Biographical Database of NAWSA Suffragists, 1890-1920
Biography of Dr. Minora Safford Ellis Kibbe, 1863-1949
Alden Blake, Undergraduate, University of California, Santa Barbara
Minora Safford Ellis was born to Benjamin F. Ellis and Allis P. Ellis on July 29, 1863 in Nevada. The family relocated to San Francisco around 1870. Minora attended Cooper Medical College (which would later become Stanford Medicine) and became a physician. In 1888 she married George Kibbe and by 1910 the couple resided in Oakland with their three-year-old son, George E. Her husband was recorded as a secretary. He had a lengthy career in business.
As a suffrage activist, "Dr. Kibbe spoke at events frequently, and ran for various political offices. She ran for Alameda County supervisor in 1914, and for CA State Assembly in 1918. Dr. Kibbe was a member of the Fruitvale Women's Club, the Royal Neighbors of America (an organization providing insurance for women before it was generally available), and the California Civic League. She and Ethel Moore were delegates to the annual California Civic League meeting in San Francisco in 1912." Dr. Kibbe was also active in Bay Area civic affairs, serving as the Vice President of the Milk Improvement Association of San Francisco, and speaking at a session of the Suffrage Amendment League on August 25, 1911.
By 1930 the Kibbes resided in San Leandro. They celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in 1938. George Kibbe passed away in 1948 and Dr. Minora Kibbe died on March 14, 1949.
Sources:
Dr. Kibbe Tells Creed Has Trait of Pioneers." Oakland Tribune, 25 July 1914, p. 18, www.newspapers.com/clip/12815198/running_for_supervisor.
"George R. Kibbe Funeral Is Set," Oakland Tribune, 28 May 1948, p. 18.
Minora Kibbe." Oakland - LocalWiki, www.localwiki.org/oakland/minora_kibbe
"Dr. Minora Kibbe Tells of Experiences in Civic Affairs in Two Cities." San Francisco Call, 26 Aug. 1911, CDNC Website Link.
Federal Manuscript Census, entries for George and Minora Kibbe, Oakland, CA. Accessible online via Ancestry Library Edition.