Roselle Carter Wood

June 23, 1910 - December 25, 1996

Roselle passed away of natural causes. A resident of Montebello for 50 years, she is survived by daughter, Nancy Wood; grandson Mark R Schoose, and brother, George W Carter. Preceded in death by her husband, Alvis Wood, and sister, Leona Carter.

Roselle's family was one of the original settlers of Virginia and Illinois, arriving from Scotland and Ireland in the 18th Century. The Carters were on the matriarchal side of General Robert E Lee's family. In the early 1800s the Carter family came out West to open The Carter House Hotel in Weaverville, California. John Carter and his four sons ran the hotel and a cattle ranch. One son, George W Carter married Gertrude McNamar, a young schoolteacher originally from Springfield, Illinois, who was living at the hotel while her one-room schoolhouse was being completed. George and Gertrude told their three children, Leona, Roselle, and George Jr, firsthand accounts of the rough Old West towns in which they had lived and helped create.

Roselle's school years were spent in Cottonwood, California, where George Sr and his father-in-law ran the local newspaper. Roselle later recalled the happy times when, in the summers, the family lived in lumber camps and isolated mountain pioneer settlements where Gertrude taught school. In 1994 she made a trip to Cottonwood and Weaverville to speak to local historians on the early days of their cities.

The family came to Los Angeles County in the 1920s where Roselle graduated from South Pasadena High. During the Depression she attended Cosmetology College and Otis Art Institute. In Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s, she was hairdresser to many of the screen actresses of the time. In the 1950s she was able to become more dedicated as an artist and had exhibits in Southern California. She was a member of the the Southland Art Association, Native Daughters of the Golden West and the Business and Professional Women's clubs, the PTA, and she was a Girl Scout Leader. Roselle lived in her own home and was active and involved in family activities, art and travel, until her passing on Christmas Day.

She will be greatly missed as she was greatly loved.

The Los Angeles Times, January 5, 1997