marriage Records," database, Family Search  (https://familysearch.org : accessed 19 Apr 2020), Porter - Bernie (1936); citing New York City Municipal Archives.
7. ↑ 1940 U.S. census, Massachusetts, population schedule, Pittsfield City, Berkshire, enumeration district (ED) 2-90, sheet 9A, household 172, Sally B. Porter; digital images, Family Search (accessed 19 Apr 2020); citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm T627, roll 1569.
8. ↑ "North St. Building Sold for $45,000," The Berkshire Eagle, 6 Jan 1960, p. 15; digital images, Newspapers.com (accessed 1 May 2020).
9. ↑ "Massaschusetts Death Index," database (accessed 19 Apr 2020), Sally W Porter; citing certificate 051523.
10. ↑ "Sally Bernie Porter," The Berkshire Eagle, 19 Nov 1981, p. 21; digital images, Newspapers.com (accessed 1 May 2020).