
Mabel Thorp Boardman (October 12, 1860 – March 17, 1946) was an
American philanthropist
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...
involved with the
American Red Cross
The American Red Cross (ARC), also known as the American National Red Cross, is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. It is the desi ...
. She led the Red Cross in the United States following its receiving
congressional charter
A congressional charter is a law passed by the United States Congress that states the mission, authority, and activities of a group. Congress issued federal charters from 1791 until 1992 under Title 36 of the United States Code. The first charte ...
in 1905 until
World War I, however she did not take up the post of chairman since she believed the organisation would lose credibility with the public. She was the only woman to ever serve on the District of Columbia Board of Commissioners, which was the equivalent of both the Mayor and City Council before home rule. Another woman wouldn't serve in a similar role until
Polly Shackleton and Margaret A. Haywood were appointed to the new 9-member council in 1967.
Biography
She was born on October 12, 1860, in
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
to a well-to-do family. Her father, William Jarvis Boardman (15 April 1832 – 2 August 1915), a lawyer and active in politics, was the grandson of the Senator
Elijah Boardman. Her mother, Florence Sheffield, was the granddaughter of
Joseph Earl Sheffield
Joseph Earle Sheffield (June 19, 1793 – February 17, 1882) was an American railroad magnate and philanthropist.
Sheffield was born in Southport, Connecticut, the son of Paul King Sheffield, a shipowner, and his wife Mabel (née Thorpe).
...
, who was a major benefactor of
Yale University. She had 5 siblings, including
Josephine Porter Boardman Crane. The family moved from Ohio to Washington, D.C. in 1887–1888, although they maintained connections to Ohio politics including a friendship with the
Taft family
The Taft family of the United States has historic origins in Massachusetts; its members have served Ohio, Massachusetts, Vermont, Rhode Island, Utah, and the United States in various positions such as U.S. Representative (two), Governor of Ohio, G ...
.
As a socialite, she devoted time to many philanthropies. During the
Spanish–American War in 1898 she was active in recruiting nurses. In 1901 she was elected to the Executive Board of the American Red Cross and subsequently led the faction that ousted
Clara Barton
Clarissa Harlowe Barton (December 25, 1821 – April 12, 1912) was an American nurse who founded the American Red Cross. She was a hospital nurse in the American Civil War, a teacher, and a patent clerk. Since nursing education was not then very ...
from the presidency of the organization in 1904.
Barton always took personal charge during major disasters. She gave the illusion of efficiency but was unable to build up a staff she trusted, and her fundraising was lackluster. As a result, she was forced out in 1904, when male professional social work experts took control and made it a model of
Progressive Era scientific reform. The new leader was Boardman; she consulted constantly with senior government officials, military officers, social workers, and financiers.
William Howard Taft was especially influential. They imposed a new corporate ethos of "
managerialism," transforming the agency away from Barton's cult of personality to an "organizational humanitarianism" ready for expansion along increasingly professional lines.
In 1920, President
Woodrow Wilson appointed Boardman to be the first and only woman member of the
Board of Commissioners of the
District of Columbia.
From 1923 until 1944, Boardman served as the Director of the Red Cross's Volunteer Service and overseeing its considerable expansion.
She died on March 17, 1946, of a
coronary thrombosis in
Washington D.C.
Legacy
There is a Boardman
Bay
A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...
at the
Washington National Cathedral.
[
]
Published work
* Boardman, Mabel T. ''Under the Red Cross Flag at Home and Abroad'' Philadelphia: J. B.Lippincott (1915)
See also
* Sulgrave Club
The Sulgrave Club is a private women's club located at 1801 Massachusetts Avenue NW on the east side of Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C. The clubhouse is the former Beaux-Arts mansion on Embassy Row built for Herbert and Martha Blow Wadsworth ...
References
External links
American Red Cross Museum
Mabel Thorp Boardman, A Register of Her Papers in the Library of Congress
Encyclopedia of Cleveland History: Boardman, William Jarvis
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boardman, Mabel Thorp
1860 births
1946 deaths
American philanthropists
American Red Cross personnel
Members of the Board of Commissioners for the District of Columbia
American women in World War I
Writers from Cleveland
Deaths from coronary thrombosis
20th-century American people