LEWISTON – Edith Evelyn Knowles, 89, of Winthrop, died Saturday, Nov. 18, at Central Maine Medical Center with her family by her side.

She was born in Auburn on Sept. 30, 1917, the daughter of Elton F. and Annie G. (Whittaker) Perkins, who were residing on Perkins Ridge in Auburn.

With the passing of her father at a very young age and with her older brother, Frankie, lost at sea in an aircraft carrier accident in the 1930s, she became one of the elder of the surviving siblings and thus shared much of the responsibility of helping her mother raise their family.

She graduated from Edward Little High School and married Kenneth Knowles on May 14, 1938. While the effects of the Depression still impressed every family, Ken managed two jobs and she struggled to create a home that lasted almost 70 years.

She liked, among other activities, gardening and reading, with her favorite books in later years written by author C.A. Stevens of Norway. She read and enjoyed all of his “Old Squire” series. Her weekend habit for years was to cook up a storm for summer gatherings at her camp with friends and family. In the winter months, up until recently, she greatly enjoyed snowmobiling.

She leaves her daughter, Nancy Sylvester, and her husband, Ernest, of Leeds; her son, Robert, and his wife, Laureli Lessaro, of Winthrop; her brother, Elton Perkins Jr. and sister, Eleanor Perkins, both of Florida; grandchildren, Robert Knowles, and his wife, Eugenie, Jonathan Knowles, and his wife, Jennifer and Matthew Sylvester; great-grandchildren, Carey, Megan and Spencer Knowles; a brother-in-law, William Prescott; her guardian angel for the past two years, Annette Dugas; and special part-time caretaker, Heidi Gallop.

She was predeceased by two brothers and two sisters, Frankie Reynolds, James Perkins, Thelma Chadburn and Barbara Prescott.