(1869 – 1955)
Her family called her “Nell.” Miss Hine never married and lived to be 86 year old. She was the last of the Hine family to occupy the homestead at 441 S. Main Street in Poland, Ohio, which is located opposite the Presbyterian Church. Ellen L. Hine died on June 22, 1955 from a severe heart attack and was buried in the Riverside Cemetery next to her parents, Samuel and Emma Caroline Kirtland Hine. A portion of her obituary reads as follows:
Miss Hine was born Feb. 2, 1869 in the family homestead to which her father had moved in 1864 when he turned his attention to farming and coal lands. Earlier her father had worked with his brother-in-law, Henry Wick, and also operated businesses in Brookfield and Hubbard. Through her father, Miss Hine traced her family in America to 1646, when Thomas Hine was recorded as being a resident of Milford, Connecticut.
Her grandfather was Judge Homer Hine, who came to the Western Reserve in 1801 and settled in Youngstown. Judge Hine represented Mahoning County in the first legislature of Ohio and was prominent in the Abolitionist movement. Her mother was a daughter of Billius and Ruthanna Frame Kirtland. Miss Hine was a great-granddaughter of Judge Turhand Kirtland, who laid out Poland when he came here as agent for the Connecticut Land Co.
Miss Hine went to St. Margaret’s School for Girls in Waterbury, Conn. and then on to France and Germany to study sculpture and painting. In addition she studied architecture and designed several homes plus a play house in her side yard for the enjoyment of her nieces and nephews. (See photo below) Her mother was also an artist and the two women opened a studio at their home. At the age of 49 Nell went to France with the YWCA for extensive service during WWI and when she returned home she did considerable work at the Veterans’ Hospital at Aspinwall, PA.
Miss Hine had many hobbies aside from her artistic abilities. She collected dolls from every country she visited, was a nature student and developed her gardens until they were among the finest in Poland Village. Her home was filled with priceless antiques and for over 40 years was a Mecca for the people of the community. She was a member of the Presbyterian Church and for many years was active in the Red Cross.
Aunt Nell with Ruth Hine about 1913