She then pursued graduate studies at Massachusetts Institute of Technology between 1897 and 1898, returning thereafter to work in Chicago,[4] with various design firms and later in Kansas City and Ames, Iowa until 1903.

[5] One of the firms Alda worked at was Patton & Miller, known for building Carnegie libraries throughout the U.S.[6] That year, she and her sister Elmina took a sabbatical to study engineering and architectural designs in Europe.

[7] In 1915, the sisters jointly worked on architectural and engineering drawings for the Teachers Cottage, also known as Helmich House, in Gatlinburg, Tennessee at the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts.

[8] They were also involved with the Manhattan Woman's Suffrage Club, for which Elmina served as president, coming in contact with national leaders like Susan B. Anthony, Carrie Chapman Catt and Eleanor Roosevelt.

[18] W. J. was a pioneer farmer in Story County[19] and Kittie was the librarian at the Ames Public Library and a fellow ISU alumnus.

[8] Built in 1916, the residence, which was constructed to provide living quarters for the teachers being recruited to work in the school, had modern amenities including the first furnace in Gatlinburg and running water.

[23] The exterior was clad with weatherboard siding featuring shed dormers on the north and rear façades, covered by a side-gabled, asphalt-shingled roof.