Ionia County MI Archives Obituaries.....Coville, Mary E. H. 1941 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/mi/mifiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Marilyn Ransom mransom311@gmail.com August 29, 2014, 5:21 pm The Belding Banner, Thursday, January 30, 1941 Mrs. Mary E. H. Coville is dead. That terse sentence was pronounced at the Belding Hospital Tuesday afternoon at about 4:30 o’clock and as it spread over the city it announced the passing of Mrs. Coville, aged nearly 97 years and at one time—and for a long time—together with her husband, the late Dr. Palmer Coville, one of the most prominent personages in the history of this city. Mrs. Coville, who had lived alone since the death of her husband, one of the first physicians of this community, suffered a fall in her home some time Wednesday evening, presumably about 10 o’clock. In some way she managed to get into her chair and was forced to remain there all during the night, suffering greatly from her injury received in the fall, which on examination Thursday morning, proved to be a fracture of her right leg. Unable to maintain the fires in her stoves and unable to attract attention with her feeble cries, Mrs. Coville went through the cold hours of the night and her plight was not discovered until about nine o’clock Thursday morning when Byron Moore, city mail carrier who delivers mail in the district where the Coville home is located, heard her crying for help and he called to ask her what was the matter. Unable to open the door from the outside, Mr. Moore asked the aged lady to open it from the inside, but she was unable to get from her chair to the door and directed the mail carrier to go and get Mrs. Ira Richards, a friend who had a key to the home. When Mrs. Richards reached the scene she was unable to use her key due to an arrangement which Mrs. Coville had contrived which made it impossible to push the key out of the lock from the outside so the lock could be worked. Former mayor E. Y. McNally, who has been the aged lady’s chief confidant for a number of years, was then notified and he pried one of the windows open and the house was entered and everything possible was then done to assure the comfort of the stricken pioneer. Later on she was removed to the Belding Hospital where Dr. V. L. VanDusen, who had been called, had her taken and where two expert bone surgeons, Dr. George T. Aitken and an assistant, of Grand Rapids, together with Dr. VanDusen, set the broken bone. Even at her advanced age—nearly 97 years—the aged patient showed remarkable vitality, but her condition grew steadily worse and pneumonia setting in, caused her death at about 4:30 Tuesday afternoon. Mrs. Coville was born at Dexter, this state, on March 18th, 1844, according to the records in an old family bible and was thus nearing the 97th anniversary of her birth. Coming to this vicinity she taught school at Cook’s Corners and other early schools and later on married Dr. Palmer C. Coville, a young physician and surgeon who practiced here for many years, their pretentious home at the corner of Broas and Congress streets being for many years one of the social centers of this community. The doctor died a number of years ago, also at an advanced age and a daughter, Avis, who married Irving Crame, met a tragic death by fire at her home in Grand Rapids a few years after the father had passed away. Although adversity crept into her life during the later years, Mrs. Coville never murmured, never lost heart and maintaining the cheerful, interested outlook on life which was characteristic of her, mentally relived the golden days of her youth and the happy years with her doctor husband, as happy, well- to-do citizens of this community. Although she was keenly interested in current news and developments, the old home, inside as well as outside, was kept in much the same condition as when the doctor was still alive, her answers to suggestions that she make certain changes, invariably being, “The doctor put that there,” “Doctor liked it that way,” or other explanations to that effect. Mrs. Coville was a member of the Congregational church, the order of Eastern Star and several other civic organizations. Surviving are four grandchildren, Helen Louis Crame, Genevieve Elizabeth Crame, Palmer Crame and Mary Francis Crame, all of Grand Rapids, two brothers, Fred Howell, of Greenville and William Howell, of near Remus. Mrs. Arnold Rich, of Ionia is a niece. E. V. McNally, who befriended Mrs. Coville for a number of years and in whom the aged lady had much confidence, will act as executor of her will. Mr. McNally stated that according to one of the provisions of the will, Mrs. Coville had directed that her body be held for a period of five days after her death before the funeral services should be held. Pending the arrival of the aged brothers, if they might be able to attend the funeral services, and the arrival of the grandchildren from Grand Rapids, the body of the aged pioneer was taken to the Fitzjohn funeral home and funeral services have been set for Sunday afternoon at 2:30 at the Congregational church. Burial will be by the side of Dr. Coville and their daughter, Avis, in Otisco cemetery. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/mi/ionia/obits/c/coville27999nob.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/mifiles/ File size: 5.6 Kb