Ella Josephine Spooner

Ella Josephine Spooner
Spooner, from the 1913 yearbook of Simmons College
BornSeptember 3, 1875
Hudson, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedJune 10, 1973 (age 97)
East Orange, New Jersey, U.S.
OccupationsCollege professor, home economist

Ella Josephine Spooner (September 3, 1875 – June 10, 1973) was an American educator based in Boston. She taught needlework at Perkins School for the Blind, and was a professor of clothing in the home economics department at Simmons College from 1906 to 1924.

Early life and education

Spooner was born in Hudson, Massachusetts, the daughter of John Louis Spooner and Marilla Evora Harlow Spooner.[1] She graduated from Framingham Normal School and was a member of the first graduating class from Simmons College.[2][3]

Career

Spooner taught at Perkins School for the Blind from 1896 to 1904.[4] She was Helen Keller's proctor at Radcliffe College.[5] She taught needle arts and clothing classes in the home economics department of Simmons College from 1906 to 1924.[6][7] She was a panelist at the fourth annual meeting of the American Home Economics Association in 1911.[8]

After Simmons, Spooner worked for a bias tape manufacturer[9][10] and for Union Laundry in New York.[11] She spoke to community groups about her work,[12][13][14] and judged sewing competitions.[15] She spoke at a conference at Pratt Institute in 1933.[11]

Publications

  • Hapgood's School Needlework (1922, revised original work by Olive C. Hapgood)[16]

Personal life

Later in life Spooner and her brother Edwin owned an antique store together in Maine.[1][17] Edwin died in 1950.[18] Spooner moved to New Jersey in 1927, and died in 1973, at the age of 97, in East Orange, New Jersey.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Obituary for Ella J. Spooner". Portland Press Herald. 1973-07-18. p. 3. Retrieved 2026-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ Simmons College, Microcosm (1924 yearbook): 18.
  3. ↑ "Simmons College; First Commencement of the Technical College for Women Who Work". The Boston Cooking School Magazine of Culinary Science and Domestic Economics. 11 (2): 78–79. August–September 1906 – via Internet Archive.
  4. ↑ Perkins School for the Blind (1904). Address of the Trustees.
  5. ↑ Harrington, Cleo M. "On Helen Keller: Seeing the Inner Light". The Harvard Crimson. Retrieved 2026-06-22.
  6. ↑ Simmons College (1908). Annual Reports, President and Treasurer. The College. p. 4.
  7. ↑ Women's Educational and Industrial Union (Boston, Mass.) (1912). Report. p. 23.
  8. ↑ "American Home Economics Association Fourth Annual Meeting". Journal of Home Economics. 3 (5): 496. December 1911.
  9. ↑ "Expert Judging Achievement Articles". The Springfield Daily Republican. 1926-09-26. p. 17. Retrieved 2026-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Is to Address Fashion Show". Elmira Star-Gazette. 1928-02-21. p. 7. Retrieved 2026-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. 1 2 "Girls Demand New Clothing; Rest of Family May Go Easy on Wardrobe, but Girls Need New Dresses". Times Union. 1933-04-16. p. 11. Retrieved 2026-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "Textile Adulterations Difficult to Detect; Miss Ella J. Spooner Tells Falls Club How to Test". Springfield Evening Union. 1912-11-22. p. 11. Retrieved 2026-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "Miss Ella J. Spooner is Speaker at Annual Simmons Club Dinner". Portland Press Herald. 1931-10-30. p. 4. Retrieved 2026-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "Ella J. Spooner of New York Will Address County Women". Springfield Evening Union. 1927-10-26. p. 14. Retrieved 2026-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ↑ "Ambitious Programs Arranged by Achievement Club Girls". Springfield Evening Union. 1927-09-14. p. 14. Retrieved 2026-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ Robertson, Annie Isabel (1924). Guide to Literature of Home and Family Life: A Classified Bibliography for Home Economics with Use and Content Annotations. J.B. Lippincott. p. 86.
  17. ↑ "The Spooner Antique Shop (advertisement)". Evening Express. 1943-07-03. p. 62. Retrieved 2026-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ "Edwin V. Spooner". Evening Express. 1950-07-05. p. 2. Retrieved 2026-06-23 – via Newspapers.com.
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