COLORING THE PAST: Twenty Riley County Women Who Made History COLORING THE PAST: Twenty Riley County Women Who Made History Amanda Arnold (1837-1923) Mamie Alexander Boyd (1876 -1973) Minnie Howell Champe (1878 -1948) Joan McInroy Finney (1925-2001) Grace Yachueng Hwang (1956 -2016) Matie Toothaker Kimball (1871-1942) Nellie Sawyer Kedzie Jones (1858 -1956) Cora Ulrich Kimble (1862-1912) Dr. Belle Little (1871-1952) Clementine Paddleford (1898 -1967) Caroline Peine (1925-2004) Elfreda Johnson Peterson (1908 -1998) Lucy Cottrell Pottorf (1878 -1949) Ola “Millie” Rexroat McDonald (1917-2017) Rosalys “Rosie” McCrerey Rieger (1920-2007) Susanna Madora “Dora” Kinsey Salter (1860 -1961) Harriet Elenora “Elenora” Strong (1835 -1917) Opal “Mike” Mitchell Tremmel (1924 -1999) Geraldine “Gerry” Baker Walton (1937-2015) Annie Pillsbury Young (1858 -1942) This coloring book features drawings and information about twenty women, each with a connection to Riley County, Kansas, who made a notable contribution to our history. The twenty women selected for the coloring book are among many Riley County connected women whose lives have made a significant impact to history. The coloring book was published by the Riley County Genealogical Society and the Riley County Historical Society in 2020 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which prohibits the states and the federal government from denying the right to vote to citizens of the United States on the basis of sex. For additional information about the women featured in Coloring the Past: Twenty Riley County Women Who Made History, and more Riley County history, please visit the web site: www.rileycountyks.gov/museum. For additional Riley County family history visit www.rileycgs.com. We welcome corrections and additional information. Library of Congress Control Number: 2020949657 Amanda Arnold (1837-1923) After arriving in Riley County on the Hartford Steamboat in 1855, Amanda Arnold attended Bluemont Central College (today Kansas State University) and began work as one of Manhattan’s earliest teachers. In 1983, U.S.D. #383 named Amanda Arnold School in her honor. The Central School archway, located in the Riley County Courthouse Plaza, is also dedicated in her honor. Mamie Alexander Boyd (1876 -1973) Mamie’s family moved to Manhattan so their children could attend Kansas State, where Mamie graduated in 1902. She became the first woman President of the K-State Alumni Association. Mamie married into a newspaper family from Phillipsburg, Kansas, and went on to earn many honors as a journalist. She served as a charter member of the National Federation of Press Women, was named Kansan of the Year in 1959, and was known for her promotion of the state. Minnie Howell Champe (1878 -1948) Minnie Howell Champe was the first African-American woman to graduate from Kansas State in 1901. While in college, she was elected to the Ionian Literary Society, which focused on literature, music, and art. After her graduation she taught school in Kansas City, Topeka, and Virginia before returning to Manhattan to teach at the Douglass School. She was on the Board of the Douglass Center USO during World War II, and served as Director of the Center in 1946. She was a member of the League of Women Voters. Joan McInroy Finney (1925-2001) Joan McInroy Finney became the first woman Governor of Kansas in 1991. Before becoming Governor, she served as the first woman Treasurer of Kansas 1975 – 1991, making her the longest serving Kansas State Treasurer. Joan moved to Manhattan to live with her sister and graduated from Manhattan High School in 1942. She was an accomplished musician, playing the harp. Grace Yachueng Hwang (1956 -2016) Born in Taiwan, Grace Yachueng Hwang came to Manhattan with her family when her father took a position as a professor at Kansas State. Grace graduated from Manhattan High School in 1974 and from Kansas State in 1978. She then studied in Sweden as a Fullbright scholar. While at Kansas State, she was the first woman inducted into the Blue Key Honor Society. She received a law degree from Georgetown University and worked as an attorney, professor, and leadership advocate. Grace also actively supported community arts programs. Matie Toothaker Kimball (1871-1942) Matie Toothaker Kimball campaigned for the women’s right to vote in Kansas and across the nation. After women gained the vote in federal elections in 1920, she served as the first Kansas presidential elector as a Republican. Matie was the district president of the Kansas Equal Suffrage Association, first president and founder of the Kansas Council of Women, and a founding member and officer of the Kansas League of Women Voters. She also championed the naming of the Cottonwood as the Kansas State tree. Nellie Sawyer Kedzie Jones (1858 -1956) Nellie Sawyer Kedzie Jones became the first woman full professor at Kansas State in 1887. She went on to teach Domestic Science in a number of universities, becoming the first woman to receive the honor of being named “professor emeritus” at the University of Wisconsin. Kansas State named Kedzie Hall in her honor. It was the first Kansas State building named for a woman. In 1925, Kansas State awarded Nellie Sawyer Kedzie Jones an honorary doctorate. Cora Ulrich Kimble (1862-1912) Cora Ulrich Kimball was called the “Mother of Arbor Day” in Manhattan for her promotion of trees. She served as Manhattan Sunset Cemetery sexton and worked to beautify the cemetery with trees. Her family donated land on which the Sunset Cemetery sexton’s house and the landmark water tower are built, adjacent to Sunset Cemetery. Dr. Belle Little (1871-1952) Dr. Belle Little followed in her father’s footsteps to become a medical doctor. She graduated from Kansas State with two degrees and attended the Women’s Medical College of Philadelphia, graduating in 1906. Returning to Manhattan she practiced medicine with her father and together in 1915, they opened one of Riley County’s early hospitals, the Charlotte Swift Hospital. When she retired in 1951 she had helped bring over 1,200 babies into the world. Clementine Paddleford (1898 -1967) Clementine Paddleford used her love of food and writing to establish an international audience as a foods writer for New York newspapers and magazines. The best known foods writer of her era, she was a champion of American foods and recipes. She traveled in her own plane across the country to interview home and professional cooks. Born in Riley County, she graduated from Kansas State in 1921 and also studied at the New York University School of Journalism. Caroline Peine (1925-2004) Caroline Peine was born in Manhattan, Kansas and graduated from Manhattan High School in 1943. She received a degree from Carelton College and a Master’s degree from Kansas State. She taught at Kansas State and retired as Assistant Dean of Student Life. She was an advocate of women’s rights and served as Director of Kansas State’s Women’s Resource Center. A life-long philanthropist, Caroline donated to many Kansas State and community causes. She served on many local Boards, including the Board of Directors of the Riley County Historical Society. At her death, in 2004, she established the Manhattan Fund - Caroline F. Peine Charitable Foundation, which continues to fund Manhattan area projects. Elfreda Johnson Peterson (1908 -1998) An artist well known for her portrait paintings, Elfreda Johnson was born Manhattan and attended Kansas State, but received her degree at the University of Kansas. She also studied at the Arts Student League in New York, where she met her husband Gardner Peterson. After her husband died in France during World War II, Elfreda returned to Manhattan to care for her parents and work as an artist. Lucy Cottrell Pottorf (1878 -1949) Lucy Cottrell was born in Riley County. She, and all seven of her siblings, graduated from Kansas State. Though she and her husband, Andrew Pottorf, had no children of their own, they were deeply involved in 4-H and other children’s activities. Lucy was a founder of Riley County’s Magic 4-H Club. She received the 4-H Diamond Clover Award in 1946 and was the first 4-H Club leader in Kansas to receive the Emerald Clover Award in 1949. She served on Riley Rural High School and the Magic School Boards and is credited with being the catalyst in uncovering Kansas school bond fraud in 1933. Ola “Millie” Rexroat McDonald (1917-2017) Ola “Millie” Rexroat McDonald was born at Ogden, Kansas, but grew up on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, as her mother was a member of the Oglala Lakota nation. In World War II she joined the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) and began flying military aircraft in training exercises. She was the first Native American to serve in the WASPs. Later she transferred to the Air Force Reserves and began work as an air traffic controller. The airfield operations building at Ellsworth Air Force Base is named in honor of Capt. Millie Rexroat. Rosalys “Rosie” McCrerey Rieger (1920-2007) Rosalys “Rosie” McCrerey Rieger was the first woman Riley County Commissioner, elected in 1979. She and Marjorie Morse served on the only woman majority Riley County Commission. She worked as a social worker and taught piano, privately and at Kansas State, for many years. She held degrees in music and political science from the University of Kansas and Kansas State and attended Washburn Law School. Rosalys was a long-time advocate of the United Nations and was the Chair of the Kansas United Nations Day in 1992. Susanna Madora “Dora” Kinsey Salter (1860 -1961) Susanna Madora “Dora” Kinsey Salter was the first woman elected mayor in the United States in 1887.