Nelson and Mila Shimer Lived Along Emerson Avenue for Many Years

      The Shimer family predates Irvington. Many of the descendants remained in the area for years. Nelson Shimer, who grew up on the family farm along Brookville Road, built a small cottage for his family at 422 South Emerson Avenue in the 1880s. Later, in the early twentieth century, he and his wife, Mila Murphy Shimer, greatly enlarged the residence. They needed a larger place to raise their seven children. Photos from the Chris Shimer family collection show the many changes to the house over the years. 

Nelson and Mila Shimer built a one-story cottage at 422 South Emerson Avenue in the 1880s. They quickly outgrew the residence. Pictured in this photo taken c1900: Thomas, Elizabeth (Lizzie), Mae, Clara Belle, and a cousin named Ralph Shimer. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Nelson Shimer stood next to his family home at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1900. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

The Shimers enlarged their Queen Anne style cottage into a larger American Foursquare popular in the early 1900s. The photo was likely taken c1920. (courtesy of Chris Shimer) 

Mila and Nelson Shimer posed with one of their sons c1905 at 422 South Emerson Avenue. Mr. Shimer worked on the family farm located nearby on Brookville Road and at a brick factory. (photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Clara Belle Shimer (later Johnson) posed with two young women in the side yard at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1915. (Photo courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Alfred Johnson posed with his wife, Clara Belle Shimer Johnson, c1925 at 426 South Emerson Avenue. After their marriage in 1924, they moved into a Sears-kit bungalow next to the Shimer family home. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Lillian Shimer posed near the front porch at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1925. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Lewis Grover Shimer posed with his son, Lewis V. Shimer, at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1923. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Mila Murphy Shimer (1863-1947) worked in her front yard at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1915. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Clara Belle Shimer posed with two other stylish women on the front porch of the Shimer home at 422 South Emerson Avenue c1918. Behind the young ladies you can see the house located at 459 South Grand Avenue. (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

Mila Murphy Shimer posed with an unidentified family member, c1940 at 422 South Emerson Avenue (courtesy of Chris Shimer)

422 South Emerson Avenue on July 19, 2024

     I wish to thank Chris Shimer for his photos and stories of the Shimer family.