Did You Know?

The Whallon Sisters

Four Whallon sisters: Carrie (1863-1919), Isabelle (1872-1947), Frances (1873-1944), and Bertha (1876-1935), were an inextricable part of early Montreat history. Their names first appear in General Manager Weston Gales’s annual report dated January 1901, when he indicates that sisters Carrie and Bertha Whallon, from Cleveland, Ohio, had taken on supervision of the Montreat orphanage (see previous orphanage story HERE) upon the death of its founder. A year earlier, in January 1900, Carrie and Bertha had purchased a small farm in Lower Hominy Township, so the sisters were obviously familiar with the area before arriving in Montreat. They sold that property in December 1901, and six months later secured two lots in Montreat. Over the course of the subsequent two decades the four sisters were involved in multiple land transfers in Montreat.

Why did the sisters come to western North Carolina from Ohio? With no written account from them, we can only surmise based on other evidence. Carrie died of tuberculosis in 1919, so it is logical to assume that she, like hundreds of other people, came for the climate. Bertha, a nurse, came with her. Also coming to the Asheville area from Cleveland at this same time was Dr. Clyde Ellsworth Cotton who in 1899 purchased 75 acres between Montreat and Black Mountain on which he constructed a sanitorium for tuberculosis patients. It is quite possible that he treated Carrie in Cleveland and recommended the area to her.

Carrie and Bertha ran the orphanage from 1900 until January 1905. During that time the children were housed in various rented houses, at least one of which burned. They finally raised enough money to build an orphanage at the end of what is now Oak Lane, but it burned in January 1905. The children went to other institutions and there was no further effort to have an orphanage in Montreat.

The Whallon sisters, however, did not leave the area, although records of their activities are sparse. In the 1910 census Isabelle is listed as a matron at the Lindley Training School in Asheville (a reformatory school for young women). In 1919, Carrie died of tuberculosis in Cleveland and Isabelle is shown living there in the 1920 census. Most likely, Isabelle returned to Cleveland to care for Carrie. They owned a house on Mississippi Road with a small cottage on the back of the same property. Bertha lived there, moving to the small cottage during the summer to rent the larger house to summer visitors. By 1930, Isabelle was back in Montreat. When Frances (Frankie) came is unclear, but it was after the 1920 census. Bertha died in 1935, having suffered a stroke some years earlier. Frankie died in 1944. She had suffered from a form of dementia for many years when she fell, broke her hip, and refused medical attention. Isabelle, a “wonderfully strong woman” recounted a neighbor many years later took care of them both and then remained in the house until her death in 1947. All three women were buried in Homer’s Chapel Cemetery in Black Mountain.

Thanks to the Presbyterian Heritage Center, especially Nancy Midgette, for this glimpse from the past. Stop by the PHC for additional Montreat missionary history and so much more. Have an idea for a future “Did You Know?”? Let Nancy know at midgette@elon.edu.