{"id":20111,"date":"2017-02-23T11:28:56","date_gmt":"2017-02-23T16:28:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/?p=20111"},"modified":"2026-04-06T14:11:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T18:11:01","slug":"genealogy-challenge-who-was-clara-gresham","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/genealogy-challenge-who-was-clara-gresham.html","title":{"rendered":"Genealogy Challenge: Who Was Clara Gresham?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/em><\/strong>: In this article, Gena Philibert-Ortega searches old newspapers to learn more about a woman\u2019s name she found embroidered on a quilt she bought in an antiques shop. Gena is a genealogist and author of the book \u201cFrom the Family Kitchen.<\/span>\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

My genealogy research sometimes has nothing to do with my own ancestors. I enjoy projects that document women\u2019s lives based on material artifacts I purchase from antique stores. One such artifact is a quilt top that I purchased a number of years ago.<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: cigar girls\u2019 quilt. Credit: Gena Philibert-Ortega.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This 1930s-era quilt top was never completed, but it includes the names of various women embroidered on white hexagons that outline colorful fabric stars. Because I have an interest in \u201csignature quilts\u201d (quilts that have the names of either the women involved in making the quilt or those who paid to have their name included for fundraising purposes), I wanted to know more about this one. My research questions include: Who were these women? How did they know each other? Who started this quilt top and why?<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: cigar girls\u2019 quilt showing the quilters\u2019 names. Credit: Gena Philibert-Ortega.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

That ongoing research involves tracing each woman represented on the quilt. I\u2019ve worked on this project just as I would for a typical family history project, searching sources like the U.S. census, city directories, and old newspaper articles. Using a spreadsheet to list these women and their corresponding facts, I eventually learned what tied these women together: they worked or had a connection to the H. Fendrich Cigar Factory in Evansville, Indiana.<\/p>\n

There are still many unanswered questions about this quilt \u2013 but I\u2019m hoping eventually, as I learn about each woman\u2019s life, I may in turn come up with more answers.<\/p>\n

One woman whose name is inscribed on the quilt is Clara Gresham.<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: cigar girls\u2019 quilt, showing Clara Gresham\u2019s name. Credit: Gena Philibert-Ortega.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How I researched her life is a good example of how we discover the details of our ancestors\u2019 lives \u2013 especially their stories as found in the pages of old newspapers like GenealogyBank\u2019s Historical Newspaper Archives<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Clara Gresham & Her Employment History<\/strong><\/p>\n

Her name, stitched on the quilt in blue thread, is simply \u201cClara Gresham\u201d \u2013 but she started life on 27 January 1903 as Clara Vanderschmidt, born to Frank Vanderschmidt and Mary Vetter.* \u00a0The 1920 U.S. Census shows that a 16-year-old Clara was working as a roller in the H. Fendrich Cigar Factory along with her sisters Delphine and Ardella.** \u00a0This is not surprising since at one time U.S. cigar factories were a major employer of both women and teenage girls.<\/p>\n

City directories indicate that Clara continued working in the cigar factory until at least 1947 in various positions, including cigar roller and stemmer. But she did not spend all of her working years at Fendrich. She spent her later years working as a cook in a private household (1948), maid at a hospital (1950), and eventually her last job, as a matron at Baker Avenue School.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, Baker Avenue School would also be the place where she would die.<\/p>\n

Her Violent Death<\/strong><\/p>\n

On 25 April 1957 at about 4:30 in the afternoon, Clara was working at Baker Avenue School when her ex-boyfriend (newspaper accounts stated they dated 13 years, breaking up the month before the killing), William Jennings (Jim) Utley, confronted her about money he spent on parts for her car. That confrontation ended with the shooting death of Clara. Utley shot Clara at least five times, twice in the back. Clara\u2019s family would later tell newspaper reporters that she was afraid Utley would kill her because he had threatened her numerous times.<\/p>\n

Sometime after the shooting, a head custodian found Clara\u2019s body and notified authorities. The following newspaper put the story on its front page, reporting that the arrival of police cars also meant the arrival of curious onlookers:<\/p>\n

Most of the onlookers were school-age children, many of them students at Baker. Police were kept busy explaining that it was not known what had happened in the building and keeping a walkway to the school cleared for investigators.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"An<\/a>
Evansville Courier and Press (Evansville, Indiana), 25 April 1957, page 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Finding More of Her Story<\/strong><\/p>\n

From earlier newspaper research, I knew all of this when I began my current Clara research project about five years ago. But \u2013 as with any newspaper research \u2013 it\u2019s important to keep checking back because more newspaper articles may have been added since you first searched a newspaper archive. One day I decided to look more into Clara\u2019s life and happened upon an expose in GenealogyBank\u2019s Historical Newspaper Archives<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The article, titled \u201cMurder Trial: A Story of Justice in Action\u201d in the Evansville Courier and Press,<\/em> details for readers the criminal justice process, using Clara Gresham\u2019s murder trial as an example.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Evansville Courier and Press (Evansville, Indiana), 22 September 1957, page 78<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This is the story of a criminal trial. Everyone who played an important role \u2013 the prosecutor, the judge, defense attorney, police, even the defendant \u2013 cooperated with the Evansville Courier and Press<\/em> to give readers a picture of what goes on inside the courtroom as well as behind the scenes. Only the jury deliberations were secret and kept out of the newspaper article, as required by law.<\/p>\n

Although this in-depth investigative reporting article was meant to educate readers about the criminal justice process in general, it actually provided an amazing amount of information about Clara\u2019s death, her killer, and the subsequent trial. A newspaper article like this, that goes beyond simple reporting of the events to give the reader \u2013 and in my case, the genealogist \u2013 a look into what was going on at the time of this most hideous shooting is a valuable addition to your research.<\/p>\n

The newspaper article even includes the questions posed by officers to Utley as they questioned him about what took place the day of Clara\u2019s killing. While initially he claimed to know nothing about her death, Utley later admitted to killing her and detailed for the police what happened, including where he hid the bullet casings:<\/p>\n

…I went in the back door and up the steps to the second floor where I met Clara Gresham. We got into an argument over tires and accessories which I had bought for her car when I was going with her. I pulled out the gun and said, \u2018I have a good notion to shoot you.\u2019 She started backing up and I commenced shooting.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Clara is buried at Saint Joseph Catholic Cemetery in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, with a simple tombstone that provides her name, birth year, and death year. At the time of her death, survivors included her mother and siblings. Although previously married, it appears that Clara had no children.<\/p>\n

Utley, despite pleading innocent by reason of insanity, was found by a jury to be guilty of second degree murder and sentenced in September 1957 to life in prison.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Evansville Courier and Press (Evansville, Indiana), 10 September 1957, page 13<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Keep Looking<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thanks to the additional newspaper research I did, I now have a fuller understanding of Clara\u2019s life story.<\/p>\n

Genealogy Tip:<\/em><\/strong> An important newspaper research tip I share with everyone is to keep looking. As more newspapers are digitized and become available online, you are likely to find more information about the person you\u2019re researching.<\/p>\n

Create a free account<\/a> at GenealogyBank for 7 days to start your journey and discover the stories your ancestors left behind.<\/p>\n

————————–<\/p>\n

* \u201cClara Vanderschmidt Gresham,\u201d Ancestry.com. Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011. (http:\/\/interactive.ancestry.com\/60716\/44494_351193-01392?pid=4258388&backurl=http:\/\/search.ancestry.com\/cgi-bin\/sse.dll<\/a>: accessed 2 February 2017).
\n** 1920 U.S. census, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, population schedule, Evansville Ward 6, p. 11A, dwelling 239, family 263, Clara Vandersmith; digital image, Ancestry.com (http:\/\/www.ancestry.com<\/a>: accessed 3 February 2017); citing NARA microfilm publication T625, roll 470.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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