Elizabeth King Ellicott (1858–1914) was an American

suffragist Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to vo ...

Biography

Ellicott was born in 1858 to a wealthy

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

family. After studying at the Howland Institute, she returned to Baltimore. Several years later, she and several friends opened the

Bryn Mawr School Bryn Mawr School, founded in 1885 as the first college-preparatory school for girls in the United States, is an independent, nonsectarian all-girls school for grades PK-12, with a coed preschool. Bryn Mawr School is located in the Roland Pa ...

for Girls in 1885. That same group four years later donated $500,000 to

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

, on the condition that they allow women to attend the

medical university A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, professional school, or forms a part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, ...

. In 1894, she founded the Women's Literary Club and Arundel club in Baltimore. In 1900, the latter club would merge into the Maryland Federation of Women's Clubs, of which Ellicott was elected president of the board. That same year, she married William Miller Ellicott. Six years later, after resigning from the board, she became involved in the suffrage movement. She organized the Equal Suffrage League of Baltimore out of the nearly defunct Livermore Equal Rights League. The league worked closely with the Maryland Woman Suffrage Association. The Baltimore League broke permanently from the Maryland League in 1910, when they submitted an equal suffrage bill to the

Maryland General Assembly The Maryland General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland that convenes within the State House in Annapolis. It is a bicameral body: the upper chamber, the Maryland Senate, has 47 representatives, and the lower ...

, which was quickly defeated. After the break, Ellicott formed a competing association, the State Equal Franchise League of Maryland, in 1911. The club began publishing ''The New Voter'', Maryland's first suffrage magazine. After suffering from ill health for years, she died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

and a subsequent

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...

on May 14, 1914. She left about $250,000 to many establishments. A large portion of the money went to establishing the Elizabeth King Ellicott Fellowship for the Political Education of Women at

Goucher College Goucher College ( ') is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Towson, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1885 as a Nonsectarian, nonsecterian Women's colleges in the United States, ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellicott, Elizabeth King 1858 births 1914 deaths Suffragists from Maryland Deaths from pneumonia in the United States