The Historical Society of Ocean Grove will present a family history, “The Severs Women of 35 Atlantic,” July 6 from 10:30 a.m. to noon at the society’s community room, 50 Pitman Ave. The presentation will be led by Lyndell O’Hara, a professor of history at Nyack College. The featured home at 35 Atlantic will also be on the summer house tour to be held on July 19.
For more than seven decades, Viola Severs, a piano teacher in Ocean Grove, carefully preserved family cards, letters and mementos, as well as household items and clothing. The boxes were found in the basement of the home a year ago by the owner and donated to the historical society.
The life stories of Viola, her sister Olive and their parents, Rosella and Alonzo, are revealed through these family treasures, which begins with the recording of the family’s births, marriages and deaths, and end in 1884 when Viola collects her last spoon commemorating the birth of Prince Harry.
Viola and Olive were both accomplished, college-educated women in an era when only 7 percent of American women received higher education. Olive majored in languages and taught at both the high school and college levels. Viola also taught music in various college conservatories before settling in Ocean Grove with her mother to concentrate on private lessons.
After Alonzo left the family in 1910 and Olive married and moved to California, Viola and Rosella supplemented their income by renting rooms in their home, a continuation of a long tradition in Ocean Grove of women who managed hotels and boarding houses for both transient and permanent residents.
For more information, contact the Historical Society of Ocean Grove at www.oceangrovehistory.org.