Ella Lillian Wall Van Leer (''née'' Ella Lillian Wall; November 11, 1892 – August 8, 1986) was an American artist and architect,

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

activist, and the first woman to serve in an office of the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

in California. She was known as the "First Lady of Georgia Tech" and remained an advocate for women in engineering throughout her entire life.

Early life and education

Wall was born on November 21, 1892, in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and Emer ...

. Her father, A. Conrad Wall, was a

marine engineer Marine engineering is the engineering of boats, ships, submarines, and any other marine vessel. Here it is also taken to include the engineering of other ocean systems and structures – referred to in certain academic and professional circl ...

. In 1910, Wall graduated from Berkeley High School, after which she enrolled at

UC Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of Californi ...

. While there, she was a member of the

Alpha Xi Delta Alpha Xi Delta (, often referred to as A-''"Zee"''-D ) is a women's fraternity founded on April 17, 1893. Baird's Manual is also available online hereThe Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage at Lombard College in Galesburg, Illinois, United Stat ...

sorority; years later, she would be instrumental in creating the Tau Sigma society at

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

, which would eventually be absorbed into the

sorority. In 1915, after defending her thesis entitled, "The Functions of Rhythm Motives in Decorative Design," Wall received an M.A. in Art and Architecture, subjects she later taught at several high schools in California. Even with a degree in architecture, she could not pursue her passion as a woman and would instead teach. One of her first jobs was working for

Rand McNally Rand McNally is an American technology and publishing company that provides mapping, software and hardware for consumer electronics, commercial transportation and education markets. The company is headquartered in Chicago, with a distribution c ...

as an artist; two of her maps featuring women authors are currently in the

Smithsonian Institute The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

. In July 1918, a year after the United States entered the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Wall enlisted in the Army Nursing Corps at the

Letterman Army Hospital The Letterman Army Hospital, established around 1898 and redesignated as the Letterman Army Medical Center (LAMC) in 1969, was a US Army facility at the Presidio of San Francisco in San Francisco, California, US. It was decommissioned in 1994. ...

on the

Presidio of San Francisco The Presidio of San Francisco (originally, El Presidio Real de San Francisco or The Royal Fortress of Saint Francis) is a park and former U.S. Army post on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula in San Francisco, California, and is part o ...

. She was tasked with various therapies,

medical illustration A medical illustration is a form of biological illustration that helps to record and disseminate medical, anatomical, and related knowledge. History Medical illustrations have been made possibly since the beginning of medicine in any case for h ...

and leading facial paralysis cases, before being mobilized for overseas duty four months later. She returned to the United States in March 1920, and after serving in the U.S.A. General Hospital 3 in

Colonia, New Jersey Colonia is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within Woodbridge Township, in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States.American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

in California as second vice commander of the Berkeley Post No. 7.

First Lady of Georgia Tech

In 1924, Ella Lillian Wall married

Blake Ragsdale Van Leer Blake Ragsdale Van Leer (August 16, 1893 – January 23, 1956) was an engineer and university professor who served as the fifth president of Georgia Institute of Technology from 1944 until his death in 1956. Early life and education Van Leer was ...

and added his surname to her own; from then on, she often dropped the "Lillian" from her lengthy name, typically going by Ella Wall Van Leer. During her marriage, Wall pursued her career as an artist, working as an illustrator for

, and, during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Ella worked at the office of the Quartermaster General as a principal draftsman and technologist of the research and development branch in Washington. She also designed the president's home on campus. After her husband became president of

Georgia Institute of Technology The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

in 1944, Wall became the "backbone of women" at the school and their "unofficial dean", campaigning for women's rights and successfully petitioning for an overturn of the statute barring female students from enrolling at Georgia Tech. While her husband was lobbying the board of regents, Ella worked with the Women's Chamber of Commerce to press the matter. After the first women were admitted to Tech, Ella and the Women's Chamber of Commerce created the first scholarship for female students. Ella would later encourage

to set up an official chapter in 1954, however, they lacked the 25 students necessary for a chapter. The sorority made a special exception and officially founded a chapter at a private ceremony hosted by the Van Leers. This would be the first sorority at an engineering school. Ella's daughter,

Maryly Van Leer Peck Maryly Van Leer Peck (June 29, 1930 – November 3, 2011) was an American academic and college administrator. She founded the Community Career College at the University of Guam (which merged into Guam Community College in November 1977). She ...

, was National Chair of Student Affairs at

Society of Women Engineers The Society of Women Engineers (SWE) is an international not-for-profit educational and service organization. Founded in 1950 and headquartered in the United States, the Society of Women Engineers is a major advocate for women in engineering and ...

at the time and helped GeorgiaTech found a chapter for SWE with a support network. Ella would remain active in the chapter and remained an advocate for women in engineering her entire life. After Blake Van Leer died in 1956, Ella bought a house in the vicinity of

and turned it into "an unofficial women's dormitory". She was also active in the Georgia Tech chapter of the

, while serving as the trustee, President of the Auxiliary and Director of Volunteers at the Egleston Hospital from 1959 until her retirement in 1976. Wall died on August 8, 1986, at the age of 93, in

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Downto ...

. She was buried at the Marietta National Cemetery in

Cobb County, Georgia Cobb County is a county in the U.S. state of Georgia, located in the Atlanta metropolitan area in the north central portion of the state. As of 2020 Census, the population was 766,149. Its county seat and largest city is Marietta. Along with ...

Personal life

Wall and

had three children. Blake Wayne was born in 1926 in Berkeley, Maryly was born four years later in Washington, D.C., and Samuel Wall was born in 1934 in Gainesville, Florida.

would go on to become an engineer and the first female president of

Polk Community College Polk State College, formerly Polk Community College, is a public college in Winter Haven, Florida. It is part of the Florida College System. The college changed its name from Polk Community College in 2009 to reflect its first Bachelor's degre ...

. Since her husband was an orphan, Ella conducted a great deal of

Genealogy Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kins ...

research on his behalf and set the foundation for the Van Leer family archives.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leer, Ella Lillian Wall Van 20th-century American artists 20th-century American architects American educators 1892 births 1986 deaths University of California, Berkeley alumni American women's rights activists

Country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

Women civil rights activists Van Leer family People from Atlanta American women architects

Early life and education

First Lady of Georgia Tech

Personal life

See also

References