Ella M Burke 1850-1935

BURKE, HOOVER, WRIGHT

Posted By: Georgea Clinton (email)
Date: 6/3/2011 at 14:40:11

Nov 23, 1935 - Carroll Daily - Mrs. Ella M. Burke passed away this morning at 7:05 o'clock at the home of her sister, Mrs. A.L. Wright, following a paralytic stroke. A resident of Carroll for the last 59 years, Mrs. Burke was one of the most public spirited women in the community. Her life was punctuated with good deeds of service to the community and to her many friends. For nearly half a century she was instrumental in the management of the Burke hotel and helped make it one of the most widely known inns in the state of Iowa.

Funeral services will be held at 2:30 o'clock Monday afternoon in the Wright home on North Main street. Rev. Claude R. Cook, pastor the the First Methodist Episcopal church, will officiate. Burial will be in the family lot at the Carroll cemetery. Mrs. Burke was born Ella M Hoover in Richmond, Ind.; and was married to E.R. Burke at Dexter, Ia. November 18, 1875. They were the parents of one son, Robert, who died in 1881 at the age of 2 1/2 years. Mr. Burke died in 1897.

In 1876 Mr. and Mrs. Burke came to Carroll and purchased the hotel on the corner of Main and Fifth streets, which is the site now occupied by the Tessandori store. The big Carroll fire in the fall of 1879, destroyed most of the business section and the hotel, with all its furnishings, was consumed by the flames.

The following spring, Mr. and Mrs. Burke had a frame structure erected on the east portion of the ground now occupied by the present Burke hotel building. In the early 90's the brick hotel was built and in 1914 the size of the building was doubled and the entire hotel was thoroughly modernized.

For about 46 years Mrs. Burke was active in the management of the Burke hotel, being closely associated with the business, even during the life of Mr. Burke. Her life was bound up in the hotel. She made it a home for traveling men and in the days before the automobile, when salesmen could not reach their homes, they would travel many miles to reach Carroll in order to spend the weekend at the Burke hotel. It had a statewide reputation and was well known in surrounding states. G.C. Johnson, who had managed the hotel for Mrs. Burke for many years, died in March, 1922, and from then on she devoted her entire time to the hotel until she leased it to S.I. Boysen September 2, 1922. Mr. Boysen, when he moved to San Diego, Calif., a few years ago, sold the business to E.C. Tangney of Spencer, but Mrs. Burke still owns the building.

She was a public spirited woman and all her life contributed and assisted in any progress or advancement for Carroll. Prominent socially she was a charter member and a past president of the Clio club. She was one of the founders of the first library and was among those instrumental in obtaining the appropriation from the Carnegie library fund for the erection of the present library building. She was president of the board for many years, but resigned when she began to spend her winters in California, which was in 1922. The last nine times she made the trip there and back in her car. Her summers have been spent at the home of her sister, Mrs. Wright, who is the last of her family.

A brother, Horace Hoover, died in 1896. Surviving relatives are a nephew, Robert L. Wright of Drinkwater, Sash., Canada, and a step-son, Walter Burke of Clinton. Both have been notified of her passing and will be here for the funeral.

Mrs. Burke sustained a slight paralytic stroke May 25, but was able to be about until Memorial day, when she received a second stroke. She had been in bed ever since. She was conscious until last Thursday, when the third stroke caused her to fail rapidly and the end came peacefully.