Ida P. (Hagan) Whitaker

[1] “Manuel Pinxton,” 1850 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com; “Emanuel Pinkston,” 1860 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com; “Below will be found the result…,” Huntingburgh Argus, May 7, 1897, 3, Newspapers.com; George R. Wilson, Map of Dubois County, 1898, Indiana State Library Map Collection, Indiana Memory; “Ida P. Hagan,” 1900 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com; “Graduation Percentages and Ages,” Jasper Weekly Courier, May 2, 1902, 5, Newspapers.com; “Successful Applicants,” Huntingburg Independent, May 3, 1902, 1, Newspapers.com; “Heard on the Streets,” Huntingburg Independent, May 10, 1902, 5, Newspapers.com; “Fifty-Three,” Huntingburg Independent, May 31, 1902, 2, Newspapers.com; “A Colored Pupil,” Huntingburgh Independent, November 8, 1902, 1, Newspapers.com; “At the Head,” Huntingburg Independent, January 30, 1904, 1, Newspapers.com; “Ida P. Hagan,” 1910 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com; Alfred Roberts and Ida P. Hagan, Application for Marriage License, October 6, 1912, Submitted by Applicant; “Ida P. Hagan,” Indiana, U.S. Marriages, 1810-2001, Ancestry.com; “Ida P. Hagan,” 1920 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com; “Ida P. Whittaker,” Michigan, U.S., Death Index, 1971-1996, Ancestry.com; “Personal Items,” Huntingburg Press, September 28, 1917, 5, Newspapers.com; “Ferdinand Pioneers Got Letters Once a Week,” Ferdinand News, May 24, 1940, 22, Newspapers.com; “Dubois County Civil War Veteran Dies,” Evansville Argus, December 27, 1940, 1, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Church News,” Dale News, December 13, 1940, 5, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Mr. and Mrs. Alvin Pinkston…,” Dale News, September 5, 1941, 4, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Notice of Sale,” Ferdinand News, December 8, 1939, 1, Newspapers.com; John H. Weber, “History of the Colored Settlement in Ferdinand Township,” Huntingburg Argus, July 3, 1942, 4, Newspapers.com; John H. Weber, “History of the Colored Settlement in Ferdinand Township,” Huntingburg Argus, July 10, 1942, 4, Newspapers.com; John H. Weber, “History of the Schools of Ferdinand Township, 1841-1941: A Century of Progress in Education,” Ferdinand News, April 14, 1944, 5, Newspapers.com; Harold Hansen, “Hoosier Happenings,” Ferdinand News, November 21, 1952, 4, Newspapers.com; “Detroit Paper Honors Colored Lady; Former Postmistress Here,” Ferdinand News, September 16, 1955, 1, Newspapers.com; Albert Sonderman, “Historical Sketch of the Ferdinand Negro Settlement,” Ferdinand News, September 23, 1955, 8, Newspapers.com; “Education in Ferdinand Township Rated High Since It’s [sic] Early Beginning,” Ferdinand News, May 25, 1956, 18, Newspapers.com; “Colored Girl Was Acting Postmistress Here In Ferdinand,” Ferdinand News, August 9, 1957, 9, Newspapers.com; Pat Baker, “Ferdinand Heritage—Echoes From The Past,” Ferdinand News, September 26, 1991, 13, Newspapers.com; Bill Powell, “Settlement ties inspire cemetery preservation,” Ferdinand Herald, March 25, 2013, A1, A28, Newspapers.com; Olivia Ingle, “Research highlights Hagan as trailblazer for women,” Dubois County Herald, June 3, 2019, A1, A24, Newspapers.com; Matthew Crane, “Ida Hagan: A life of firsts documented by family friend,” Dubois County Free Press, June 11, 2019, accessed March 28, 2024, DuboisCountyFreePress.com; “Ida P. Hagen Whitaker,” Find a Grave, accessed March 28, 2024, FindAGrave.com; Gary Alan Fine, “The Pinkston Settlement: An Historical and Social Psychological Investigation of the Contact Hypothesis.” Phylon (1960-) 40, no. 3 (1979): 229–42, https://doi.org/10.2307/274565; Gary Alan Fine, The Hinge: Civil Society, Group Cultures, and the Power of Local Commitments (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2021), 41-42.

Ida Priscilla Hagan was born on May 24, 1888 in Huntingburg, Dubois County, Indiana and grew up in the Pinkston Settlement for free African Americans established by her great-grandfather, Emanuel Pinkston, Sr. Census records from 1850 and 1860 confirm the location of the Pinkston Settlement, which was in Patoka Township, Dubois County. An 1898 map of Dubois County confirms that the settlement was to the west of Ferdinand.

Her mother, Millie (Pinkston) Hagan, was a descendent of the founder of the settlement and her father, Benjamin Hagan, was a farmer born in Kentucky. Ida Hagan’s birthplace is confirmed by her marriage license application and marriage index listing related to her first husband, Alfred Roberts.

When the Indiana Supreme Court ruling prohibited the racial integration of public schools in 1874, Emanuel Pinkston, Sr. purchased land in consideration for $1.00 with the condition that the land be used for a school and church for black residents.

In 1897, the Huntingburgh Argus wrote that “There are 5694 white children in the district schools of Dubois County and our little colored girl whose name is Ida Hagan. Ida is eight years of age and is a pet pupil in District No. 4 in Ferdinand Township.”

She graduated with honors from the Gelhausen School in Ferdinand Township in 1902, with the Huntingburgh Independent claiming that she was “the first colored pupil in Dubois county [sic] to graduate from the district schools in this county.” She earned a 76 and 7/8ths grade percentage.

While the Huntingburgh Independent listed her as a high school student in 1904 (likely one of the only Black high school students in Dubois County), it is unclear if she graduated. She likely left school to work in Dr. Wollenmann’s pharmacy and post office.

[2] “Names Negress as Assistant,” Evansville Courier, August 11, 1904, 1, Newspapers.com; “Protest Against Colored Woman,” Fort Wayne Sentinel, August 11, 1904, 3, Newspapers.com; “Rooseveltism Pure and Simple.,” Bourbon News [Paris, KY], August 12, 1904, 4, Chronicling America; “The News Condensed.,” Huntington News-Democrat, August 12, 1904, 7, Newspapers.com; “Ferdinand,” Jasper Herald, August 12, 1904, 4, Newspapers.com; “Teddy is playing…,” Semi-Weekly Interior Journal [Stanford, KY], August 12, 1904, 2, Chronicling America; “A Colored Assistant,” Huntingburgh Independent, August 13, 1904, 1, Newspapers.com; “The Busy Man’s Corner,” Nebraska City Daily Tribune, August 13, 1904, 1, Newspapers.com; “Will Try to Hold Her Job,” Logansport Daily Reporter, August 15, 1904, 7, NewspaperArchive.org; “Ida Hagan…,” Clay City Times [KY], August 18, 1904, 3, Chronicling America; “Ida Hagan…,” Florence [AL] Herald, August 18, 1904, 4, Newspapers.com;“A Colored Assistant,” English News, August 19, 1904, 1, NewspaperArchive.com; “Hoosier Happenings,” Jasper Weekly Courier, August 19, 1904, 2, Newspapers.com; “News of Three States,” Waterloo Press, August 25, 1904, 7, Newspapers.com; “All Over the State,” Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, August 26, 1904, 7, Hoosier State Chronicles; “General News,” Anderson Intelligencer [S.C.], August 31, 1904, 1, Chronicling America; “Local News,” Ferdinand News, May 21, 1909, 1, Newspapers.com; “Personal Items,” Huntingburg Press, September 28, 1917, 5, Newspapers.com; John H. Weber, “History of the Colored Settlement in Ferdinand Township,” Huntingburg Argus, July 10, 1942, 4, Newspapers.com; “Detroit Paper Honors Colored Lady; Former Postmistress Here,” Ferdinand News, September 16, 1955, 1, Newspapers.com; “Ferdinand Post Office,” Ferdinand News, May 25, 1956, 14, Newpspapers.com; “Colored Girl Was Acting Postmistress Here In Ferdinand,” Ferdinand News, August 9, 1957, 9, Newspapers.com; “Community was Originally Called ‘Ferdinanstadt,” Ferdinand Herald, July 27, 1965, 15, Newspapers.com; Pat Baker, “Ferdinand Heritage—Echoes From The Past,” Ferdinand News, September 26, 1991, 13, Newspapers.com; Bill Powell, “Settlement ties inspire cemetery preservation,” Ferdinand Herald, March 25, 2013, A1, A28, Newspapers.com; Olivia Ingle, “Research highlights Hagan as trailblazer for women,” Dubois County Herald, June 3, 2019, A1, A24, Newspapers.com; Matthew Crane, “Ida Hagan: A life of firsts documented by family friend,” Dubois County Free Press, June 11, 2019, accessed March 28, 2024, DuboisCountyFreePress.com; Gary Alan Fine, The Hinge: Civil Society, Group Cultures, and the Power of Local Commitments (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2021), 41-42; Historian, United States Postal Service, “Women Postmasters,” accessed July 10, 2024, https://about.usps.com/who-we-are/postal-history/women-postmasters.pdf.

After the death of his wife, Dr. Alois Wollenmann asked Hagan to take care of his children. This led to her assisting him in his Adler Apothak (Eagle Pharmacy), a pharmacy/drug store connected to the Ferdinand Post Office. In 1904, Wollenmann appointed her assistant postmaster in Ferdinand, which was met with resistance by some in the community and criticism in newspapers around the country. See footnote 3 for more information.

The death of Dr. Wollenmann’s wife is documented in the Fort Wayne Sentinel, who wrote: “Dr. Wollenmann’s wife, who formerly attended to the office, died a short time ago, leaving a vacancy in the postoffice [sic]. . . .” Ida Hagan’s assistance of Dr. Wollenmann, and subsequent employment, was noted in a 1991 article by Pat Backer in the Ferdinand News. “It was about this time [the death of Mrs. Wollenmann] that Dr. Wollenmann first asked Ida Hagen [sic] and a Pinkston woman to help him out,” Backer wrote, and “they would stay the week in Ferdinand helping him, and on weekends they would return to the Freedom Settlement. Then as previously stated, Ida Hagan was given the job as clerk in 1904.”

While newspapers often refer to Hagan as a “postmistress,” that is not the correct title for women postal officials. “Although sometimes popularly called "postmistresses," their official title has always been "Postmaster,” according to the United States Postal Service.

[3] “Protest Against Colored Woman,” Fort Wayne Sentinel, August 11, 1904, 3, Newspapers.com; “Rooseveltism Pure and Simple.,” Bourbon News [Paris, KY], August 12, 1904, 4, Chronicling America; “The News Condensed.,” Huntington News-Democrat, August 12, 1904, 7, Newspapers.com; “Ferdinand,” Jasper Herald, August 12, 1904, 4, Newspapers.com; “Teddy is playing…,” Semi-Weekly Interior Journal [Stanford, KY], August 12, 1904, 2, Chronicling America; “A Colored Assistant,” Huntingburgh Independent, August 13, 1904, 1, Newspapers.com; “The Busy Man’s Corner,” Nebraska City Daily Tribune, August 13, 1904, 1, Newspapers.com; “Will Try to Hold Her Job,” Logansport Daily Reporter, August 15, 1904, 7, NewspaperArchive.org; “Ida Hagan…,” Clay City Times [KY], August 18, 1904, 3, Chronicling America; “Ida Hagan…,” Florence [AL] Herald, August 18, 1904, 4, Newspapers.com;“A Colored Assistant,” English News, August 19, 1904, 1, NewspaperArchive.com; “Hoosier Happenings,” Jasper Weekly Courier, August 19, 1904, 2, Newspapers.com; “News of Three States,” Waterloo Press, August 25, 1904, 7, Newspapers.com; “All Over the State,” Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, August 26, 1904, 7, Hoosier State Chronicles; “General News,” Anderson Intelligencer [S.C.], August 31, 1904, 1, Chronicling America.

Newspapers from Indiana and around the United States provide detail on the controversial appointment of Hagan to the assistant postmaster position. The Evansville Courier reported on her appointment as Wollenmann’s assistant in their August 11, 1904 issue: “People in the vicinity of Ferdinand do not like the action of the postmaster and are loud in condemning him,” wrote the Courier. The Fort Wayne Sentinel noted that “threats have been made to burn the doctor in effigy and boycott his office,” but Dr. Wollenmann stood firm against what he saw as “unwarranted prejudice.” The Paris, Kentucky-based Bourbon News wrote that a “storm is raging among the white people” of Ferdinand after her appointment and the Nebraska City, Nebraska Daily Tribune noted that the public were “excited over” her new position.

[4] “Local Mention.,” Huntingburg Argus, June 28, 1912, 4, Newspapers.com; “City and County,” Jasper Herald, July 5, 1912, 5, Newspapers.com; “Indiana Girl is Appointed Postmistress,” Indianapolis Recorder, July 27, 1912, 4, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Neighborhood News,” Logansport Pharos, August 20, 1912, 3, NewspaperArchive.com; “Purely Personal,” Huntingburg Argus, August 23, 1912, 4, Newspapers.com; “Local Mention.,” Huntingburg Argus, September 6, 1912, 4, Newspapers.com; “The Week’s Doings,” Jasper Herald, September 13, 1912, 5, Newspapers.com; John H. Weber, “History of the Colored Settlement in Ferdinand Township,” Huntingburg Argus, July 10, 1942, 4, Newspapers.com; “Detroit Paper Honors Colored Lady; Former Postmistress Here,” Ferdinand News, September 16, 1955, 1, Newspapers.com; “Ferdinand Post Office,” Ferdinand News, May 25, 1956, 14, Newpspapers.com; “Colored Girl Was Acting Postmistress Here In Ferdinand,” Ferdinand News, August 9, 1957, 9, Newspapers.com; Pat Baker, “Ferdinand Heritage—Echoes From The Past,” Ferdinand News, September 26, 1991, 13, Newspapers.com; Bill Powell, “Settlement ties inspire cemetery preservation,” Ferdinand Herald, March 25, 2013, A1, A28, Newspapers.com; Olivia Ingle, “Research highlights Hagan as trailblazer for women,” Dubois County Herald, June 3, 2019, A1, A24, Newspapers.com; “Ida Hagan: A life of firsts documented by family friend,” Dubois County Free Press, June 11, 2019, accessed March 28, 2024, DuboisCountyFreePress.com; Gary Alan Fine, The Hinge: Civil Society, Group Cultures, and the Power of Local Commitments (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2021), 41-42.

Upon Dr. Wollenmann’s death, Hagan was appointed Ferdinand’s acting postmaster on June 25, 1912, one of the first black women in Indiana to hold this position. She held the position until she resigned in late August 1912, and Lula Kempf was appointed postmaster.

The earliest known newspaper mention of her appointment comes from the June 28, 1912 issue of the Huntingburg Argus, which would make her appointment likely occurring on June 25. Newspapers subsequently reprinted this mention without specific dates, which is why the Indianapolis Recorder noted the date in their July 27, 1912 issue as July 2. The earliest mention of her resignation appeared in the Argus on September 6, which would mean her resignation likely occurred sometime in the week of August 25-31, 1912.

[5] Office of the Board of Pharmacy of the State of Indiana, Application for Pharmacist’s License for Ida. P Hagan, January 13, 1909, Submitted by Applicant; “Registered Pharmacists,” Indianapolis News, February 4, 1909, 13, Newspapers.com; “Local News,” Ferdinand News, February 12, 1909, 1, Newspapers.com; “Ferdinand,” Ferdinand Herald, February 19, 1909, 4, Newspapers.com; “Where a Boy can Get a Chance.,” Scottsboro Chronicle, August 26, 1909, 1, Newspapers.com; “Young Colored Woman Pharmacist,” Indianapolis Recorder, February 15, 1913, 2, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Opening of Eureka Drug Store,” Indianapolis Recorder, February 22, 1913, 1, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Opening of Eureka Drug Store,” Minneapolis Twin City Star, March 1, 1913, 4, Chronicling America; “Society Gossip,” Indianapolis Recorder, November 22, 1913, 8, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Dr. W. R. Arthur Entertains,” Indianapolis Recorder, January 3, 1914, 8, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Mrs. Alfred Roberts…,” Indianapolis Recorder, January 30, 1915, 4, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Our Pharmacists,” Indianapolis Recorder, April 3, 1915, 1, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Ida Hagan,” 1920 United States Federal Census, Ancesty.com; John H. Weber, “History of the Colored Settlement in Ferdinand Township,” Huntingburg Argus, July 10, 1942, 4, Newspapers.com; “Detroit Paper Honors Colored Lady; Former Postmistress Here,” Ferdinand News, September 16, 1955, 1, Newspapers.com; Pat Baker, “Ferdinand Heritage—Echoes From The Past,” Ferdinand News, September 26, 1991, 13, Newspapers.com; Bill Powell, “Settlement ties inspire cemetery preservation,” Ferdinand Herald, March 25, 2013, A1, A28, Newspapers.com; Olivia Ingle, “Research highlights Hagan as trailblazer for women,” Dubois County Herald, June 3, 2019, A1, A24, Newspapers.com; “Ida Hagan: A life of firsts documented by family friend,” Dubois County Free Press, June 11, 2019, accessed March 28, 2024, DuboisCountyFreePress.com.

While working with Dr. Wollenmann, she completed a pharmacy home-study course through Winona Technical Institute, a precursor to Butler University. In 1909, the pharmacy program at Winona Technical Institute was “the largest school of its kind in Indiana in point of students enrolled, and it [was] the seventh largest in the United States,” according to the Scottsboro Chronicle. She received her Indiana pharmacy license on January 13, 1909, making her one of the first known-licensed black female pharmacists in Indiana. Her license was renewed in 1913.

In her application for a pharmacist’s license, Dr. Wollenmann submitted a letter attached to a “Certificate of Good Moral Character,” where he wrote, “Ida P. Hagan is well prepared and qualified to pass the examination for registered pharmacist. Her character is strictly moral in every respect.”

Her name appeared in a 1909 listing of “registered pharmacists” in the Indianapolis News and a separate mention of her credentials appeared in the February 15, 1913 issue of the Indianapolis Recorder, where she was noted as “a graduate pharmacist of Winona Technical Institute, Indianapolis” and “highly commended for her ability.” On her 1909 application, it was noted by a clerk that she renewed her license in 1913.

She went to Indianapolis to work at W. H. Roberts’s Eureka Pharmacy, which opened on February 15, 1913. She renewed her pharmacy license later that year and began work at Dr. W. R. Arthur’s pharmacy in Gary.

An article on the opening of the Eureka Drug Store appeared in the February 22, 1913 issue of the Indianapolis Recorder, which cited Hagan’s education from Winona Technical Institute and noted how she “ably assisted” the owner, W. H. Roberts. Ten months later, on November 22, 1913, the Recorder printed a brief notice of her accepting a position with Dr. Arthur in Gary.

In 1915, the Indianapolis Recorder reported that “Mrs. Ida Hagan Roberts, of Henry, Ind.” was “conducting” a successful drugstore. It is unclear when she stopped working as a pharmacist; by 1920, she was living again in Ferdinand with her parents and her occupation was listed as “none” in the U.S. Census.

[6] Alfred Roberts and Ida P. Hagan, Application for Marriage License, October 6, 1912, Submitted by Applicant; “Ida P. Hagan,” Indiana, U.S. Marriages, 1810-2001, Ancestry.com; “The Week’s Doings,” Jasper Herald, September 27, 1912, 5, Newspapers.com; “Roberts-Hagan Wedding,” Indianapolis Recorder, October 12, 1912, 2, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Young Colored Woman Pharmacist,” Indianapolis Recorder, February 15, 1913, 2, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Mrs. Alfred Roberts…,” Indianapolis Recorder, January 30, 1915, 4, Hoosier State Chronicles; “Personal Items,” Huntingburg Press, September 28, 1917, 5, Newspapers.com; “Ida P. Hagan,” 1920 United States Census, Ancestry.com; “Sidney Whitaker,” 1920 United States Federal Census, Ancesty.com; “Suits Filed in County Courts.,” Indianapolis Star, August 11, 1925, 17, Newspapers.com; “Ida Hagan,” Marion County, Indiana, U.S., Marriage Index, 1925-2012, Ancestry.com; “Ida P. Whitaker,” 1930 United States Federal Census, Ancesty.com; “Sidney Whitaker,” 1940 United States Federal Census, Ancesty.com; “Sidney Joseph Whitaker,” U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942, Ancestry.com; “Ida P. Whitaker,” 1950 United States Federal Census, Ancesty.com; “Sidney J. Whitaker,” 1950 United States Federal Census, Ancesty.com; Jim Schwinghamer, “St. Henry,” Ferdinand News, October 1, 1954, 4, Newspapers.com; “Detroit Paper Honors Colored Lady; Former Postmistress Here,” Ferdinand News, September 16, 1955, 1, Newspapers.com; “Colored Girl Was Acting Postmistress Here In Ferdinand,” Ferdinand News, August 9, 1957, 9, Newspapers.com; Pat Baker, “Ferdinand Heritage—Echoes From The Past,” Ferdinand News, September 26, 1991, 13, Newspapers.com; Bill Powell, “Settlement ties inspire cemetery preservation,” Ferdinand Herald, March 25, 2013, A1, A28, Newspapers.com; Olivia Ingle, “Research highlights Hagan as trailblazer for women,” Dubois County Herald, June 3, 2019, A1, A24, Newspapers.com; Matthew Crane, “Ida Hagan: A life of firsts documented by family friend,” Dubois County Free Press, June 11, 2019, accessed March 28, 2024, DuboisCountyFreePress.com; “Ida P. Hagen Whitaker,” Find a Grave, accessed March 28, 2024, FindAGrave.com.

Hagan married her first husband, Alfred Roberts, on October 6, 1912 in St. Henry, Dubois County, Indiana. They divorced in August of 1925. Roberts worked for the Indianapolis Recorder as a “pressman,” according to an article on Ida Hagan’s pharmacy career. It is unclear why they divorced, but the Marion County Superior Court, Room 5, handled their divorce on August 11, 1925, as noted by the Indianapolis Star.

She married her second husband, Sidney Whitaker, at St. Rita Catholic Church in Indianapolis on September 29, 1926 and later moved to Detroit. It is unclear whether she filed for a pharmacy license in Michigan. Her marriage to Whitaker is listed in the Marion County, Indiana marriage index and the location of their marriage can be found in the September 16, 1955 issue of the Ferdinand News. In the 1930 U.S. Census, she is listed as “homemaker,” which means she likely stopped working as a pharmacist after her marriage to Sidney Whitaker.

[7] “Sidney Whitaker,” 1920 United States Federal Census, Ancesty.com; “Congressman LaGuardia Scores Pullman C. as Worst Employer of Labor,” California Eagle, September 1, 1933, 10, Newspapers.com; “The Club Woman,” New Pittsburg Courier, March 16, 1935, 8, Newspapers.com; “In the Realm of Clubdom,” St. Paul Register, March 20, 1936, 1, Newspapers.com; Sylvia Penn, “Glimpses in Detroit’s Mirror,” Detroit Tribune, June 3, 1939, 4, Newspapers.com; “Sidney Whitaker,” 1940 United States Federal Census, Ancesty.com; “Ask Brown to OK Grade Labeling,” Detroit Free Press, April 26, 1943, 7, Newspapers.com; Peter Edson, “The Grade Labeling Enigma,” Ironwood Daily Globe, April 29, 1943, 4, Newspapers.com; “Grade Labeling Extension Urged,” Detroit Free Press, November 15, 1943, 19, Newspapers.com; “Brotherhood to Hold Biennial Confab in Chicago,” Michigan Chronicle, August 19, 1944, 8, Newspapers.com; “Attention Citizens,” Detroit Tribune, September 11, 1948, 12, Newspapers.com; “Sidney J. Whitaker,” 1950 United States Federal Census, Ancesty.com; “His Excellency’s Wife,” Detroit Tribune, June 14, 1952, 10, Newspapers.com; “Detroit Paper Honors Colored Lady; Former Postmistress Here,” Ferdinand News, September 16, 1955, 1, Newspapers.com; “Anniversary Tea,” Detroit Tribune, May 26, 1956, 7, Newspapers.com; “Card of Thanks,” Livingston County Daily Press and Argus, January 6, 1960, 24, Newspapers.com; John Dotson, “Antibias Sentiment Mushrooms in City,” Detroit Free Press, March 10, 1965, 25, Newspapers.com; “Ida P. Whittaker,” Michigan, U.S., Death Index, 1971-1996, Ancestry.com; Pat Baker, “Ferdinand Heritage—Echoes From The Past,” Ferdinand News, September 26, 1991, 13, Newspapers.com; Olivia Ingle, “Research highlights Hagan as trailblazer for women,” Dubois County Herald, June 3, 2019, A1, A24, Newspapers.com; “Ida Hagan: A life of firsts documented by family friend,” Dubois County Free Press, June 11, 2019, accessed March 28, 2024, DuboisCountyFreePress.com; “Dubois County DAR honors Hagan and Williams,” Dubois County Herald, May 2, 2023, A4, Newspapers.com; Melinda Chateauvert, Marching Together: Women of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1998), 154, 160; Andrew Kersten, A. Philip Randolph: A Life in the Vanguard (New York: Roman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2007), 63; Paula Pfeffer, “The Women Behind the Union: Halena Wilson, Rosina Tucker, and the Ladies' Auxiliary to the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters,” Labor History, 36:4, 557-578, DOI: 10.1080/00236569512331385578; A. Philip Randolph, For Jobs and Freedom: Selected Speeches and Writings of A. Philip Randolph, Andrew E. Kersten and David Lucander, eds. (Amherst & Boston: University of Massachusetts Press, 2014), 7, 73; “Ida P. Hagen Whitaker,” Find a Grave, accessed March 28, 2024, FindAGrave.com.

Sidney Whitaker worked as a porter for the Pullman Company, and he and his wife Ida became involved in the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP), a union founded and led by A. Philip Randolph.

Sidney Whitaker’s employment as a porter at the Detroit Central station for the Pullman Company appeared in the 1920 U.S. Census as well as in his WWII draft card. His involvement in the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters can be confirmed by his employment by the firm as well as newspaper articles attesting to Ida Whitaker’s involvement in the Ladies Auxiliary.

Ida Whitaker served as the president of the Detroit division of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters Ladies Auxiliary. The Ladies Auxiliary of the BSCP, organized in 1938 out of the union’s Women’s Economic Council, supported the work of the union and advocated for public policy measures, such as grade labeling of canned food products.

As Andrew Kersten wrote in his biography of A. Philip Randolph, “In general, black women did not belong to the union, but rather to the union auxiliary. Ideally, the porters wanted their wives and sisters to join the auxiliary to support them and their union activities, and essentially, they believed that women’s roles should be confined to domestic concerns.” Nevertheless, their work made an impact. As Kersten wrote in his introduction to a collection of Randolph’s writings and speeches, “Women were vital supporters of Randolph’s many causes, and their work in organizations such as the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters Ladies’ Auxiliary and the March on Washington Movement was indispensable.”

Randolph himself noted the influence of the organization. In his speech to the 1968 convention of the BSCP, he said, “I want to thank every Pullman, train and mail porter and attendant, and our devoted and loyal sisters of the Ladies Auxiliary, in the United States and Canada, for having given me the opportunity to play a humble role in building this mighty movement.”

Historian Paula Pfeffer has written extensively on the Ladies Auxiliary, placing its activities in the broader context of the BSCP and Randolph’s leadership. “As Randolph conceived it,” she wrote, “the primary function of the women’s group should be financial support of the brotherhood; the auxiliary should defer ‘to the judgement and opinion’ of the BSCP officers.”

The organization’s president was Helena Wilson. She carried out the mission of the Ladies Auxiliary, conducting fundraising events as well as “encourag[ing] all the locals to mount extensive worked education campaigns to enlighten members about the advantages of unionization.”

It is unclear when Ida Whitaker became involved in the Ladies Auxiliary, but she was involved at least by 1952, according to newspapers. She served as president of the Detroit branch by 1956, as indicated by an article in the Detroit Tribune about its 11^th “anniversary tea.” Based on said article, the Detroit branch may date to as early as 1945. As historian Melinda Chateauvert has noted in her research on the women of the BSCP, the Detroit branch was also involved in fashion events and housewarming parties for the women and families involved in the BSCP.

Alongside the Ladies Auxiliary of the BSCP, Ida Whitaker remained active in the Detroit area as a member of the Detroit Negro Opera Company and served as the Treasurer of the Urban League Guild, according to September 16, 1955 issue of the Ferdinand News. As noted in a June 3, 1939 issue of the Detroit Tribune, Whitaker performed in the chorus in a production of Aida by the aforementioned Detroit Negro Opera Company. The News also highlighted her religious faith. As “a daily communicant [in the Catholic Church] for more than twenty-five years,” she was a member of the League of Catholic Women, Catholic Interracial Council, and the Organizations of St. Benedict the Moor.

In March of 1965, she marched with civil rights leaders in Detroit in solidarity with those in Selma, Alabama marching for black voting rights. She was quoted by the Detroit Free Press about the march and its efforts to advance civil rights. “I just hope and pray that this is an awakening for those who don’t know what we’re up against,” she said. The march itself, according to the Free Press, was “short, orderly, and quiet—except for the intermittent singing up and down the long line.”

She died on February 8, 1978 and is buried alongside her husband, Sidney Whitaker, at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Detroit. Her death is listed in the Michigan death index and the location of her remains is noted on FindAGrave.com, with photographs, attesting to the exact location as Section R., Lot 844, Spaces 1-2.