Rachel Andresen - Birth/background

Birth/background

Andresen was born in Deerfield, Michigan, in 1907. She was the daughter of a Methodist pastor and her parents motivated their five children to be highly focused and productive, particularly with education. By the time Rachel was fourteen, she had read and consumed the Harvard Classics and the entire works of Shakespeare that her father had encouraged her to read.

She was very lively in high school and had participated in sports, drama, and music; she was also an accomplished pianist. Her nickname at Adrian High School was "Rollicking Rachel". She also did the unthinkable, she bobbed her hair—much to the dismay of her conservative parents. She graduated top of her class when she was sixteen years old. It was also at this time that she met her future husband, Henry Rose. Rachel attended the Detroit Conservatory of Music and received a BFA in music.