- Born:
- July 10, 1884, Carbondale, Ill., U.S.
- Died:
- Aug. 6, 1947, Carbondale (aged 63)
Harriet Wiseman Elliott
-
Who was Harriet Wiseman Elliott?
Harriet Wiseman Elliott (1884â1947) was an American educator and public official. She taught at the State Normal and Industrial College of North Carolina, later the Womenâs College of the University of North Carolina, becoming a professor of history and political science in 1921 and dean of women in 1935.
During World War I, Elliott led the education department of the North Carolina division of the Womanâs Committee of the Council of National Defense, despite her earlier involvement with peace groups. A New Deal advocate, she served on the advisory committee of the North Carolina Emergency Relief Administration in 1933â35. In 1940, President Roosevelt appointed her as the consumer representative to the National Defense Advisory Commission, making her the only woman on the commission.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What kind of work did Harriet Wiseman Elliott do?
Harriet Wiseman Elliott was an American educator and public official. She taught at the State Normal and Industrial College of North Carolina, later becoming a professor of history and political science in 1921.
Elliott took on governmental advisory roles during Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency. During World War I, she headed the education department of the North Carolina division of the Womanâs Committee of the Council of National Defense. In 1940, Roosevelt named her the consumer representative on the National Defense Advisory Commission. In 1941, she became associate administrator of the Office of Price Administration and Civilian Supply (OPA) and chief of its consumer division.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
In which field did Harriet Wiseman Elliott work as an educator?
Harriet Wiseman Elliott was an educator in history and political science. After earning a master's degree from Columbia University, she joined the faculty of the State Normal and Industrial College of North Carolina, later known as the North Carolina College for Women. In 1921, she became a professor of history and political science there and remained associated with the institution for the rest of her life.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What role did Harriet Wiseman Elliott play in the U.S. government?
Harriet Wiseman Elliott was an American educator and public official who served in advisory roles during Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency.
During World War I, she headed the education department of the North Carolina division of the Womanâs Committee of the Council of National Defense. Elliott was named the consumer representative to the National Defense Advisory Commission in 1940, becoming the only woman among the seven members. In 1941, she became associate administrator of the Office of Price Administration and Civilian Supply (OPA) and chief of its consumer division. Later, in 1942, she organized a womenâs division in the Treasury Department, enlisting over a million women to sell war bonds and stamps.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How did Harriet Wiseman Elliott contribute during World War II?
Harriet Wiseman Elliott contributed to the World War II effort through various government advisory roles. In 1940, President Roosevelt appointed her as the consumer representative to the National Defense Advisory Commission, making her the only woman on the commission. In 1941, she became associate administrator of the Office of Price Administration and Civilian Supply (OPA), also serving as chief of its consumer division. After resigning due to the lack of mandatory price controls, she joined an advisory committee of the OPA's Consumer Division. In 1942, she organized a womenâs division in the Treasury Department, enlisting over a million women to sell war bonds and stamps over three years.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Why is Harriet Wiseman Elliott important for American history?
Harriet Wiseman Elliott (1884â1947) was an American educator and public official who held governmental advisory roles during Franklin D. Rooseveltâs presidency.
As an educator, Elliott became a professor of history and political science at the State Normal and Industrial College of North Carolina in 1921 and the dean of women in 1935.
During World War I, she headed the education department of the North Carolina division of the Womanâs Committee of the Council of National Defense. In 1940, Roosevelt named Elliot the consumer representative to the National Defense Advisory Commission, making her the only woman on the commission. In 1942, she organized a womenâs division in the Treasury Department that enlisted over a million women to sell war bonds and stamps.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Harriet Wiseman Elliott (born July 10, 1884, Carbondale, Ill., U.S.âdied Aug. 6, 1947, Carbondale) was an American educator and public official, a highly effective teacher and organizer who held a number of governmental advisory roles during the administrations of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Elliott attended the academy of Park College in Parkville, Missouri, and then taught school for a few years before entering Hanover (Indiana) College, from which she graduated in 1910. After a brief period as a high-school principal and another spent in travel, she undertook graduate studies, first in history and later in political science, at Columbia University, New York City, from which she received a masterâs degree in 1913. She then joined the faculty of the State Normal and Industrial College of North Carolina (from 1918 the North Carolina College for Women) in Greensboro, with which she remained associated for the rest of her life, becoming professor of history and political science in 1921. She played an active role in the unsuccessful campaign for woman suffrage in North Carolina in 1915.
During World War I, despite her earlier activity on behalf of various peace groups, Elliott headed the education department of the North Carolina division of the Womanâs Committee of the Council of National Defense. In 1925 she took part in Carrie Chapman Cattâs Conference on the Cause and Cure of War. An ardent New Dealer, she served on the advisory committee of the North Carolina Emergency Relief Administration in 1933â35. In the latter year she was named dean of women of her college, which three years earlier had become the Womenâs College of the University of North Carolina (now the University of North Carolina at Greensboro). She also took a leave of absence in 1935 to direct a grass-roots educational program in government (and specifically New Deal) agencies that was instituted by the Womenâs Division of the Democratic National Committee.
For six months she organized study groups and lectured around the country to great effect. In 1940 she was a member of the Washington Conference on Unemployment Among Young Women called by Eleanor Roosevelt, whose friend she soon became. At that time President Roosevelt named Elliot the consumer representative among the seven members of the National Defense Advisory Commission; she was the only woman among the seven. In 1941 she was appointed associate administrator of the Office of Price Administration and Civilian Supply (OPA) and chief of its consumer division. After several months of ceaseless labour, principally in public education on voluntary price controls, she resigned in December when the mandatory controls she then believed were necessary were not instituted. She was nonetheless appointed to an advisory committee of the Consumer Division of the OPA shortly thereafter. In 1942 she was named to organize and head a womenâs division in the Treasury Department. Over the next three years her division enlisted more than a million women to sell war bonds and stamps.