DWIGHT, Feb. 18.—(AP)—Mrs. Erminie Ahern Smith, wife of Frank L. Smith, Republican national committeeman for Illinois and former chairman of the Republican state central committee, died suddenly tonight in her home. In apparent good health today, she was stricken at 5 p.m., and died several hours later.
[The Daily Illinois, February 19, 1936.]
The "Biographical Record of Livingston and Woodford Counties, Illinois" published 1900 states Erminie was "a daughter of John and Margaret Ahern who are at present living in Ogden, Utah."
Erminie and Frank were married February 8, 1893.
It is intriguing to note that while Erminie was the daughter of an Irish saloon keeper, there seemed to be no issue with her husband's professional bonds with people active in the Keeley Company of Dwight, the first organization to treat alcoholism as a medical condition and not as a character flaw.
A 1974 book about her husband attributed much of his success to her and her social skills. The book "The Case Frank L. Smith: A Study in Representative Government" by Carroll Hill Wooddy offered the following:
"In 1893, shortly after his return to Dwight, Frank Smith married Erminie Ahern, daughter of a saloon-keeper in the village, who had been his classmate and later a school teacher herself. Smith's friends gave to his wife much of the credit for his personal and political success. It was she, so it has been said, who supplied the driving force which kept this rather erratic though vigorous personality headed consistently toward definite achievement. Mrs. Smith's neighbors pay many tributes to her force of character, her adroitness in social contacts, and to her talent for leadership in civic matters. Through her, Smith's influence was extended into groups where he would not have normally found supporters. She was Irish and a Catholic. His church affiliations were, nominally at least, with the Methodists, though he was not what might be called a regular churchgoer. Mrs. Smith was long a leader and to her was given chief credit for founding and maintaining the Dwight Public Library and the creation of a system of village parks extraordinary in a town the size of Dwight. She developed also various connections with Chicago society, being a member of the Woman's Club, the Alliance Francaise, the Dickens Club, the Friends of the Opera, and the league of American Penwomen."
A footnote placed here continues: "Mrs. Smith's attitude toward public affairs may be indicated by an answer given by her to a reporter's question after Smith's nomination in 1926 as to how she would like being a senator's wife. "My dear, Washington can't make me feel any different than I do now. I don't think one needs to go to a big city in order to have big ideas - you can live in a small town and have them just the same. And after all, they're what count - helping people who need help, doing all you can for your home, your town, and your country, and keeping interested in the world about and beyond you." (Chicago Evening American, 4/15/1926.)
Kind fellow contributor Michael Harshbarger offered this obit:
Dwight, Ill., Feb. 18 - Mrs. Erminie Ahern Smith, wife of Frank L. Smith, Republican national committeeman for Illinois and former chairman of the Republican state central committee, died suddenly tonight in her home. She was in apparent good health until today.
She and Mr. Smith were married here in 1893. She was a native of Dwight. She founded the Women's club here and was its president for several years. She also was a member of the Pen Women's league and the Chicago Women's Athletic club.
Mrs. Smith is survived, in addition to her husband, by a sister, Mrs. Walter Bracken, Chicago, and by two brothers, John W. Ahern, Chicago, and C.J. Ahern, Dwight attorney. (Chicago Tribune, Chicago, IL, Wed., Feb. 19, 1936)
[The Daily Illinois, February 19, 1936.]
The "Biographical Record of Livingston and Woodford Counties, Illinois" published 1900 states Erminie was "a daughter of John and Margaret Ahern who are at present living in Ogden, Utah."
Erminie and Frank were married February 8, 1893.
It is intriguing to note that while Erminie was the daughter of an Irish saloon keeper, there seemed to be no issue with her husband's professional bonds with people active in the Keeley Company of Dwight, the first organization to treat alcoholism as a medical condition and not as a character flaw.
A 1974 book about her husband attributed much of his success to her and her social skills. The book "The Case Frank L. Smith: A Study in Representative Government" by Carroll Hill Wooddy offered the following:
"In 1893, shortly after his return to Dwight, Frank Smith married Erminie Ahern, daughter of a saloon-keeper in the village, who had been his classmate and later a school teacher herself. Smith's friends gave to his wife much of the credit for his personal and political success. It was she, so it has been said, who supplied the driving force which kept this rather erratic though vigorous personality headed consistently toward definite achievement. Mrs. Smith's neighbors pay many tributes to her force of character, her adroitness in social contacts, and to her talent for leadership in civic matters. Through her, Smith's influence was extended into groups where he would not have normally found supporters. She was Irish and a Catholic. His church affiliations were, nominally at least, with the Methodists, though he was not what might be called a regular churchgoer. Mrs. Smith was long a leader and to her was given chief credit for founding and maintaining the Dwight Public Library and the creation of a system of village parks extraordinary in a town the size of Dwight. She developed also various connections with Chicago society, being a member of the Woman's Club, the Alliance Francaise, the Dickens Club, the Friends of the Opera, and the league of American Penwomen."
A footnote placed here continues: "Mrs. Smith's attitude toward public affairs may be indicated by an answer given by her to a reporter's question after Smith's nomination in 1926 as to how she would like being a senator's wife. "My dear, Washington can't make me feel any different than I do now. I don't think one needs to go to a big city in order to have big ideas - you can live in a small town and have them just the same. And after all, they're what count - helping people who need help, doing all you can for your home, your town, and your country, and keeping interested in the world about and beyond you." (Chicago Evening American, 4/15/1926.)
Kind fellow contributor Michael Harshbarger offered this obit:
Dwight, Ill., Feb. 18 - Mrs. Erminie Ahern Smith, wife of Frank L. Smith, Republican national committeeman for Illinois and former chairman of the Republican state central committee, died suddenly tonight in her home. She was in apparent good health until today.
She and Mr. Smith were married here in 1893. She was a native of Dwight. She founded the Women's club here and was its president for several years. She also was a member of the Pen Women's league and the Chicago Women's Athletic club.
Mrs. Smith is survived, in addition to her husband, by a sister, Mrs. Walter Bracken, Chicago, and by two brothers, John W. Ahern, Chicago, and C.J. Ahern, Dwight attorney. (Chicago Tribune, Chicago, IL, Wed., Feb. 19, 1936)
DWIGHT, Feb. 18.—(AP)—Mrs. Erminie Ahern Smith, wife of Frank L. Smith, Republican national committeeman for Illinois and former chairman of the Republican state central committee, died suddenly tonight in her home. In apparent good health today, she was stricken at 5 p.m., and died several hours later.
[The Daily Illinois, February 19, 1936.]
The "Biographical Record of Livingston and Woodford Counties, Illinois" published 1900 states Erminie was "a daughter of John and Margaret Ahern who are at present living in Ogden, Utah."
Erminie and Frank were married February 8, 1893.
It is intriguing to note that while Erminie was the daughter of an Irish saloon keeper, there seemed to be no issue with her husband's professional bonds with people active in the Keeley Company of Dwight, the first organization to treat alcoholism as a medical condition and not as a character flaw.
A 1974 book about her husband attributed much of his success to her and her social skills. The book "The Case Frank L. Smith: A Study in Representative Government" by Carroll Hill Wooddy offered the following:
"In 1893, shortly after his return to Dwight, Frank Smith married Erminie Ahern, daughter of a saloon-keeper in the village, who had been his classmate and later a school teacher herself. Smith's friends gave to his wife much of the credit for his personal and political success. It was she, so it has been said, who supplied the driving force which kept this rather erratic though vigorous personality headed consistently toward definite achievement. Mrs. Smith's neighbors pay many tributes to her force of character, her adroitness in social contacts, and to her talent for leadership in civic matters. Through her, Smith's influence was extended into groups where he would not have normally found supporters. She was Irish and a Catholic. His church affiliations were, nominally at least, with the Methodists, though he was not what might be called a regular churchgoer. Mrs. Smith was long a leader and to her was given chief credit for founding and maintaining the Dwight Public Library and the creation of a system of village parks extraordinary in a town the size of Dwight. She developed also various connections with Chicago society, being a member of the Woman's Club, the Alliance Francaise, the Dickens Club, the Friends of the Opera, and the league of American Penwomen."
A footnote placed here continues: "Mrs. Smith's attitude toward public affairs may be indicated by an answer given by her to a reporter's question after Smith's nomination in 1926 as to how she would like being a senator's wife. "My dear, Washington can't make me feel any different than I do now. I don't think one needs to go to a big city in order to have big ideas - you can live in a small town and have them just the same. And after all, they're what count - helping people who need help, doing all you can for your home, your town, and your country, and keeping interested in the world about and beyond you." (Chicago Evening American, 4/15/1926.)
Kind fellow contributor Michael Harshbarger offered this obit:
Dwight, Ill., Feb. 18 - Mrs. Erminie Ahern Smith, wife of Frank L. Smith, Republican national committeeman for Illinois and former chairman of the Republican state central committee, died suddenly tonight in her home. She was in apparent good health until today.
She and Mr. Smith were married here in 1893. She was a native of Dwight. She founded the Women's club here and was its president for several years. She also was a member of the Pen Women's league and the Chicago Women's Athletic club.
Mrs. Smith is survived, in addition to her husband, by a sister, Mrs. Walter Bracken, Chicago, and by two brothers, John W. Ahern, Chicago, and C.J. Ahern, Dwight attorney. (Chicago Tribune, Chicago, IL, Wed., Feb. 19, 1936)
[The Daily Illinois, February 19, 1936.]
The "Biographical Record of Livingston and Woodford Counties, Illinois" published 1900 states Erminie was "a daughter of John and Margaret Ahern who are at present living in Ogden, Utah."
Erminie and Frank were married February 8, 1893.
It is intriguing to note that while Erminie was the daughter of an Irish saloon keeper, there seemed to be no issue with her husband's professional bonds with people active in the Keeley Company of Dwight, the first organization to treat alcoholism as a medical condition and not as a character flaw.
A 1974 book about her husband attributed much of his success to her and her social skills. The book "The Case Frank L. Smith: A Study in Representative Government" by Carroll Hill Wooddy offered the following:
"In 1893, shortly after his return to Dwight, Frank Smith married Erminie Ahern, daughter of a saloon-keeper in the village, who had been his classmate and later a school teacher herself. Smith's friends gave to his wife much of the credit for his personal and political success. It was she, so it has been said, who supplied the driving force which kept this rather erratic though vigorous personality headed consistently toward definite achievement. Mrs. Smith's neighbors pay many tributes to her force of character, her adroitness in social contacts, and to her talent for leadership in civic matters. Through her, Smith's influence was extended into groups where he would not have normally found supporters. She was Irish and a Catholic. His church affiliations were, nominally at least, with the Methodists, though he was not what might be called a regular churchgoer. Mrs. Smith was long a leader and to her was given chief credit for founding and maintaining the Dwight Public Library and the creation of a system of village parks extraordinary in a town the size of Dwight. She developed also various connections with Chicago society, being a member of the Woman's Club, the Alliance Francaise, the Dickens Club, the Friends of the Opera, and the league of American Penwomen."
A footnote placed here continues: "Mrs. Smith's attitude toward public affairs may be indicated by an answer given by her to a reporter's question after Smith's nomination in 1926 as to how she would like being a senator's wife. "My dear, Washington can't make me feel any different than I do now. I don't think one needs to go to a big city in order to have big ideas - you can live in a small town and have them just the same. And after all, they're what count - helping people who need help, doing all you can for your home, your town, and your country, and keeping interested in the world about and beyond you." (Chicago Evening American, 4/15/1926.)
Kind fellow contributor Michael Harshbarger offered this obit:
Dwight, Ill., Feb. 18 - Mrs. Erminie Ahern Smith, wife of Frank L. Smith, Republican national committeeman for Illinois and former chairman of the Republican state central committee, died suddenly tonight in her home. She was in apparent good health until today.
She and Mr. Smith were married here in 1893. She was a native of Dwight. She founded the Women's club here and was its president for several years. She also was a member of the Pen Women's league and the Chicago Women's Athletic club.
Mrs. Smith is survived, in addition to her husband, by a sister, Mrs. Walter Bracken, Chicago, and by two brothers, John W. Ahern, Chicago, and C.J. Ahern, Dwight attorney. (Chicago Tribune, Chicago, IL, Wed., Feb. 19, 1936)
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