BIRTH: 18 Dec 1863, Mountain Lake, Bradford, Pennsylvania, USA
DEATH: 23 Apr 1948, Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA
FATHER: Israel Carl (1834–1898)
MOTHER: Charlotte Gorsline (1835–1914)
SPOUSE: George B Sammons (1853–1929)
When Helen E Carl was born on December 18, 1863, her father, Israel, was 29, and her mother, Charlotte, was 28. She married George B Sammons in 1880. They had three children during their marriage. She died on April 23, 1948, in Chicago, Illinois, at the age of 84, and was buried in Towanda, Pennsylvania.
The Life of Helen E. Carl
Helen E. Carl was born on 18 December 1863 in Mountain Lake, Bradford County, Pennsylvania, a rural community of farms, timber stands, and small crossroads villages. She arrived in the final winter of the Civil War, the seventh child of Israel Carl (1834–1898) and Charlotte Gorsline (1835–1914) — two Bradford County families whose roots ran deep in the region’s early settlement.
Her childhood home was full, lively, and noisy. The 1870 census captures nine‑year‑old Hellen Carl in Burlington Township, living with her parents and six siblings: Louisa (15), Rebeca (13), Clara (11), Florence (5), William (3), and Nellie (6 months).
The Carls were part of the fabric of rural Bradford County — farmers, laborers, and church‑going families who knew their neighbors and relied on one another through harsh winters and unpredictable harvests. Helen grew up in a world where children learned early to help: tending gardens, carrying water, minding younger siblings, and assisting with the endless domestic work that sustained a large household.
A Young Woman in Towanda
By 1880, seventeen‑year‑old Hellen Carl was still at home, now in Towanda, living with her parents and four younger siblings — Minnie, William, Frank, and little Leon. Towanda was the county seat, a bustling river town with shops, schools, and a growing civic life. For a young woman like Helen, it offered more opportunity than the rural outskirts: church societies, social gatherings, and the chance to meet families beyond her immediate community.
It was likely in Towanda that she met George B. Sammons (1853–1929), a young man ten years her senior, born in Poughkeepsie but long settled in Bradford County. They married in 1880, forming a union between two families deeply rooted in the region’s working‑class life.
Building a Family
Helen and George raised three children: Harriet Charlotte Sammons, William Edward Sammons, and George Israel Sammons.
The 1900 census shows the family living in Towanda, with George working as a janitor, a steady and respected occupation in the public schools. Helen kept the household running while raising their children and taking in a boarder — a common practice among families seeking to supplement income.
Helen’s life was shaped by the rhythms of a small Pennsylvania town: church attendance, school events, community gatherings, and the daily work of maintaining a home. She was a member of the First United Methodist Church, recorded in 1898 as a resident of Towanda — a detail that reflects her long-standing place in the community.
A Household of Teachers and Boarders
By 1910, Helen and George were living with their adult daughter Harriet, a public‑school teacher. Education became a defining thread in the Sammons household. Harriet’s teaching career spanned decades, and Helen’s home became a place where teachers, students, and boarders passed through.
The 1920 census shows Helen listed as operating a lodging house, with George still working as a janitor and Harriet teaching grade school. A young high‑school teacher boarded with them — a sign that Helen’s home was both a business and a community hub.
Widowhood and Independence
George died in 1929, leaving Helen a widow at sixty‑five. The 1930 census paints a vivid picture of her independence: she is listed as head of household, owning her home at 406 Bridge Street in Towanda, valued at $2,000, and notably, the home had a radio — a marker of modernity and connection to the wider world.
Living with her was her daughter Harriet S. Ball, recently divorced and continuing her long career as a public‑school teacher. The two women formed a household of mutual support, each contributing in her own way.
By 1940, Helen was seventy‑five, still living at 406 Bridge Street, still head of household, and still sharing her home with Harriet. Helen had no income recorded, but she owned her home outright, now valued at $2,500 — a testament to decades of careful management and stability.
Final Years and Resting Place
In her later years, Helen moved to Chicago, where her son William Edward Sammons had long lived and worked. She died there on 23 April 1948, at the age of eighty‑four — a woman born during the Civil War who lived to see the end of World War II, the rise of automobiles, radios, telephones, and the transformation of American life.
Yet her final journey brought her home.
Helen was returned to Towanda and buried in Oak Hill Cemetery, the same cemetery where her husband George rests. Her grave lies among the families she knew, the community she served, and the town that shaped nearly every chapter of her life.
The following is an excerpt from Staggs Genealogy – Harold Wareham Staggs – His Book
George E. Sammons and Helen Carl moved to Towanda, Pennsylvania and bought a farm. George was a carpenter, and his farm was only a sideline. They had three children, Harriet, George and Bill. Harriet became a schoolteacher when she was sixteen, never married and died in Towanda. Bill and George, as boys worked the farm and sold milk in tin at five cents a quart to the towns people. Bill told me of how, when the circus came to town, his father would build a table near the circus, and his mother would make sandwiches and lemonade to sell there. George [Jr.] started to work for the town druggist, so, one spring, his father took him out of high school and sent him to the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy. After he finished college, George [Jr.] worked as a Pharmacist in Athens, Pennsylvania. The family built a large house on Bridge Street in Towanda and “took in” boys from the country who were going to high school. These boys would go home for the weekend and bring their next weeks’ food with them when they came back. Mrs. Sammons would then cook it for them. After her husband died, she ran her home as a boarding house for teachers from the high school. Grandfather Bill’s mother couldn’t read or write but she saw to it that each of her children received an education.
Legacy of Helen E Carl
Helen E. Carl Sammons lived a life that mirrored the experience of many 19th‑ and early‑20th‑century American women:
- She grew up in a large rural family.
- She married young and built a household defined by work, faith, and community.
- She raised children who became teachers, laborers, and city dwellers.
- She adapted to widowhood with resilience, maintaining her home and supporting her daughter.
- She lived long enough to witness profound changes in American society.
Her story is preserved not through dramatic events but through the steady, enduring presence she maintained in her family and community. In the Sammons family history, Helen stands as a symbol of continuity — a woman whose life bridged eras, whose home anchored generations, and whose memory endures in the quiet records she left behind.
Parents
FATHER: Israel Carl (1834–1898)
MOTHER: Charlotte Gorsline (1835–1914)
Married
George B Sammons (1853–1929) in 1880
Children
- Harriet Charlotte Sammons (1883–1945) married Willis Ball (1884-1941)
- William Edward Sammons (1884–1967) married Amy M Larson (1885–1979)
- George Israel Sammons (1889–1965) married Bessie Laura Snyder (1887-?)
Documents
- Death records
- Find a Grave > Helen E Sammons, Birth: 1863, Death: 1948 (aged 84–85)
- Burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Towanda, Bradford County, Pennsylvania, USA
- Census Records
- 1870 United States Federal Census > Pennsylvania > Bradford > Burlington > Hellen Carl (age 9) living with father Israel Carl (age 39), mother Charlott Carl (age 34) and six other children: Louisa Carl (15), Rebeca Carl (13), Clara Carl (11), Florence Carl (5), William Carl (3), Nellie Carl (6/12).
- 1880 United States Federal Census > Pennsylvania > Bradford > Towanda > 026 > Hellen Carl (age 17) living with father Israel Carl (age 48), mother Charlott Carl (age 45) and four other children: Minnie Carl (15), William Carl (12), Frank Carl (7), and Leon Carl (2)
- 1900 United States Federal Census > Pennsylvania > Bradford > Towanda > District 0042 > Hellen Simans (age 36) married living with husband Geo B Simans (age 45, occupation: Janitor) children: Hattie Simans (18, daughter), William Simans (15, son), Geo Simans (11, son), and border Wm I Ballard (age 53)
- 1910 United States Federal Census > Pennsylvania > Bradford > Towanda Ward 2 > District 0041 > Helen Summons (46) living with husband George B Sammons (age 55, occupation: Janitor), living with daughter Harriet Sammons (age 27, single, occupation: teacher, public schools).
- 1920 United States Federal Census > Pennsylvania > Bradford > Towanda Ward 2 > District 0043 > Helen Summons (age 55, occupation: lodging house) living with husband George B Sammons (age 65, occupation: Janitor), living with daughter Harriet Sammons (age 35, single, occupation: teacher, grade school). Also a Lodger: John J. Gold (age 21, teacher, high school)
- 1930 United States Federal Census > Pennsylvania > Bradford > Towanda > District 0048 > Helen Sammons (age 65, widowed, head of household, owns home, home value $2000, address 406 Bridge St, Towanda, Pennsylvania, has a radio in the home) living with daughter Harriet S Ball (age 44, divorsed, teacher, public school)
- 1940 United States Federal Census. Pennsylvania > Bradford > Towanda > 8-52 > Helen Sammons (age 75, widowed, head of household, income in 1940: $0, owns home, home value $2500, address 406 Bridge St, Towanda, Pennsylvania) living with daughter Harriet S Ball (age 57, married, teacher, elementary school, income in 1940: $1125)
- Other
- Pennsylvania and New Jersey, U.S., Church and Town Records, 1669-2013 > Name: Ellen E Sammons; Event Type: Residence; Residence Date: 2 Jan 1898; Residence Place: Towanda, Bradford, Pennsylvania, USA; Denomination: Methodist; Organization Name: First United Methodist Church
Relation of Helen E Carl to Steven Barry Staggs: great-grandmother
Page last updated May 1, 2026
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