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  • The Severances: An American Odyssey from Puritan Massachusetts to Ohio’s Western Reserve, and Beyond
  • Marcelle R. Wilson
The Severances: An American Odyssey from Puritan Massachusetts to Ohio’s Western Reserve, and Beyond. By Diana Tittle. (Cleveland: Western Reserve Historical Society, 2010. 400 pp. Cloth $37.50, ISBN 978-0-911704-61-7.)

Diana Tittle has written a remarkable book exploring the history of the Severance family, from their participation in the great migration from England to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1630s through their contributions [End Page 128] and accomplishments in the twentieth century. She utilizes a diverse array of sources from the Western Reserve Historical Society’s archives, private family papers, newspapers, letters, diary entries, and photographs, as well as material from both East and West Coast repositories. Her ability to weave the family’s story throughout the emerging nation’s history makes the account of the Severances interesting, informative, and exciting. The reader feels him- or herself rooting for various family members as Tittle recounts their struggles in Titusville, Pennsylvania; Santa Barbara, California; and during their early years in Cleveland, Ohio.

The reader also shares in the Severances’ triumphs as they accomplish various career and personal goals. That many of the Severances and their ancestors supported laudable causes illustrates their desire to carry on the evangelical Presbyterian beliefs they brought with them from Massachusetts. Ohioans living in the Western Reserve see indications all around the area of these New England antecedents. This is also evident in the various causes that many of the Severances supported over the years. Their belief in abolition and contributions to the founding of the Cleveland Anti-Slavery Society and the Cuyahoga County Anti-Slavery Society complement the various activities of many other Ohioans of the 1830s and represent the vocal minority of northerners who believed that slavery was a moral wrong that needed to end. The Severances’ belief in education for their children, regardless of gender, in an era in which it was not always fashionable to educate women, is remarkable. So too is the family’s support of women’s rights and woman suffrage. Tittle tells the story of an American family who worked hard and believed in family, religious salvation, redemption, and education. They enjoyed the fruits of their labors over the years, taking grand tours of Europe and Egypt, but they also remained a close-knit family whose members genuinely cared about each other and their fellow man; their many philanthropic endeavors over the decades attest to that. Tittle emphasizes that the Severances were aware of their providence and endeavored to instill such ideals in their children. According to Julia Millikin, a Severance descendant, “The Severances’ best traits . . . were self-discipline, self-esteem and a strong sense of duty to kin, community and country” (321). She inculcated these principles in her children and encouraged public beneficence as a way to give back to the community. One particularly pleasing element of the Severances was their consistent embracing of family, willingness to help one another, and concern for others. They exhibited this on a daily basis, made friends, succeeded and failed in business, and worked to be the best at whatever they attempted. Tittle intertwines the story of the Severance family with the history of America, taking one on a true odyssey both enjoyable and educational. [End Page 129]

Marcelle R. Wilson
Aurora Historical Society
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