The Mystery of Mary Carter by Trevor Tutt
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When I first started the preliminary research into World War I in St. Joseph, I came across this image from the Library of Congress. It is identified as Mary Carter, one of the first American women to drive an ambulance in the Great War. Written atop the image in pen is the name "Mrs. Bartlett Boder." If you are from St. Joseph, that name is probably familiar (and we'll have more on him next week) but in my research into Mr. Boder's life, there is no mention of Mary Carter. His first wife is always listed as Elvira Price and his second wife was Mary Stauber. I needed to know more about this fascinated woman, especially if she had such historic ties to St. Joe. What I found was a far more fascinating story than I assumed.
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Mary Carter was born in Fairbury, Nebraska on February 7 of 1888, though she changed the year as she got older. Mary's mother, Carrie, remarried a man named Charles Henry Helpling in 1899 and they lived in Kansas City with Mary and her two younger brothers, Frank and Oliver Carter. The family moved to Colorado and in 1909 Mary married Bartlett Boder in Douglas, Colorado. By 1910 the newlyweds were boarding on Taylor Street in San Francisco. They traveled to the UK in 1912 and again in 1914. Bartlett lists this time as his school years in France and Germany, just before the outbreak of the war, with no mention of his young bride. They returned hastily in November of 1914.
In January 1915 Mary gained a passport with her friend Mary Sheridan of Caldwell County, MO. The two were living together in a hotel in New York. Sheridan was a writer traveling on "business" while Mrs. Boder was "studying music." The trip was planned to take them through England, France, and Italy and last a year. On September 3, 1915 Mary returned to New York and was greeted by her family and the newspaper.
If you would like to read the article, here is a link: https://news.google.com/newspapers…
During her time in France, Mary had volunteered as a driver for the British forces. Originally planning to haul supplies, she was quickly put in charge of an ambulance, carrying injured soldiers from the front lines. She was truly a remarkable woman who witnessed the horrors of war first hand and kept on fighting for her right to help.
On March 29, 1917, a mere week before the United States entered the war, Mary and Bartlett divorced in St. Joseph. Bartlett went off to war and Mary returned to New York. In August 1918 she remarried John Williamson Lee in Manhattan. Her brother, Frank, had become a famous Broadway actor and received a medal for performing for the troops. He had just married famous dancer and actress Marilyn Miller when a car crash tragically took his life in 1919. Mary and her mother attended a ceremony commemorating his life and contributions and though Marilyn Miller lead a short life of marriages and fame, she was buried next to Frank when she died in 1936.
Mary Lee continued to travel. Passports throughout the 1920s show her continual interest in Europe and provide images of her through the era. Her husband, John, died in 1931 and I have been unable to locate any more information of Ms. Carter after this event. She lived a fascinating life and embodied the live fast die young mentality of the Lost Generation.
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If you have any information on Mary Carter or her family, the St. Joseph Museum would be very interested to hear from you. This research could not have been done without the hard work of genealogists and historians across the world who have taken an interest in this figures life. Through ancestry.com (available for free at the St Joseph Public Library) one can track the life of historical figures through census', marriage records, and travel information. We strive to keep the memories of these forgotten icons alive with research and exhibits. Please help us preserve our lost history by donating funds or information to the St. Joseph Museums, Inc.
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Thank you,
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Trevor Tutt