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1 of 1977 Keniston, Bertha A. (Gammon) (1876-1964)

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Name	Keniston, Bertha A. (Gammon) (1876-1964)
Other Names	Kenniston; A. short for Ardele
Born	Sept. 5, 1876
Birthplace	Stoneham, ME
Places of Residence	Stoneham, ME Lovell, ME Springfield, NJ
Father	William Gammon
Mother	Sarah (Barker) Gammon
Notes	Power's model while she lived in New Jersey with her daughter Marion. Intentions of Marriage entered Nov 24, 1891 Married at Biddeford Dec 8, 1891 by Rev. Wescott Bullock Buried in Cemetery No. 4. Mentioned in child's birth certificate Taken from the Spring 2017 Newsletter, written by Liz Kerr: Bertha Keniston’s story is one of perseverance and success. Her life began on a small farm in Stoneham, ME. She moved to Lovell when she married and, at the age of 32, found herself widowed with six children. Many people would have found these challenges insurmountable, but not Bertha. She rolled up her sleeves, got to work, and went from farming in Lovell to modelling in New York City. Bertha was born to William and Sarah (Barker) Gammon on September 5, 1876. She grew up in Stoneham and attended school there. From an early age, she learned the duties typical with a farmstead, which would be of considerable use to her later in life. On December 8, 1891, Bertha married Franklin Amos Keniston of Lovell. She was 15 years old, he was 26, and, due to her young age, parental permission was required in order for the marriage to take place. Bertha and her husband lived on a farm called "Hillside" on Old Waterford Road. Franklin worked as a carpenter and contractor, but he suffered from ill health for several years. He passed away suddenly on November 6, 1908 at the age of 43. At the time of his death, Bertha was pregnant with their sixth child. She was left to raise the six children: Albert Carlton, aged 15, Frank Earl, aged 12, Hazel Marie, aged 8, Marion Bertha, aged 6, Bernice Stella, aged 3, and new born Franklin Amos, Jr. Bertha was young, widowed, and determined to provide for her family. She advertised her house as an inn and began to take in boarders in order to supplement the income from the farm. In a 1913 interview with the Lewiston Sun Journal, Bertha commented that she looked to "do whatever honest work comes to my hand the year round," which included writing columns for various newspapers. While caring for her children, Bertha also oversaw the running of the farm and was an active participant in the community. She was a lifelong member of the Order of the Eastern Star and a charter member of the Suncook Grange. Eventually, Bertha held the office of Grange Master for several years. She lamented that she was unable to attend the 1912 National Grange event in New Hampshire due to the fact that one of her daughters was ill with typhoid at the time. After the death of her husband in 1908, Bertha greatly felt the need for hard work on the farm and always taught her children to have the same sense of duty. In 1913, just five years after her husband’s death, Bertha was quoted by the Lewiston Sun Journal: "For the last five years I have had reason many times to thank my mother and father for my early training, which I believe gave me health, strength and courage to overcome many difficulties which at first looked impossible." Bertha never despaired, but rather, she found a means to survive. It was stated in Bertha’s 1913 interview that she was regarded as being a "superior character in all respects." After a few years of working to sustain the farm on Old Waterford Road, Bertha resigned as Grange Master and took a position as a matron at Gould Academy in Bethel, ME. Thus began 18 years of work in various private schools in northern New England. Through this work, she was able to ensure that her children received top-notch private educations. In addition to Gould Academy, Bertha worked at Hebron Academy, Kents Hill School, and the Sanborn Seminary in New Hampshire. The Lovell Historical Society is fortunate to have in their collection many of the scrapbooks and photo albums belonging to Bertha, which were donated by her great grandson Jim McBain, Jr. In this collection are numerous photographs of school staff and students, indicating her dedication to her position. She was fondly known as "Ma", and maintained correspondence with many of her charges even after she retired from working in schools. In the summer, Bertha was able to continue work as a matron and bring her children to various luxury destinations, such as Ferry Beach, ME and the Cliff House in Ogunquit, ME. These summer trips became especially important in 1929 when the family farm "Hillside" burned to the ground. A few years after the fire, Bertha retired and moved to Maplewood, NJ to live with her daughter Marion. This move would be the impetus to an astonishing, if unexpected, phase of Bertha’s life. Retirement did not entirely suit Bertha. She was unaccustomed to a life of leisure after having worked so diligently for most of her life. Shortly after arriving in New Jersey, she began baking and selling her own bread and braiding rag rugs. She joined the women’s auxiliary of her local church and took a hostess course at an adult school. Eventually, Bertha put a babysitting advertisement in the newspaper. In a 1940 interview with Helen Worden of the New York World-Telegram, Bertha noted that "it wasn’t that we were poor, but you feel so useless doing nothing when you’ve been active all your life." One of her babysitting employers, a Mr. Joseph Sweeney, owned a lithography company. One evening in 1939, Mr. Sweeney told Bertha that she looked like "the perfect grandmother" and insisted that she allow him to take photographs of her. He then directed her to the offices of John Robert Powers, owner of the famed modelling agency. A few months after her initial photographs were taken, Bertha worked up the courage to venture into New York City and deliver them to John Powers. She later admitted in her interview with Helen Worden that she "was frightened to death when she walked into the smart, modernistic green and white office," but she was not deterred. Soon, Bertha was taken to the private office of Mr. Powers. He looked at Bertha and said, "We need somebody like you this very minute." The New York World-Telgram reported that "half an hour later Mrs. Keniston was holding a pot of baked beans up before a huge camera in the Weidman photographic studios." Bertha was officially a "Powers Girl." At the height of her work, Bertha made about $50 a week, which calculates to roughly $850 in modern value. She posed as a "grandmother type" in advertisements for food, household goods, stories, and the like. Her photos were featured in publications such as McCall’s, Life, Women’s Day, and Good Housekeeping. She did advertisements for Heinz, Prudential Insurance, Lipton and many others. Although Bertha spoke well of John Powers himself (and sent Christmas cookies to his staff), Bertha also experienced a darker side of modelling. For instance, she once spent an hour and half modelling for Heinz. Heinz used those photos in a four-year, nationwide campaign, but Bertha was only paid for the hour and a half of work she had done. Bertha did not always know where her photos were being used; the studios were allowed to sell the photos to any company without having to seek Bertha’s permission. She once said that she hoped her image would never be used in a cigarette ad. Thankfully, it appears it never was. In a piece on Bertha in a Kents Hill alumni newsletter, she said, "If anyone had told me years ago that I would be a registered model, I would never have believed it." By the mid 1940s, Bertha slowed down her modelling and did not sign contracts with any new studios. She maintained her career mostly as a hobby, yet another sign of her endurance and desire to always remain active. In these years, Bertha travelled often with her daughter Marion to many tourist locales, such as Salem, MA, Tarrytown, NY, and Williamsburg,VA. Bertha never forgot her roots and often returned to Lovell to see her family. She was a devoted grandmother and great-grandmother, as evidenced by many surviving photographs. Her son, Frank Earl, purchased the property where "Hillside" had once stood and rebuilt a home there in 1952, which gave Bertha the opportunity to return to her beloved property. Sadly, Bertha outlived all but two of her children, a fact that weighed on her. Perhaps this led to her desire to record the Keniston family history for posterity. She corresponded with Charlotte Hobbs in regards to the family genealogy, going back as far as the Revolutionary War. Bertha spent her later years compiling detailed photo albums and scrapbooks and spending time with her, now, multigenerational, family. Bertha Keniston passed away in Maplewood, New Jersey on October 30, 1964. Though she was far from home, her remains were interred in the #4 cemetery in Center Lovell. In a 1950 article Bertha wrote for a South Paris newspaper, she commented that, "I have been in New Jersey for nearly fifteen years now, but New England is my home."
Occupation	Powers Model House Mother Gould Academy and Hebron Academy.
Spouse	Franklin Amos Keniston
Children	Frank Earl Keniston Franklin Amos Keniston, Jr. Hazel Marie (Keniston) Flaker (1900) Albert Carlton Keniston Marion Bertha Keniston Bernice Stella (Keniston) Marsh
Deceased	Oct. 30, 1964
Deceased Where	Springfield, NJ
Imagefile	People\Keniston_BerthaAGammon1876-1964.jpg

Related Records

1. Barker or Gammon Home - 2011.03.0006

   Bertha Keniston identified this as "Mothers old home. House was born in Stoneham, ME". Her mother was Sarah (Barker) Gammon.Taken from Photo CD #6.

   Record Type: Photo

   
2. Bertha & Earle Keniston - 2011.03.0088

   Bertha and Earle Keniston. Taken from Photo CD #6.

   Record Type: Photo

   
3. Bertha, Frank, and Gladys Keniston - 2016.25.0101

   Bertha Keniston, Frank Earle Keniston, and Gladys C. (Lunt) Keniston.Taken from Photo CD #12.

   Record Type: Photo

   
4. Bertha & Franklin Keniston - 2011.03.0045

   Bertha and Franklin Keniston. Taken from Photo CD #6.

   Record Type: Photo

   
5. Bertha (Gammon) Keniston - 1992.01.0085

   Studio shot of Bertha (Gammon) Keniston. She was an early Hobbs Memorial Library Women's Club member. Became a Powers model for New York Powers Studios. This photo was taken for airlines used out of Boston, MA on passenger planes.

   Record Type: Photo

   
6. Bertha (Gammon) Keniston - 2016.25.0071

   Photo of a young Bertha (Gammon) Keniston. Taken from Photo CD #12. Used in the Spring 2017 Newsletter.

   Record Type: Photo

   
7. Bertha (Gammon) Keniston - 2016.25.0110

   An adorable photo of the sweet Bertha (Gammon) Keniston, taken in 19--. Taken from Photo CD #12.

   Record Type: Photo

   
8. Bertha (Gammon) Keniston and Fiddler at Hillside Farm (1912) - 2016.25.0132

   Photo of Bertha (Gammon) Keniston and her horse, Fiddler. Labelled "BK + Fiddler at Hillside Farm - 1912." Taken from Photo CD #12.

   Record Type: Photo

   
9. Bertha (Gammon) Keniston and Great Grandchildren - 2016.25.0126

   Photo of Bertha (Gammon) Keniston and three of her great grandkids. Labelled "Great Grama K, Jim, Candy, and Linda. Tremont St, July 1949." Taken from Photo CD #12.

   Record Type: Photo

   
10. Bertha (Gammon) Keniston and Great Grandchildren - 2016.25.0134

    Photo of Bertha (Gammon) Keniston, James Flaker Jr, and Candace McBain. Labelled "Jim, Great Grama, and Candy - 1948." Location is Melrose, MA. Taken from Photo CD #12.

    Record Type: Photo

    
11. Bertha (Gammon) Keniston and her great-grandchild, Jim - 2016.25.0123

    Photo of Bertha (Gammon) Keniston labelled "Great Gram, and Jim at 10 months." Taken in 1947. Taken from Photo CD #12.

    Record Type: Photo

    
12. Bertha (Gammon) Keniston and Her Great Grandson, Jim - 2016.25.0125

    Photo of Bertha (Gammon) Keniston and her great-grandson, Jim Flaker Jr. (Jim is the son of James Flaker and a currently unknown woman. James is the child of Hazel Marie (Keniston) Flaker and Roy H. Flaker.) The photo is labelled "Great Grama K + Jim Jr - 1946." A this time, Jim would have only been two or three months old. Taken from Photo CD #12.

    Record Type: Photo

    
13. Bertha (Gammon) Keniston and Two Friends - 1974.02.0067

    Three women. On right is Bertha (Gammon) Keniston.

    Record Type: Photo

    
14. Bertha (Gammon) Keniston's Modelling Photos - 2016.25.0072

    A small collection of Bertha (Gammon) Keniston's modelling photos. Taken from Photo CD #12.

    Record Type: Photo

    
15. Bertha G. Keniston and Her Five Children - 1986.01.0018

    Mrs. Bertha G. Keniston with her 5 children. Written on the back is "Frank Earl, Hazel M. , Marion B., Berniece S. and Franklin.

    Record Type: Photo

    
16. Bertha Keniston - 1978.04.0003

    Professional photo of Bertha Keniston while she was modeling for the Power's agency.

    Record Type: Photo

    
17. Bertha Keniston - 1997.21.0035

    Professional photo of Bertha Keniston while she was modeling for the Power's agency. Used in the Spring 2017 Newsletter.

    Record Type: Photo

    
18. Bertha Keniston - 2011.03.0027

    Bertha Keniston, most likely at Gould Academy when she was a House Mother. Taken from Photo CD #6.

    Record Type: Photo

    
19. Bertha Keniston - 2011.03.0028

    Portrait of Bertha Keniston. It is signed "Lots of love to Virginia from Grandma 1921". Virginia Keniston was born in 1920. Taken from Photo CD #6.

    Record Type: Photo

    
20. Bertha Keniston - 2011.03.0029

    Bertha Keniston standing outdoors. Taken from Photo CD #6.

    Record Type: Photo