Mabel Lloyd Fisher Ridgely (April 13, 1872 – January 11, 1962) was an American suffragist and historical preservationist, president of the Delaware Equal Suffrage Association and of the Public Archives Commission, and a founder of Old Dover Days, an annual festival.
Mabel Lloyd Ridgely | |
|---|---|
 Mabel Lloyd Ridgely, from a 1919 publication. | |
| Born | Mabel Lloyd Fisher April 13, 1872 Washington, D. C. |
| Died | February 11, 1962 (aged 89) |
| Resting place | Dover, Delaware |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation(s) | Preservationist, Suffragist |
| Spouse |
Henry Ridgely
(m. 1893; died in 1940) |
Early life
editMabel Lloyd Fisher was born in Washington, D. C., the daughter of Charles G. Fisher and Philippa Lloyd Fisher.
Career
editRidgely's suffrage work included a term as president of the Delaware Equal Suffrage Association.[1] She worked to persuade the state's General Assembly to ratify the 19th Amendment in 1920.[2] The state Senate voted to ratify but the lower house did not.[3] After suffrage was won, Ridgely was the first president of the state's League of Women Voters.[4]
Ridgely had a particular interest in historical preservation. She served as president of the Public Archives Commission in Delaware, helped restore and preserve the Old State House[5] and the John Dickinson House in Dover, and was a founder and organizer of Old Dover Days,[6] a festival focused on local history.[7] She also helped to found the Delaware State Archives. She wrote a history of her husband's family, What Them Befell (1949), about the Ridgelys in colonial Delaware, based on their surviving correspondence.[8]
During World War I, Mabel Lloyd Ridgely chaired the Women's Liberty Loan Committee in Delaware.[9]
Personal life
editMabel Lloyd Fisher married Henry Ridgely, a judge, in 1893. They had a daughter, Philippa E. Ridgely (1894-1983). Mabel was widowed when Henry, who was blind, died in 1940.[10] Mabel Lloyd Ridgely died in 1962, aged 89 years. The research room at the Delaware Public Archives in Camden, Delaware is named for Mabel Lloyd Ridgely.[11]
Mabel's grandson, Henry Ridgely Horsey, was a judge on the Delaware Supreme Court from 1978 to 1994.[12]
Legacy
editRidgely was inducted into the Hall of Fame of Delaware Women. The Delaware Public Archives named a research room in her honor.[13][14]
References
edit- ^ "Women Voters in New League" Evening Journal (August 21, 1920): 9. via Newspapers.com
- ^ "Predicts Victory" News Journal (March 22, 1920): 1. via Newspapers.com
- ^ Janet Lindemuth, "The 19th Amendment in Delaware" Delaware Campus Library Blogs (March 19, 2012).
- ^ "Women's League Elect Officers" Morning News (October 1, 1920): 5. via Newspapers.com
- ^ "Old State House" in Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, eds. SAH Archipedia (University of Virginia Press 2012).
- ^ "A Day in Old Dover" Denton Journal (April 30, 1937): 5. via Newspapers.com
- ^ "Dover Days" Delaware Public Archives Blog (April 30, 2010).
- ^ Mabel Lloyd Ridgely, What Them Befell: The Ridgelys of Delaware & Their Circle in Colonial & Federal Times: Letters 1751-1890 (American Press 1949).
- ^ "Congratulations for Loan Workers" Evening Journal (October 17, 1918): 5. via Newspapers.com
- ^ "Henry Ridgely, Bar Leader, Dies in Dover" Sunday Morning Star (July 14, 1940): 3.
- ^ "How Do I Preserve my Documents, Photographs, and Digital Memories?" Delaware Public Archives.
- ^ "Former Delaware Justice Horsey dies at 91" Delaware State News (March 4, 2016).
- ^ Willis, Meghan. "Biographical Sketch of Mabel Lloyd Fisher Ridgely". Biographical Database of NAWSA Suffragists, 1890-1920. Alexander Street Documents. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
- ^ "Research at The Mabel Lloyd Ridgely Research Room". Delaware Public Archives. State of Delaware. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
