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Mary Elizabeth Pruett Farrington (May 30, 1898 – July 21, 1984), more commonly known as Elizabeth P. Farrington, was publisher of the ''
Honolulu Star-Bulletin
The ''Honolulu Star-Bulletin'' was a daily newspaper based in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. At the time publication ceased on June 6, 2010, it was the second largest daily newspaper in the state of Hawaii (after the ''Honolulu Advertiser''). ...
'' and an American politician who served as
delegate
Delegate or delegates may refer to:
* Delegate, New South Wales, a town in Australia
* Delegate (CLI), a computer programming technique
* Delegate (American politics), a representative in any of various political organizations
* Delegate (Unit ...
to the
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...
for the
Territory of Hawai'i. She was the wife to
Joseph Rider Farrington, whom she had succeeded in
Washington, DC
)
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. Her father-in-law was the
Territorial Governor of Hawai'i
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, insigniacaption = Gubernatorial logo
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, flagborder = yes
, flagcaption = Standard of the Governor
, image ...
Wallace Rider Farrington
Wallace Rider Farrington (May 3, 1871 – October 6, 1933) was an American journalist who served as the sixth Governor of Hawaii, Territorial Governor of Hawaii, serving from 1921 to 1929. Prior to his term, he was editor of ''The Honolulu A ...
.
Early life
Farrington was born in
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
to American parents on May 30, 1898. She attended Tokyo Foreign School before moving back to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. She attended grammar schools in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
,
El Paso, Texas
El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...
and
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. After graduating from
Hollywood High School
Hollywood High School is a four-year public secondary school in the Los Angeles Unified School District, located at the intersection of North Highland Avenue and West Sunset Boulevard in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California.
Histo ...
, Farrington obtained a degree from
Ward-Belmont Junior College of Nashville in 1916. She went on to the
University of Wisconsin–Madison
A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...
, where she met her husband. She graduated from Wisconsin in 1918. Newly married, she settled in
Honolulu
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...
. She became a
newspaper
A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.
Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports a ...
correspondent for the ''Honolulu Star-Bulletin'' through 1957.
Political career
Farrington was elected President of the
League of Republican Women
The National Federation of Republican Women (NFRW) is the women's wing of the Republican Party in the United States.
Overview
Founded in 1938 by Joyce Porter Arneill and Marion Martin, it is a grassroots political organization with more than 1, ...
, an office she served in
Washington, D.C.
)
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, 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, ...
from 1946 to 1948. She was then elected to the National Federation of Women's Republican Clubs and served as its president from 1949 to 1953. In 1952, Farrington was a delegate for the Territory of Hawai'i to the
Republican National Convention
The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...
that nominated
Dwight Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
to become
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
.
Farrington was elected to the United States Congress in a special election to fill a vacancy left by her husband's unexpected death. She was subsequently re-elected to a term in her own right, and served from July 31, 1954 to January 3, 1957. In 1956, she lost her bid for re-election to a third term in Congress and returned to her family's newspaper business in Honolulu.
She was the first woman elected to represent Hawaii in any capacity (territory or state) in the U.S. Congress.
Newspaper career
Farrington succeeded her husband's office as publisher, president and director of ''Honolulu Star-Bulletin''. She served in those capacities from 1946 to 1961.
She concurrently served as director and chairman of the Honolulu Lithograph Company, Limited and president of the Hawaiian Broadcasting System, Limited. She made a brief return to politics when
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
appointed her to be the Director of the Office of Territories of the
United States Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the mana ...
. After completing her term she retired to Honolulu where she died on July 21, 1984.
Her ashes were interred at O'ahu Cemetery.
See also
*
Women in the United States House of Representatives
Women have served in the United States House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber, since the 1916 election of Republican Jeannette Rankin from Montana, the first woman in Con ...
References
External links
Congressional papers archival collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Farrington, Elizabeth P.
1898 births
1984 deaths
American newspaper publishers (people)
Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from the Territory of Hawaii
Female members of the United States House of Representatives
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Hawaii
American Disciples of Christ
Hawaii Republicans
University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni
Ward–Belmont College alumni
20th-century American politicians
Burials at Oahu Cemetery
Journalists from Texas
20th-century American women politicians
Washington, D.C., Republicans
20th-century American journalists