Frank Hamilton Wooldridge
Date: 1906  Studio: Agnew

While Grace was still living, Frank worked on the CB&Q railroad doing what, I don't really know. After she died at age 31, he drifted from one place to another, mostly to South Dakota. Mitchell S.D. was his main place. He could only find odd jobs as he had made it no further than the 3rd
This portrait is second in a set of three.

Frank's granddaughter Carolyn Ricardi writes: Frank Wooldridge had no hair or teeth by the time I came along. He had a set of false teeth that did not fit and after a long time of being kidded about his taking them out so often, he took them out and threw them in an empty lot. Frank was a hard worker and he was such a story-teller. By that I mean that he embellished and exaggerated to a fair-thee-well!


Louie Ohlschlager and
Frank Wooldridge in 1945

grade before leaving home at the age of 10 years to escape mistreatment from his step-father. At one time, he was groundskeeper at the baseball park in Mitchell, S.D. Sometime in is lifetime, he was a member of the National Guard, but from which state, I can't remember. From his meager education, he could read a newpaper and could keep up with the ball games and their scores. We must remember that a 3rd grade education at that time was much better than a higher grade in this day and age.

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