“Until I Have Won” Vestiges of Coverture and the Invisibility of Women in the Twentieth Century: A Biography of Jeannette Ridlon Piccard A dissertation presented to the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy Sheryl K. Hill June 2009 © 2009 Sheryl K. Hill. All Rights Reserved. 2 This dissertation titled “Until I Have Won” Vestiges of Coverture and the Invisibility of Women in the Twentieth Century: A Biography of Jeannette Ridlon Piccard by SHERYL K. HILL has been approved for the Department of History and the College of Arts and Sciences by Katherine K. Jellison Professor of History Benjamin M. Ogles Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 3 ABSTRACT HILL, SHERYL K. Ph.D., June 2009, History “Until I Have Won” Vestiges of Coverture and the Invisibility of Women in the Twentieth Century: A Biography of Jeannette Ridlon Piccard (409 pp.) Director of Dissertation: Katherine K. Jellison For women, the passage of secular and ecclesiastical laws to ban overt forms of discrimination and open corporate and cultural opportunities is a necessary step toward the full inclusion in society. However, even as American women’s legal standing improved throughout the 20th century, they encountered subtle forms of discrimination: vestiges of 19th century coverture. Jeannette Ridlon Piccard’s life (1895-1981) uniquely illustrates the struggles during the 20th century for women in the spheres of citizenship, science and religion, particularly the Anglican tradition. Piccard was not “protected” by her husband’s citizenship; she was not “protected” from the rigors of science; nor was she “protected” from the rigors of religion. Rather the vestiges of coverture protected men’s domains from her inclusion. Piccard did not accept the exclusionary practices, challenging and overcoming barriers to women in space exploration and women as Episcopal priests. Sources employed include manuscript collections; interviews with family members; letters and memoirs; religious and science periodicals; congressional documents and court cases. Approved: _____________________________________________________________ Katherine K. Jellison Professor of History 4 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The act of writing is a solitary endeavor; however, one cannot write without the help and support of many. And so with gratitude I give thanks to Jeannette’s family members including her sons John, Paul, and Donald, and her grandchildren Richard, Kathryn, Jane and Elizabeth, who willingly shared their memories and stories. Karen Klinkenberg, and her staff at the University of Minnesota Archives, the staff at the Minnesota Historical Society, and especially to the patient and pleasant folks at the Library of Congress Manuscript Division who answered innumerable requests for the prodigious Piccard papers. Thank you to Darla Perry and Suzanne Mingus at Ohio University’s Alden Library for always finding that obscure article. I owe a special debt of gratitude to Angela McCutcheon and Rebecca Lachman at Ohio University’s Thesis and Dissertation Department for bailing me out of many technological difficulties. And a special thanks to Sherry Gillogly and Misty Milstead for their help and patience as I made my way through the graduate school process. I appreciate Katherine Jellison for her steady support and guidance along this path and convincing me along the way that I was doing well. And I thank Sholeh Quinn, Chester Pach and Julie White for their empowering comments and suggestions about the final project. I thank Alonzo Hamby, David Curp, Mariana Dantas and Steve Miner for always giving me a word of encouragement whenever our paths crossed. To good friends Kimberly Little, Scott Beekman and Peggy Pruitt: thanks for your support and words of encouragement. It would have been a much more difficult journey without you. 5 To my family: Bruce Benedict, Paul Benedict, Joel and Jamie Benedict, Jacqie, Dan, Julia, and Andrew Weber, Nick and Lena Weber, Doris Wince, Mary and Stan Bender, Kristen Bender and Jessica Berkebile, and Dave and Patricia Palmer: thank you for your encouragement and support. Three women are very important and special to me. To my mother Barbara Hill: thank you for your love and encouragement throughout life. I hope I make you proud. To my sister Rhonda Hill Benedict: I love you and admire you. When I was lost and could not find the answer, the ship’s crystal guided me. Thank you. And to Barb Palmer, my partner and model researcher: it has been a long journey, but I hope the sacrifices are worth it. Thank you for being you. My dad, David Hill, did not live long enough to witness my professional career, but he has been with me every step of the way. I believe he is smiling. 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 3 Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... 4 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 7 Chapter One: A Father Cannot Be Female ....................................................................... 18 Chapter Two: The Capriciousness of Citizenship ............................................................ 48 Chapter Three: Locked Doors and High Ceilings ............................................................. 91 Chapter Four: Unlocking Doors and Lowering Ceilings ................................................ 146 Chapter Five: Twin Cities’ Transitions........................................................................... 200 Chapter Six: A Father Cannot Be Female: Redux .......................................................... 253 Chapter Seven: Philadelphia Freedom: Fallout and Fulfillment..................................... 311 Conclusion: Changing Hearts and Minds ....................................................................... 376 Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 397 7 INTRODUCTION On a cold January day in Chicago, Illinois, a mother gave birth at home to her seventh and eighth babies. The identical twins, daughters of a renowned orthopedic surgeon and his Victorian wife, were named Jeannette and Beatrice, and on that day they became members of the large and moderately prosperous John Ridlon family. What could not be known on that day in 1895 was both the ordinary and extraordinary life Janey, as she was known to her family and friends, would live. Although tragedy struck early with the death of her twin sister, Jeannette was raised in a female world of love and ritual. She thoroughly enjoyed gossiping and shopping with her mother Emily in downtown Chicago, and attending theatrical performances and musical concerts as often as possible. After her family’s move to nearby Evanston, Jeannette attended an all-girls’ high-school where she excelled at sports, attended dances and developed crushes on several of her female teachers. Jeannette was never an outstanding academic scholar; however, graduation from Miss Haire’s school qualified girls for admittance into any college, save one. Jeannette had not contemplated furthering her education because her mother and older sisters assumed she would be a debutante and marry a wealthy man; however, when her friends at school discussed their plans for college, Jeannette’s world expanded. With her father’s support and a tenacious spirit that served her well throughout her life, Jeannette took upon the personal challenge of scoring high enough on the entrance exams to attend the one college her high school graduation did not assure, Bryn Mawr, one of the “Seven Sisters” of women’s colleges. 8 Barely passing the rigorous exams, Jeannette embraced her four years at Bryn Mawr. With the support of the college president, M. Carey Thomas, Jeannette gained personal confidence and validation for her dreams and ambitions, including becoming an Episcopal priest. Rather than ridicule, Thomas encouraged Jeannette to study hard and hold fast to her inner desires. In June 1918, unable to fulfill her mother’s requirement of a year in Europe after graduation, Jeannette returned home and enrolled at the University of Chicago to pursue a master’s degree in Chemistry. There she met and fell in love with a visiting professor, Jean Felix Piccard, a Swiss. When they became husband and wife the following June, Jeannette was stripped of her native citizenship. Without the legal protection of independent citizenship, Jeannette was one of countless American women who, between the years 1908 and 1922, lost their American citizenship with the simple act of marrying a foreigner. Jeannette spent the first seven years of married life in Switzerland during which time she gave birth to her three sons. Again surrounded by loving women, Jeannette learned the necessary skills for being a good wife and mother from Jean’s relatives; however, the post-war years were difficult in Europe, and both Jeannette and Jean longed to return to America. Like so many women during the 1930s, Jeannette struggled with difficult economic conditions, including the loss of a husband’s steady employment. But unlike any other woman, Jeannette had the opportunity, and as she would always tell people, the necessity, to become a licensed air balloon pilot. Jeannette’s brother-in-law Auguste