Mae Bostedt burial record | The Hart Island Project

Mary (Mae) Bostedt was born on the 27th of November 1899 in Oconto, Wisconsin, a lovely town on the shore of the Bay of Greenbay. Oconto’s north and south sides are separated by the beautiful Oconto River.

Mary was one of six children born to William T. Bostedt and Dora Schambrue Bostedt who were both of German lineage and who had both previously lived in New York. Mary was the only daughter in the family. Her brothers included, Frederick (Fred) who died in 1966, Harry who died in 1918, Walter who died in 1928, George who died in 1906, and Herman, death unknown.

Mae's mother died in 1908. After her death, only Fred continued to live at home while the other children were sent to relatives. Mae moved to the Bronx to live with her aunts, Mary Schambrue and Catherine Schambrue Nenstiehl. Tragically, only two years later in 1910, Mae's father either accidentally drowned or took his own life.

By 1940 in New York, Mae had worked as a cashier in a department store, a bookeeper, and a maid to a family. The details of her life beyond 1940 are not yet known. There is no evidence that she married or had children.

Mae died at Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx on the 5th of April 1982 and was buried on Hart Island on the 15th of April 1982.

There are many Bostedts' buried in Evergreen Cemetery, Oconto, including Mae's parents, grandpartents and brothers. Sadly, Mae does not rest amongst them.