Finding aid for the Florence Ellinwood Allen Photographs

Biography of Florence Ellinwood Allen

Florence Ellinwood Allen (1884-1966) was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on March 23, 1884, the daughter of Clarence Emir and Corinne (Tuckerman) Allen. She attended Salt Lake Academy and New Lyme Institute, Ashtabula County, Ohio. In 1904 she received her A.B degree with honors from Western Reserve University. Undecided as to her career, she spent the following two years with her mother in Europe, studying music at the University of Berlin and employed as a music correspondent for the German Times and the Musical Courier. An accomplished pianist, Miss Allen considered pursuing a professional concert career. However, a pinched nerve in her arm forced her to turn her thoughts in other directions. She returned to Cleveland, Ohio, where she taught at the Laurel School, lectured to community groups, and worked as a music critic for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. In 1908, she received her A.M. from Western Reserve University in Political Science and Constitutional Law. Deciding to study law, she attended first the University of Chicago and then New York University Law School from which she graduated with honors in 1913. Admitted to the Ohio Bar in 1914, Allen entered private practice in Cleveland until 1919, when she was appointed Assistant County Prosecutor for Cuyahoga County - the first woman in Ohio to hold such an office.

When it became evident that the women's suffrage amendment would pass in 1920, her friends urged her to run for the position of judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Cuyahoga County. She did so and led a field of ten candidates, becoming the first woman to sit on a court of general jurisdiction, legal and equitable, civil and criminal. Thus her long and distinguished career of judicial "firsts' began. In 1922, she was elected to the Ohio Supreme Court, the first woman to sit on a court of last resort - and was reelected in 1928 by a 350,000 vote majority. In 1934, President Franklin D. Roosevelt shattered all precedents and appointed her to the United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, which handled appellate cases from all federal courts in Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Again, she was the first woman to hold a post in such a court - just one step below the United States Supreme Court. In her capacity as Circuit Court judge, she presided over a variety of cases ranging from tax law to patent law, one of the more famous being the case which upheld the right of the United States government to create and operate the Tennessee Valley Authority. Judge Allen became Chief Judge in 1959, and in October of that year, at the age of 75, resigned her active duties and became a senior judge.

In addition to her demanding judicial career, Judge Allen was active in national and international affairs. From 1912-1920, she worked extensively with Harriet Taylor Upton, Carrie Chapman Catt, Maud Wood Park, and other leaders for the cause of women's suffrage. Having lost her two brothers in or because of injuries sustained in World War I, she was especially concerned with peace and was actively involved in the movement for the Outlawry of War, which helped to lay the basis for the Kellogg-Briand Pact. Her concern for international problems led her to seek the Democratic nomination for the Senate in 1926, which she lost to Atlee Pomerene. Her last attempt at a legislative seat was in 1932 when she was defeated by Chester C. Bolton for Congress in Ohio's 22nd District. Later she became involved in the United Nations' Human Rights Commission's documents and in the question of the legal rights to Outer Space.

Judge Allen's publications include Patris (1908, a book of poems; This Constitution of Ours (1940); The Treaty as an Instrument of Legislation (1952); and an autobiography entitled To Do Justly (1965). She died on September 12, 1966 in Cleveland.

click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for Florence Ellinwood Allen

Scope and Content

The Florence Ellinwood Allen Photographs, 1886-1963, consist of individual portraits of Florence E. Allen; group portraits including Florence E. Allen; views taken during her various campaigns; views taken during various trips; and views relating to women's suffrage. Included is a portrait of Carrie Chapman and one of Ohio Supreme Court Justices, ca. 1930. The collection includes approximately 150 black and white photographs that measure 14.5 x 9 inches and smaller.

This collection will be useful to researchers studying the history of women, the law, and politics in Cleveland, Ohio. It will also be useful to researchers studying the women's suffrage movement in the United States.

Statement of Arrangement

Restrictions on Access

None.

The researcher should also consult MS 3287 Florence Ellinwood Allen Papers.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___ ] PG 200 Florence Ellinwood Allen Photographs, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio

Acquisition Information

These photographs were removed from MS 3287 Florence Ellinwood Allen Papers. Gift of the estate of Judge Florence E. Allen in 1967 and 1970.

Detailed Description of The Collection