Helen Wallbank Milliken (December 4, 1922 – November 16, 2012) was an American

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

activist,

environmentalist An environmentalist is a person who is concerned with and/or advocates for the protection of the environment. An environmentalist can be considered a supporter of the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that se ...

, and former First Lady of Michigan. Milliken, the longest-lived First Lady in Michigan's history (living to 99 years old), served from 1969 to 1983 during the tenure of her husband, former

Michigan Governor The governor of Michigan, is the head of government of Michigan and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws; the power to either approve or veto appropriation bills passed b ...

William Milliken William Grawn Milliken (March 26, 1922 – October 18, 2019) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 44th governor of Michigan. A member of the Republican Party, he is the longest-serving governor in Michigan history, servin ...

. Milliken was known for her activism on behalf of many causes throughout her life. During the 1970s, she was one of Michigan's leading proponents of the proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Biography

Early life

Milliken was born Helen Wallbank on December 4, 1922, in

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

, the second of four children of Stanley and Nellie (née Sillik) Wallbank. She attended a girls' school in

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. She enrolled in Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, after high school, where she earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in 1945. In 1943, she met her future husband,

, in Colorado while she was home for summer break after completing her freshman year at Smith College. Milliken was then a student at Yale University (located approximately 80 miles from Smith College), but he was stationed at

Lowry Field Lowry Air Force Base (Lowry Field in 1938–1948) is a former United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) training base during World War II and a United States Air Force (USAF) training base during the Cold War, serving as the initial 1955–1958 si ...

's aerial gunnery school for training in the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Milliken served as a U.S. Army Air Corps

B-24 The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models des ...

waist-gunner. The couple married in October 1945, after having delayed their wedding six times due to Milliken's military commitments during the war. They moved to

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

, where they lived in a one-bedroom apartment while Milliken completed his senior year at Yale University. Helen and William Milliken moved to his native

Traverse City, Michigan Traverse City ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Grand Traverse County, although a small portion extends into Leelanau County. It is the largest city in the 21-county Northern Michigan region. The population wa ...

, after his graduation from Yale University in 1946. They had two children there: William Milliken Jr., born October 14, 1946, and Elaine Milliken, who was born on June 6, 1948. A lawyer and feminist, Elaine died of cancer in 1993. Helen Milliken raised their two children while William worked for the family business, the now defunct Milliken's Department Store.

First Lady of Michigan

Helen Milliken first entered the political arena when her husband was elected a State Senator in 1960. William Milliken was elected as Lieutenant Governor of Michigan, serving under Governor George Romney. Milliken succeeded to the position of Governor of Michigan in 1969 when Romney resigned to become

United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development The United States secretary of housing and urban development (or HUD secretary) is the head of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, a member of the president's Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furnitur ...

within

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

's cabinet.

Support for the Equal Rights Amendment

Milliken served as First Lady for fourteen years, the longest tenure of any First Lady in state history. In this role, she became known as a proponent of women's rights and environmentalism. In particular, Milliken became one of Michigan's leading supporters of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and was affiliated with ERAmerica. The ERA had been passed by the United States Congress in 1972 and was ratified by thirty-five states, including Michigan, in the next years. When the 1980 Republican National Convention, held in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

, removed language supporting the ERA from the convention platform, First Lady Helen Milliken boycotted the convention's opening ceremony to attend a pro-ERA protest.

Post-statehouse

In 1994, Democratic Michigan gubernatorial nominee

Howard Wolpe Howard Eliot Wolpe (November 3, 1939 – October 25, 2011) was an American politician who served as a seven-term U.S. Representative from Michigan and Presidential Special Envoy to the African Great Lakes Region in the Clinton Administration, whe ...

asked Helen Milliken to be his

running mate A running mate is a person running together with another person on a joint ticket during an election. The term is most often used in reference to the person in the subordinate position (such as the vice presidential candidate running with a pr ...

for Lieutenant Governor of Michigan. She declined Wolpe's offer. Wolfe selected then State Senator

Debbie Stabenow Deborah Ann Stabenow ( ; née Greer, born April 29, 1950) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Michigan, a seat she has held since 2001. A member of the Democratic Party, she became the state's first female ...

as his running mate. He was defeated in the 1994 general election by incumbent Republican

John Engler John Mathias Engler (born October 12, 1948) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 46th Governor of Michigan from 1991 to 2003. A member of the Republican Party, he later worked for Business Roundtable, where ''The Hill'' c ...

. While Helen Milliken largely avoided political campaigns during her later life, she endorsed two prominent Democrats for election. Milliken endorsed

Jennifer Granholm Jennifer Mulhern Granholm (born February 5, 1959) is a Canadian-American lawyer, educator, author, political commentator, and politician serving as the 16th United States secretary of energy since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, she pre ...

for Governor of Michigan, as well as Democratic presidential nominee, Senator

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party, he ...

, during the 2004 U.S. presidential election.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Milliken, Helen Wallbank 1922 births 2012 deaths First Ladies and Gentlemen of Michigan American women's rights activists American environmentalists American women environmentalists Smith College alumni People from Traverse City, Michigan Place of birth missing Deaths from cancer in Michigan Deaths from ovarian cancer 21st-century American women Equal Rights Amendment activists