Maud Ingersoll Probasco ( – ) 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 ...

and animal rights activist.

Early life and education

She was born Maud Robert Ingersoll on in

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is a city in Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. Located on the Illinois River, the city had a population of 113,150 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Ill ...

, the younger of two daughters of

Robert G. Ingersoll Robert Green Ingersoll (; August 11, 1833 – July 21, 1899), nicknamed "the Great Agnostic", was an American lawyer, writer, and orator during the Golden Age of Free Thought, who campaigned in defense of agnosticism. Personal life Robert Inge ...

, the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

lawyer, writer, and

orator An orator, or oratist, is a public speaker, especially one who is eloquent or skilled. Etymology Recorded in English c. 1374, with a meaning of "one who pleads or argues for a cause", from Anglo-French ''oratour'', Old French ''orateur'' (14 ...

known as "The Great

Agnostic Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, the divine, or the supernatural is either unknowable in principle or unknown in fact. (page 56 in 1967 edition) It can also mean an apathy towards such religious belief and refer to ...

", and his wife Eva Amelia Parker. (Robert Ingersoll gave both of his daughters the middle name Robert.) The Ingersoll sisters grew up in a four-story home in Peoria known as the Cockle Mansion, with a large extended family. Ingersoll held progressive views about the intellectual capabilities of women, and his daughters studied literature, art, music (Maud was a contralato), and languages. They were taught by private tutors, as Ingersoll was a believer in secular education and wished to avoid Christian teachings in the schools of the day. In 1878, the Ingersoll family moved to Washington, DC, to a house in Lafayette Square near the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

. The family hosted large weekly gatherings which included politicians, businessmen, artists, and other leading figures discussed the issues of the day, further broadening the sisters' education. In late 1885, the Ingersoll family moved to a mansion at 101

Fifth Avenue Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue runs south from 143rd Street (Manhattan), West 143rd Street in Harlem to Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The se ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Activism

Ingersoll and her aunt Sue M. Farrell were members of the New York Anti-Vivisection Society, founded in 1908 by Diana Belais to campaign against

vivisection Vivisection () is surgery conducted for experimental purposes on a living organism, typically animals with a central nervous system, to view living internal structure. The word is, more broadly, used as a pejorative catch-all term for Animal test ...

animal cruelty Cruelty to animals, also called animal abuse, animal neglect or animal cruelty, is the infliction of suffering or Injury, harm by humans upon animals, either by omission (neglect) or by commission. More narrowly, it can be the causing of harm ...

, and

human experimentation Human subject research is systematic, scientific investigation that can be either interventional (a "trial") or observational (no "test article") and involves human beings as research subjects, commonly known as test subjects. Human subject r ...

. After a falling out with the organization, Ingersoll and Farrell founded their own organization in 1912, the Vivisection Investigation League, serving as corresponding secretary and president, respectively. The Vivisection Investigation League criticized work done by

The Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research The Rockefeller University is a private biomedical research and graduate-only university in New York City, New York. It focuses primarily on the biological and medical sciences and provides doctoral and postdoctoral education. It is classified ...

(a favorite target for anti-vivisection groups) and specifically the experiments of

Hideyo Noguchi , also known as , was a prominent Japanese bacteriologist at the Rockefeller University, Rockefeller Institute known for his work on syphilis, serology, immunology, and contributing to the long term understanding of neurosyphilis. Before the Ro ...

, who was developing a

skin test A skin test is a medical test in which a substance is injected into the skin. Examples * Casoni test * Corneometry * Dick test * Fernandez reaction * Frei test * Hair perforation test * Kveim test * Leishmanin skin test * Lepromin * Pat ...

for

syphilis Syphilis () is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium ''Treponema pallidum'' subspecies ''pallidum''. The signs and symptoms depend on the stage it presents: primary, secondary, latent syphilis, latent or tertiary. The prim ...

and tested his work on children. Ingersoll was also active with the

American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing animal cruelty. Based in New York City since its inception in 1866, the organization's mission is "to provide effective mea ...

. Ingersoll was an active suffragist in New York state. She was treasurer of the

New York State Woman Suffrage Association New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 19 ...

in 1913. She served as a poll watcher and was a delegate to the New York State Convention of the National Progressive Party and for the

Women's Political Union A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or adolescent is referred to as a girl. Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functional uteruses ...

. She headed the Robert Ingersoll Monument Association in an unsuccessful effort to place a monument to her late father designed by

Gutzon Borglum John Gutzon de la Mothe Borglum (March 25, 1867 – March 6, 1941) was an American sculpture, sculptor best known for his work on Mount Rushmore. He is also associated with various other public works of art across the U.S., including Stone Moun ...

in Washington, DC. She was also a member of the

American Birth Control League The American Birth Control League (ABCL) was founded by Margaret Sanger in 1921 at the First American Birth Control Conference in New York City. The organization promoted the founding of birth control clinics and encouraged women to control their ...

and vice-president of Freethinkers of America."MRS. PROBASCO DIES; INGERSOLL DAUGHTER: FOLLOWED FATHER'S POSITION AS AN AGNOSTIC -- ALSO WORKED FOR SUFFRAGE AND PEACE." ''New York Times,'' Feb 13 1936, p. 19.

Marriage

Ingersoll married Wallace McLean Probasco on December 30, 1912, in New York City in an "ethical ritual" presided over by Dr.

John Lovejoy Elliott John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

of the Ethical Culture Society. Wallace Probasco was general manager and director of the New Century Color Plate Company, and nephew of

Supreme Court Justice The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest-ranking judicial body in the United States. Its membership, as set by the Judiciary Act of 1869, consists of the chief justice of the United States and eight associate justices, any six of ...

John McLean John McLean (March 11, 1785 – April 4, 1861) was an American jurist and politician who served in the United States Congress, as U.S. Postmaster General, and as a justice of the Ohio and United States Supreme Courts. He was often discu ...

. Wallace Probasco engaged in a long extramarital affair with Mazie Ingersoll (no relation), wife of the wealthy watchmaker Robert H. Ingersoll. On December 19, 1926, in her apartment at 55

Park Avenue Park Avenue is a boulevard in New York City that carries north and southbound traffic in the borough (New York City), boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx. For most of the road's length in Manhattan, it runs parallel to Madison Avenue to the wes ...

in New York City, both Wallace Probasco and Mazie Ingersoll were shot, and the latter killed. According to Wallace Probasco, he had broken off their affair, intending to return to his wife, and she shot him twice and committed suicide. A homicide case against Wallace Probasco was dismissed the following year. The Probascos reconciled.

Death

Maud Ingersoll Probasco died on February 12, 1936, at

Booth Memorial Hospital Booth Memorial Hospital is the name of any of the hospitals affiliated with The Salvation Army (TSA); the latter was "founded by William Booth in 1878." The first of these "opened Booth Memorial in Manhattan in 1914 and its center in Flushing in ...

in New York City.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ingersoll Probasco, Maud Created via preloaddraft 1864 births 1936 deaths American animal rights activists American anti-vivisectionists Suffragists from New York (state)