Ellen Sullivan Woodward (July 11, 1887 – September 23, 1971) was a federal civil servant and a
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
state legislator. She served as director of work relief programs for women organized as part of the
Roosevelt
Roosevelt may refer to:
*Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), 26th U.S. president
* Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945), 32nd U.S. president
Businesses and organisations
* Roosevelt Hotel (disambiguation)
* Roosevelt & Son, a merchant bank
* Rooseve ...
administration's
New Deal
The New Deal was a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1939. Major federal programs agencies included the Civilian Cons ...
in the 1930s and continued to work in the federal government until her retirement in the 1950s.
Personal life
Ellen Sullivan was born in
Oxford, Mississippi
Oxford is a city and college town in the U.S. state of Mississippi. Oxford lies 75 miles (121 km) south-southeast of Memphis, Tennessee, and is the county seat of Lafayette County. Founded in 1837, it was named after the British city of Oxf ...
, on July 11, 1887 to
William Van Amberg Sullivan, an attorney who later served as a congressman from Mississippi and United States senator, and Belle Murray Sullivan. She was one of five children. Through her mother's side she was a
Daughter of the American Revolution
The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR or NSDAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' struggle for independence.
A non-pr ...
, and through her father's side she was a
United Daughter of the Confederacy.
Her mother died when she was seven.
She was educated in
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
,
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, and
Greenville, South Carolina
Greenville (; locally ) is a city in and the seat of Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 census, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. Greenville is located approximately halfway be ...
and received no formal education after the age of 15. Her father did not want her to attend college.
She made her society debut in 1905 at the Chickasaw Club in
Memphis
Memphis most commonly refers to:
* Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt
* Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city
Memphis may also refer to:
Places United States
* Memphis, Alabama
* Memphis, Florida
* Memphis, Indiana
* Memp ...
.
In 1906, she married Albert Y. Woodward, an attorney and elected judge; the couple had one son, Albert, Jr. in 1909.
Ellen was active in her church, the
Mississippi Federation of Women's Clubs
The Mississippi Federation of Women's Clubs Headquarters houses the Mississippi Federation of Women's Clubs (MS FWC). It was constructed in 1936 by the Works Progress Administration (WPA).
Mississippi Federation of Women's Clubs
The Mississippi F ...
, and the City Beautiful Association in Louisville.
Her husband served in the
Mississippi House of Representatives
The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected fo ...
, and he died when Ellen Sullivan Woodward was 37.
Public life
Mississippi State Government
Ellen Sullivan Woodward's involvement in public life was influenced by her childhood, growing up around her public servant father, and also her involvement in the women's club movement.
When her husband died in 1925, she was elected to serve the remainder of his term becoming the second woman to serve as a representative for the state.
Until the end of her term in 1927, she focused on policies around libraries, education, and charities.
Part of her motivation to run for office was to support her son, but she found that the salary was not sufficient to support the two of them.
Woodward did not run for reelection. She became director of civic development for the Mississippi State Board of Development (1926-1933), running both the women's program and Civil Welfare and Community Development division before serving as executive director for the board from 1929 to 1933.
She was also a delegate to the
1928 Democratic National Convention
The 1928 Democratic National Convention was held at Sam Houston Hall in Houston, Texas, June 26–28, 1928. Keynote speaker was Claude G. Bowers. The convention resulted in the nomination of Governor Alfred E. Smith of New York for pre ...
. Woodward also was the executive secretary of the State Research Commission and was on the State Board of Public Welfare.
Federal Government Work
Woodward was the director of the Women's Division of the
Federal Emergency Relief Administration
The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) was a program established by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1933, building on the Hoover administration's Emergency Relief and Construction Act. It was replaced in 1935 by the Works Progress Adm ...
(FERA) from 1933 to 1935, a division started through pressure from
Eleanor Roosevelt
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...
to support unemployed women.
Part of her work included creating jobs for women through the
Civil Works Administration
The Civil Works Administration (CWA) was a short-lived job creation program established by the New Deal during the Great Depression in the United States to rapidly create mostly manual-labor jobs for millions of unemployed workers. The jobs were ...
(created in 1933). Starting these job programs was hampered both because public opinion didn't often see women as the head of the household and had beliefs about which job types would be appropriate for women to hold.
Some direct relief was given out, but Woodward preferred training women for jobs instead of giving out direct monetary relief.
Woodward then became the director of the Women's and Professional Projects of the
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...
(WPA) from 1935 to 1938. At this time, she was noted as being the second highest powered woman that President Roosevelt appointed.
She was a member of the three-member
Social Security
Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...
Board from 1938 to 1946. Woodward believed that standardizing payments between states would assist in postwar reconstruction.
She served in advisory roles to the
United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) was an international relief agency, largely dominated by the United States but representing 44 nations. Founded in November 1943, it was dissolved in September 1948. it became part o ...
(UNRRA) and the
United Nations Economic and Social Council
The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC; french: links=no, Conseil économique et social des Nations unies, ) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields ...
.
In 1946, Woodward was named director of the Office of Internal Relations of the newly created
Federal Security Agency
The Federal Security Agency (FSA) was an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the United States government established in 1939 pursuant to the Reorganization Act of 1939. For a time, the agency oversaw food a ...
; she retired in December 1953.
Recognition and legacy
The projects she was involved in within the WPA employed at least 500,000 women.
In 1947 the Women's College of the University of North Carolina awarded Woodward an honorary degree in recognition of her dedication to public welfare in Mississippi, social security in the nation, and domestic and international relief efforts.
Woodward's portrait is part of the Mississippi Hall of Fame located in the
Old Capitol Museum
The Old Mississippi State Capitol, also known as Old Capitol Museum or Old State Capitol, served as the Mississippi statehouse from 1839 until 1903. The old state capitol was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1969. In 1986, th ...
to honor her significant contributions to the state of Mississippi.
Retirement
After retiring, Woodward was involved with women's clubs, the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
, and charitable organizations.
She died in Washington, D.C. at the age of 84.
Her son Albert Woodward, Jr. died in 1990. Woodward did not leave much personal paperwork behind. Her papers are now held at the
Mississippi Department of Archives and History.
Further reading
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References
External links
The Living New Deal - Ellen Woodward (1887-1971)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woodward, Ellen Sullivan
People of the New Deal arts projects
Works Progress Administration administrators
1887 births
1971 deaths
Members of the Mississippi House of Representatives