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Ben Hagen Research Paper

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On May 24, 1888, Ben Hagen Jr. and Millie Pinkston-Hagen gave birth to Ida in Huntingburg, Indiana (Backer 1). Although they had Ida in Huntingburg, the Hagen family did not live in the Pinkston Settlement; Ben owned land near the Pinkston farm, just not on the property. Though an active farmer, Ben Hagen also practiced ministry at the Missionary Baptist Church. He continued farming and preaching even after the majority of the other settlers had diminished. (Taylor 1) Ida’s father went on to serve as a member of the 100th United States Colored Infantry in the Civil War (Hackman 2). Ida’s mother, Millie Pinkston, was the daughter of Emmanuel Pinkston Jr. and his second wife, Anna Eberhart (Hackman 1). Because of this connection with the settlement, …show more content…

Wollenmann hired. Aloysius hired another Pinkston woman at about the same time as he hired Ida. The two often stayed in Ferdinand during the week, then traveled home on the weekends. While at the post office and apothecary, Ida assisted the Doctor on multiple house calls. She also made many contributions in the office. Ida worked diligently, however she did have time to receive education on both pharmacy and the German language. Ida studied the language while in the Wollenmann House, but her fluency came from her regular exposure to it via the people she did business with. In an article in the Kundek Corner on the Ferdinand Historical Society’s website, Pat Backer said, “During Ida's leisure time after post office hours, she studied the German language (probably also picking up a great deal from her post office acquaintances), and took a home study course in pharmacy under the patient tutelage of Dr. Wollenmann. Ida also helped in the doctor's office, and even on house calls. Dr. Wollenmann offered her a home study course in Pharmacy that he taught.” With this, Ida could work during the day and study in the evenings. After graduating from the course in June of 1906, Ida passed the Indiana State Board of Pharmacy test on her first attempt to receive her full license in January of 1907 (Backer 1). In Bonnie’s article she said, “ Yes, Ida was probably one of the first, if not the first, African American …show more content…

While in Indianapolis, Ida met her first husband, Alfred Roberts. The two would marry on October 6, 1912. Ida and Roberts then moved to Gary where Ida would take a managerial position at a local pharmacy. In Bonnie Hackman’s article on Ida in the Ferdinand Newspaper she quoted, “ A self-employed printer, Roberts was drafted into the Army on June 5, 1917 during World War I . . . What happened to Roberts is another mystery, but their marriage apparently ended sometime between 1917 and 1926.” Ida spent little time finding a new husband and quickly remarried. Born in 1888, Sidney J. Whitaker married Ida on September 29, 1926. Ida and Sidney relocated to Detroit, Michigan to live the rest of their lives. There is little knowledge as to exactly how long they lived there, the census data collections from 1930 and 1940 contain Ida’s name. On February 3, 1978, Ida passed away at the age 89. She died in Detroit and her family decided to bury her in Mt. Olivet Cemetery with her last husband, Sidney. (Hackman 2) For too long, Ida Hagen-Whitaker has gone unknown by most of the citizens in Ferdinand. She had the ability to overcome any obstacles that stood in the way of her accomplishing the goals she set out to achieve. Few people truly understand Ida’s story and the accolades that made her such an inspiration. This young African American woman had the opportunity to work in a

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