16
January 2016 • SR
The original question was broader: Who were Dr. and
Mrs. Alfred S. Burdick? The endowment in their name
has supported the bulk of the Historical Society’s work
for the past fifty years — and continues to provide half
of the income in our current budget. The answer to the
question also proved to be much broader. Only about
one-quarter of the Burdicks’ contributions to Seventh
Day Baptist ministries supported the historical work.
Income from the endowments benefits missions,
ministerial education, and a wide variety of church
and denominational projects, thousands of dollars’
worth annually.
Identifying Dr. Alfred Stephen Burdick (1867-1933) did
not prove to be difficult. An internet search turned up an
impressive biographical sketch published in the
History
of Medicine and Surgery and Physicians and Surgeons
of Chicago
eleven years before his death.
1
He was a prac-
ticing physician, medical school professor, editor of medical
journals, pharmaceutical researcher, and ultimately
President of Abbott Laboratories, a leading pharmaceutical
company known worldwide. Tracking down his wife was
the challenge. Like most women of her time, she was
known publicly by her husband’s name: Mrs. Alfred S.
Burdick. Yet the generous bequests and endowments
came through her estate. It was valued at over two million
dollars.
2
Historical Society
Rev. Nicholas J. Kersten
Director of Education and History
From a
shrouded
mother to
The Search for Ella Grace Brown Burdick
a fist at her chin:
