Mary Ellen went to Rochester and worked in a factory but did not like it. She quit to look after the children of a Mrs. Harris who had died in the same city. Aunt Loretta remembers members of the Harris family visiting the home farm with Mary. Aunt Loretta says that the three Harris daughters were visiting the farm when the stock market crashed in 1929 and they made panic telephone calls to the States. In later years Mary Ellen moved to Roblin, Manitoba to be with her brother, Jim. She died aged 67 and is buried there. She became hard of hearing from an infection and wore a large acoustic device around her neck. A letter of March 11, 1890 of Isabella to a sister complains that Mary Ellen has been away visiting her cousins too long:
Dear Sister:I thought that I would write you to let you know that we are all well, hoping that this may find you the same.
I don’t see why you never came up all winter. That wasn’t a long stay that Jimmy took when he was up here. I thought he would of surely stayed a week any way. Mary Ellen is taking quite a long stay, longer than we expected. When she went down she was only to stay two days, for James said that Joe and Johnny Dwyer were coming up on Saturday night, and we expected that she would be up with them.
We did not promise to go down for her, and I forgot to give her any money to come home, for I thought that they were coming up. You would oblige me very much if you would lend her fifty cents to come home, and I will pay it to you as soon as I see you
I don’t know what she means staying away so long as she has been away quite a bit this winter. She was away for a week shortly before she went down there. And Gill wanted to get away for a week or so this winter and she never got away yet. And she got her arm scalded, and can’t do much with it for it is very sore. And if anybody would need a rest I think I would myself. I am very busy now coming on spring and need her.
I think I will close now, from your sister
Isabella McCarthy
