Franziska "Fanny" Johanna Mathilde Bayrhoffer Thelen (November 15, 1856 – April 28, 1939) was member of the Women's Committee of the Panama–California Exposition in 1915 and of the San Diego County Woman's Board of the State and National Defense.

Early life

Franziska Bayrhoffer was born on November 15, 1856, in

Monroe, Wisconsin Monroe, known as "the Swiss Cheese Capital of the USA", is a city in and the county seat of Green County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 10,661 at the 2020 census. The city is bordered by the Town of Monroe to the north and the T ...

, the daughter of

Karl Theodor Bayrhoffer Karl Theodor Otto Christian August Bayrhoffer (14 October 1812, in Marburg – 3 February 1888) was a German American philosopher, free-thinker, and publicist. In 1834 he received his PhD from the University of Marburg, where he later became a pr ...

(1812–1888) and Charlotte Elisabeth Dratz.

Career

She was a member of the Library Board and authorized press correspondent for same. She served as a National City Library board member for a number of years. She was a member of the Board of Directors of the San Diego Community Service. For three years she was the president of San Diego Children's Home. She was a member of the Women's Committee of the

Panama–California Exposition The Panama–California Exposition was an exposition held in San Diego, California, between January 1, 1915, and January 1, 1917. The exposition celebrated the opening of the Panama Canal, and was meant to tout San Diego as the first United Stat ...

in 1915 in San Diego. She was a member of San Diego County Woman's Board of the State and National Defense. She received a Red Cross Medal for services during the war. She visited the Naval Hospital every week and brought gifts to veterans and service-men. She was a member of the

American Association of University Women The American Association of University Women (AAUW), officially founded in 1881, is a non-profit organization that advances equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, and research. The organization has a nationwide network of 170,000 ...

, National City Friday Club and several other organizations.

Personal life

Bayrhoffer moved to California in 1888 and lived at 327 East First St.,

National City, California National City is a city located in the South Bay (San Diego County), South Bay region of the San Diego metropolitan area, in southwestern San Diego County, California, San Diego County, California. The population was 58,582 at the 2010 United ...

. On January 6, 1880, in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

, she married Edmund Thelen (1851–1934) and had three children: Max (1880–1972), Paul (1881–1948), and Rolf (1883–1925). She died on April 28, 1939, and is buried at National City, California.

Legacy

Her son Max Thelen, a San Francisco attorney, donated the Thelen Shelf, a memorial to his parents, at the National City Library.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thelen, Fanny J. Bayrhoffer 1856 births 1939 deaths People from Monroe, Wisconsin American educators