Jean (Love) Hutchinson (1933-1904)

HUTCHINSON, LOVE, RANKIN

Posted By: Mark Christian
Date: 6/11/2023 at 07:38:17

From Ames Intelligencer, Ames, Story County, Iowa, Thursday, September 15th, 1904.

Jean Love Hutchinson was born in Tollcross, Scotland, a suburb of Glasgow, Scotland, March 8, 1833 and died at Ames, Iowa, Sept 8, 1904, age 71 years and 6 mo.

Her parents, Alexander and Jean Rankin Love were of old Scotish ancestry.

With her parents in May 1842, she migrated to Pictow, Nova Scotia where they lived for four years.

On June 27, 1846, she was shipwrecked off the coast of Massachusetts, her mother, sister, brother and twenty-seven other passengers being drowned.

On this eventful morning their ship, "Rutledge" missed the channel, and in Martha's Vineyard struck a ledge of rocks called "Saw and Bigs" Captain Grayham assured them that there was no immediate danger, but ordered the life boat lowered. It was capable of carrying sixty persons but when pushed off had in it all told 11 souls viz., the captain, four sailors, one adult passenger and five children. Jean being one of the five children. On board was left 46 passengers among whom were her mother, two brothers and a baby sister, her father having gone a few weeks ahead to prepare a home. A fishing vessel "Dusky Sally Wilder" came slowly to their rescue but too late; their ship made a lunge and all was over. Her brother David, with his younger brother on his back pawed the water sinking and rising until picked up by the whaler his little brother dead still clinging to him.

Jean Love kept house for her father and brother until 1848. On Christmas 1 855 she married James Hutchinson. They resided in Plymouth, Penn. until 1878 when the landed in the village of Ames, Ia. There being no fences and the roads very poor they proceeded across the prairie to the coal mines ten miles northwest where James Hutchinson had opened a mine the year before.

The roads being so bad, they stuck in the mud three times and had to walk, taking from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. to reach Zenorsville. Here she toiled as housewife, mother and friend, organizing a union Sunday school, visiting the sick, caring for the needy and always with a word of good cheer for everyone.

In the fall of 1888 her husband gave up his active interest in the coal mines and moved to Ames to enjoy the remainder of their days.

Mrs. Hutchinson joined the Presbyterian church in her early days and continued in that until 1889 when she united with the 1st Congregational church of Ames.

Her health has been failing for several years and the winters of 1902 and '03 being spent in Texas and 1903 and '04 in California to avoid the cold weather. She leaves a husband, seven sons and one daughter to mourn her loss.