Death of Woodbridge Ferris

Did you know?

Woodbridge Ferris was not planning to run for reelection to the Senate when he became sick in March 1928. The physician who attended him in his last illness was the personal physician of President Woodrow Wilson.

Ferris Dies- 1928

When Woodbridge N. Ferris died suddenly in 1928, the Ferris Institute campus and the state of Michigan paused to mourn. While Ferris had announced his intention not to run for a second term, he was not in particularly poor health. Arthur Vandenburg, appointed to succeed him in the United States Senate spoke movingly of his contributions not only to the state of Michigan but to the world. A train brought Ferris back to Big Rapids, Michigan where he was laid to rest in Highland View Cemetery with his first wife Helen Gillespie Ferris. A photo of the funeral is available as part of the photo essay.

Here are some links to text of obituaries and news articles published in various newspapers when Ferris died in March 1928.

Chicago Tribune. 23 March 1928.
Detroit News. 28 March 1928.
Grand Rapids Herald. 23 March 1928.
Los Angeles Times. 24 March 1928.
New York Times. 24 March 1928.
Washington Evening News Index. 23 March 1928.
Washington Post. 24 March 1928.

Contact: Melinda McMartin Isler, University Archivist
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