Hilda Kaihlanen

1919 - 2013

Hilda S. Kaihlanen (1919–2013) was one of the original Folly Cove Designers. Her father, Henry Ross, immigrated from Finland to Cape Ann, where he met and married Lydia Runsula, a Lanesville Finn. In 1940, Hilda married Lauri Kaihlanen. They made their home—and a sauna—in Lanesville and had two children, Donna and Lauri. Hilda learned design from Virginia Lee Demetrios and was a member of the Folly Cove Designers for a few years before withdrawing to pursue her career in watercolors, which are well-known. She was a member of the North Shore Arts Association and the Copley Society of Boston. For many years she had a shop on Bearskin Neck in Rockport.