Vesta C. Gates Muehleisen (August 7, 1889 - October 19, 1973) was an American educator and founder of the San Diego State College Alumni Association.

Early life

Vesta C. Gates was born on August 7, 1889, in

Tabor, Iowa Tabor is a city in Fremont County and extends northward into Mills County in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 928 at the time of the 2020 census. Geography Tabor is located at (40.896605, -95.672368). According to the United States ...

, the daughter of Henry E. Gates and Nettie Fox. She was graduated in 1907 with an A.B. from San Diego Normal School.

Career

Vesta C. Muehleisen was an elementary school teacher, a member of the San Diego City Board of Education and taught for several years in California Schools. She held several executive offices in the National Congress of the Parent-Teacher Association. She taught a Summer Session Course on the P.T. movement in the San Diego State College, the first course ever given in this state. She was a member of the 9th District California Congress PTA. She was president of the

Scottish Rite The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry (the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction in the United States often omits the ''and'', while the English Constitution in the United Kingdom omits the ''Scottish''), commonly known as simply the Sco ...

Woman's Club. In 1931 she founded the San Diego State College Alumni Association and became its first president. She helped found the

Alpha Phi Delta Alpha Phi Delta (), commonly referred to as APD, is a Greek social fraternity that evolved from an exclusive Italian society, initially known as ''Il Circolo Italiano'' ("The Italian circle"), established at Syracuse University in 1914. Founding ...

, a local sorority on campus. Edward L. Hardy, the second president of the San Diego State Teachers College, named her on the citizens advisory council formed to assist in identifying a suitable site where to move the institution. Muehleisen was highly criticized for having recommended moving the Teachers College to a remote undeveloped site east of San Diego. She was Director of Education for the 1935-1936

California Pacific International Exposition The California Pacific International Exposition was an exposition held in San Diego, California during May 29, 1935–November 11, 1935 and February 12, 1936–September 9, 1936. The exposition was held in Balboa Park, San Diego's large c ...

in San Diego. She served with the same role for the 1939–1940

Golden Gate International Exposition The Golden Gate International Exposition (GGIE) (1939 and 1940), held at San Francisco's Treasure Island, was a World's Fair celebrating, among other things, the city's two newly built bridges. The San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge opened in 1936 ...

in San Francisco. For eight years she was executive secretary of the San Diego Healing Society. She was a member of the

Daughters of the Nile Shriners International, formally known as the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (AAONMS), is an American Masonic society established in 1870 and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida. Shriners International describes itself ...

, San Diego Athletic Club, Community Welfare Council, Morning Choral Club,

Order of the Eastern Star The Order of the Eastern Star is a Freemasonry, Masonic List of fraternal auxiliaries and side degrees, appendant Masonic bodies, body open to both men and women. It was established in by lawyer and educator Rob Morris (Freemason), Rob Morris, ...

National Education Association The National Education Association (NEA) is the largest labor union in the United States. It represents public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college stude ...

Personal life

Vesta C. Muehleisen moved to California in 1891 and lived at 1501 Vine St.,

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

. In 1908 she married Adolph Muehleisen and had two children: Dolf Edward (a champion tennis player, see

NCAA Division I Men's Tennis Championship The NCAA Division I Men's Tennis Championship is an annual men's college tennis national collegiate championship sponsored by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for teams in Division I. The tournament crowns a team, individual ...

and

NCAA Men's Tennis Championship The NCAA Men's Tennis Championships are annual tournaments held in the spring to crown team, singles, and doubles champions in American college tennis. The first intercollegiate championship was held in 1883, 23 years before the founding of the NCA ...

and a decorated general in charge of the North American Air Defense Command) and Gene Sylvester (a captain in both the U.S. Naval Reserve and the San Diego Police Department). Her nephew, Bud Muehleisen, is credited with popularizing the racquetball and is the first person to be inducted into the Racquetball Hall of Fame. She died on October 19, 1973, in San Diego, California.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muehleisen, Vesta C. 1889 births 1973 deaths 20th-century American educators People from San Diego People from Tabor, Iowa