HESTER CRONK GILMAN

Mrs. Charles A. Gilman (Hester Cronk), born near Belleville, Ontario, 1837; married at Sauk Rapids, Minnesota, January 1, 1857; died at St. Cloud, March 19, 1910. Came of Scotch Dutch ancestry that blended readily with the progressive spirit of the frontier west. As the wife, in territorial days, of a man who was a leader in the industrial and political life of Minnesota, she had unusual responsibilities as a home and community builder. The mother of a large family, her affection was centered in her home, yet she became a leader in church and civic affairs. She was a charter member of the St. Cloud Reading Room Society, the mother of the public library, and she ever took her full share in public welfare, that lifted the struggling frontier settlement to a city of high ideals, education and culture. She was a wise and kindly leader, who made lasting friends with the charm of her personality. The love of the community was manifested on the occasion of the golden wedding of herself and husband, when tributes to her service and character came, not only from people of her city, but from hundreds of prominent men and women of the State and Nation. As a token of the esteem in which she was held by her home folks, one of the most beautiful parks was named in her honor, "Hester Park," a most fitting memorial to a brave, cultured and most useful woman.

Who's who among Minnesota women (1914) [p. 119]

Also see the last paragraph in the biography of Charles A. GILMAN.