A recently processed collection at the Indiana State Library from Helen Eaton Jacoby contains not only research and correspondence, but numerous interesting and well-composed photographs documenting both the Eaton, Jacoby and other related families and their descendants in the United States. Most photographs are of individuals or family groups, but there are several photographs that document the places where their families lived and worked. A selection of these photos were digitized and are available on the Indiana State Library’s digital collections page.
Helen Eaton Jacoby was born May 28, 1888, in Indianapolis, to Elias and Julia Eaton Jacoby. Her parents were both from Ohio and met each other at Ohio Wesleyan University.
Elias Jay Jacoby graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University in 1884 and came to Indianapolis to be the assistant of Charles W. Fairbanks. Elias was an attorney for several railroad companies. He also was the attorney and director of the Railroadmen’s Building and Saving Association and, by 1931, he was elected the president and named to the board of directors. Elias J. Jacoby was the potentate of the Murat Shriners from 1907 to 1912. He helped oversee the construction of the Shrine in 1909.
The Indianapolis News, Dec. 23, 1922.
Julia Lillian Eaton graduated Ohio Wesleyan in 1884 and taught painting and music. Her voice and paintings were complimented several times in the Indianapolis papers.
Helen E. Jacoby graduated from Charles E. Emmerich Manuel Training High School in June 1905. While in high school she also took art classes at the Herron Art Institute. One of her instructors at Manual was Otto Stark who also taught a summer course at Herron.
Helen attended the University of Chicago, graduating in winter of 1909 with a degree in Art. She later took classes at the Pratt institute. She enjoyed art and design and entered her works in several local and regional exhibitions. Helen also designed the murals in the Egyptian Room, a 1922 addition to the Murat Shrine in Indianapolis. Her father Elias J. Jacoby was the potentate of the Murat Shriners from 1907 to 1912. He helped oversee the construction of the Shrine in 1909.
A birthday gift to Fidelia Anderson is one example of her work. Inside the book is a letter of appreciation with drawings of flowers she was familiar with. She also inserts fanciful illustrations of insects and fairies into the book.
Helen Eaton Jacoby card with letter to Fidelia Anderson. Indiana State Library digital collections.
Helen was a member of many clubs and organizations, including the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Fortnightly Club, both organizations to which her mother also belonged.
The Eaton and Jacoby families were both interested in their families’ genealogy and history. Elias and Helen would correspond with relatives – and possible relatives – to see what information they could provide on their shared ancestors and other family members. They would also travel to visit relatives and the places their ancestors once resided.
In a series of photos from 1922 and 1925, the family documents the parcels of land in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania that their ancestor John Jacoby once owned. The well composed images show both the land and the older buildings possibly built by John. They also took pictures of the current farm on the property along with the wife of the current owner.
Old homestead of John Jacoby. Indiana State Library digital collections.
On one of their visits to Pennsylvania, they photographed part of the town of Summit Station and the nearby area of Summer Hill. One of the images taken in Summer Hill is of a Union church that burned down a year after the photograph was taken.
Summer Hill. Indiana State Library digital collections.
Summit Station. Indiana State Library digital collection.
They traveled back often to Ohio to visit family, and while there they documented the homes of family members and the places they worshiped and were buried. The images of the home of James Eaton in Delaware County, Ohio, along with the burial of the Eaton and Caulkins families, are significant because both the houses and original burial sites were lost to the creation of a reservoir in the 1970s.
James Eaton home. Indiana State Library digital collections.
Caulkins family tombstones. Indiana State Library digital collections.
Eaton family tombstones. Indiana State Library digital collections.
Eaton family tombstones. Indiana State Library digital collections.
The home of Michael Jacoby, located in Marion County, Ohio, may have survived, as there is still a similar shaped home on the same site as the original, but the landscape of the surrounding area has changed due to the subdivision of property as the farmland was sold off and outbuildings were removed.
Michael Jacoby farm and Riverside cemetery. Indiana State Library digital collection.
In June of 1940, Helen Jacoby married Harold W. Evard. When he died later that year, she adopted her stepchildren and raised them. Helen J. Evard died in 1967 at the age of 79 in Indianapolis.
If you would like to see more from the collection, please visit the Indiana State Library’s digital collection site, or visit the Genealogy Division in the Indiana State Library, located at 315 W. Ohio St. in downtown Indianapolis.
Blog written by Sarah Pfundstein, genealogy librarian, Indiana State Library. For more information, contact the Indiana State Library at 317-232-3689 or “Ask-A-Librarian.”