Series 1c: Anna and Elizabeth Foster Papers, 1899-1997

Elizabeth and Anna Foster, the daughters of Horace B. and Mary Foster and the sisters of Henry Foster, spent most of their lives together on the family farm; for this reason, their papers are contained in the same series.

Anna Foster was born in Warwick, Rhode Island in 1890, and she lived in Warwick her entire life. After dropping out of high school in the tenth grade, she and Elizabeth helped with the family farm and in caring for their parents until their deaths. In 1928 or 1929, Anna started the family roadside stand and operated it for about ten years. She also reupholstered furniture and completed other projects with the Home Demonstration Club. With the Sewing Group at the Friends Meeting House in Providence, Anna was instrumental in the preparation and transfer of used clothes to the American Friends Service Committee in Philadelphia. Throughout most of her life, she lived in the west end of the family farmhouse and never married. She died of a heart attack on July 31, 1958, in Warwick.

Elizabeth Foster was born on December 9, 1888, in Warwick. After completing the eleventh grade and helping around the home with Anna into the 1920s, Elizabeth worked keeping house for others for most of her life. According to John H. Foster (son of Henry and Thyra Jane), Elizabeth was the more outgoing of the sisters. In 1922, she took a trip to England and independently toured there for some time. Later on in her life, she attended weeklong workshops at Pendle Hill and the Wellesley Institute and relished the opportunities to learn and interact with others. Like Anna, she was interested in the Home Demonstration Club and the donation of clothes to the American Friends Service Committee. Elizabeth also had a keen interest in horses. A lifelong resident of Warwick and unmarried, Elizabeth died on May 13, 1980.