MARGARET HELEN CLINCH WARD

Francis married Margaret Helen Clinch in 1925. By 1938, Francis and Margaret had six children, and shared their home with Francis’s mother and father. Sadly and unexpectedly, Francis died of an infection at age 38, on June 6, 1938, his son Joseph’s 11th birthday. It was only one year after opening his funeral home, and tragically his death left Margaret a widow with six children, ages 12 years to 12 months, to provide for.

By all accounts, Margaret was ahead of her time. She courageously navigated in what was then a man’s world. Closing the funeral home that Francis started was never an option. She was granted one of the first Widow Licenses in Delaware County, in 1938. She received no support from the area’s professionals. She had the added expense of hiring someone from Philadelphia for the sole purpose of signing documents, as required by state law.