Biographical Database of NAWSA Suffragists, 1890-1920
Biography of Ellen B. Gere, 1876-1941
By Suman Malekyar, Dr. Amy Forss, professor
Metropolitan Community College
In the 19th century women did not have equal rights to men when it came to voting, fighting in war, and overall any rights at all other than being a stay at home house wife. It wasn't until 1920 where the 19th amendment granted American women the right to vote. During this movement a woman named Ellen Bladen Gere was born in Lincoln, Nebraska on October 28, 1876.
Ellen was the daughter of Charles H. Gere who came to Brownsville in 1865, later taking permanent residence in Lincoln, Nebraska. Charles started the Morning Nebraska state journal and was known as the remarkable man and community. Being the remarkable man he was, he raised Ellen to be a very independent woman at a time where women weren't known for being independent.
Ellen attended the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, and received her degree at the university in 1899. During her time at the university she even was a part of a well-known sorority today known as Kappa Kappa Gamma. Without Ellen this sorority wouldn't still be here today given that she represented that women can be independent at a time where they had no rights, yet she still was so involved in extracurricular activities like a sorority structured only for women attending college. Ellen was involved in a lot of community events and clubs. She was in the Tuesday travel club, a member of the Holy Trinity Episcopal, and also a member of the Latter, a pioneer culture society of which her mother was the founder.
Known as Miss Ellen Gere, she was involved Lotos Club. At one o'clock every Thursday they would discuss current events, Shakespeare, take trips, crafts and a lot more. A big part of the group was how they were active in International aid programs. During World War I the ladies would send money to aid women and children in Belgium. They would wrap bandages, sew clothing for soldiers, and make surgical packs. They even had each member donate $2 to the war relief fund.
Ellen Gere was among nineteen Nebraska suffragists who played a crucial legal role in securing women's right to vote. In particular, the State Legislature passed a limited suffrage bill in April 1917, granting women in Nebraska the right to vote in Presidential elections and for many local and county offices. Anti-suffragists mounted a campaign to put the bill before the state's voters. Miller was among nineteen suffragists named as plaintiffs in opposition to the referendum petition. Their filing exposed so many instances of fraud and forgery in obtaining signatures that the State Supreme Court threw out the petition, refused to hold a referendum, and upheld the new suffrage law. Thus, Gere was part of the legal struggle that secured the right to vote for Nebraska women even before the passage on the Nineteenth Amendment.
At this time women didn't have a lot of rights, but Ellen still found ways to show the community that even as a woman she could help and make a difference. Throughout Ellen's life she traveled a lot, exploring the world all while she was a single woman relying on no one but herself. She never married and lived her whole life in Lincoln as a single woman, who eventually adopted two children. She maintained the traditional generosity and hospitality of her parents in the upbringing of her two children. Ellen devoted most her life to raising her two adopted children, son John Gere and her daughter Betty Gere Hedlund. She never moved and lived with her two sisters, Mariel C. Gere and Frances C. Gere. They also had a household servant named Mary Sampson. The house was on South 24th street in Lincoln, which is still standing today and known as the "Historic mansion" built for Ellen's father, who was the founder of the Lincoln newspaper. The house was built in 1892 and just before the turn of the 20th century the home was transported to its current site.
Ellen died in her home on April 4, 1941. She was only 66 years old but had had a prolonged illness. She is buried at Wyuka cemetery where people can visit her gravestone and see a woman who played a very important role in women's rights here in the state of Nebraska.
To this day, Ellen is honored and remembered because there is a town named after her in Webster county, Nebraska, known as Bladen. There was a railroad built through the town which even caused the little town of "wells" to be moved to Bladen where a lot of new business and transports took place in. Today in Bladen there is still a post office, grain elevator, sand and gravel business, and a number of other small businesses.
Although it is a small county of around 237 people, its name will forever be a part of Ellen Bladen Gere where she will be remembered for her independent and successful lifestyle at a time where it was hard for women to succeed. She played a big role not only in women suffrage, but also a role in representing what all women in Nebraska and the world stand for today and how far they have come. Her house, her work, her roles in Kappa Kappa Gamma, and the city named after her will be a reminder for all women today to see how far they have come since the 19th century and women suffrage, or right to vote.