Barbara Lange Ellsworth 1920-2008

LANGE, ELLSWORTH, BOGAN, DENNIS, RICHARDS, BISSELL, STONER, RICHARDSON

Posted By: J. N. (email)
Date: 11/9/2008 at 12:24:28

Telegraph Herald
Dubuque, Iowa
Sunday, November 9, 2008

Barbara Lange Ellsworth

Mrs. Barbara Lange Ellsworth, 88, a life-long Dubuque resident, community and civic leader, and Vice Chair of Dubuque's Republican Party, was born on May 17, 1920, and passed away Friday, Nov. 7, 2008.

Barbara Lange Ellsworth was uniquely qualified to make an indelible impression on Dubuque -- and she did. She was descended from Iowa politicians: her grandfather, Otto F. Lange, served in the Iowa State Senate from 1926 to 1930 and ran for governor in 1930 and 1932. Her father, Harvey Lange, was Republican Party Chairman of the Second District of Iowa. Mrs. Ellsworth was the wife of Ted Ellsworth, a two-term State Representative and the first Republican ever to win an election in his district.

Quite naturally for one raised in the tradition of public service, Mrs. Ellsworth became involved in party politics and quickly demonstrated she had the experience, instincts and managerial acumen to help elect Republican candidates in Iowa's staunchly Democratic Dubuque County. Her skills and knowledge made her a powerful asset as Vice Chair of the Dubuque County Republican Party in the 1960s and 70s.

She proved her potential in managing a new initiative-"Turnout by Telephone," a voter's drive aimed at rallying constituents to the polls. In the process, she helped break the Democratic stronghold in the county. Co-workers and colleagues credited Barbara's ability to keep an eye on the organization's mechanics, ensuring that plans were implemented smoothly.

Her daughter, Sarah Bogan, said, "She had the ability to glide through life with an affable style and ease. She knew when to be strong and how to get things done. But she also knew when to hold back and let others take the lead. She believed strongly in the causes she supported, and she was able to win the respect and admiration of others because she was pragmatic and didn't need to hear a fanfare to roll up her sleeves and help."

In 1964, Mrs. Ellsworth represented Iowa voters at the 28th Republican National Convention in San Francisco as a Barry Goldwater delegate. She took her leadership role in stride and later recalled "I felt privileged to see what was coming in the future." She had worked tirelessly to further her candidate's platform, which made Goldwater's loss even more disappointing. Undaunted, four years later when her husband was a delegate to the 1968 Republican National Convention in Miami, the couple took the entire family so their children would see the American democratic process in action.

When Ted Ellsworth decided to run for U.S. Congress in 1972, Barbara campaigned with him, and after the campaign she resigned her position as Vice Chair. The Republican Party Chairman called her resignation an "extreme loss" and urged her to reconsider. But Mrs. Ellsworth's first priority was always to her husband and family.

She campaigned vigorously, pinch-hitting for Ted at speaking engagements and making public appearances. Barry Goldwater came to Dubuque to endorse Ted's candidacy. When Ted's bid proved unsuccessful, the Ellsworths continued their involvement in the GOP and they were well known among Iowa's civic leadership in local and state politics.

Barbara Lange was born on May 17, 1920, in Dubuque, Iowa, the eldest of two children; a sister, Marjorie, completed the family. Her parents, Geraldine (Dennis) and Harvey M. Lange, came from families who had settled in Iowa in the mid- 1800s. Her paternal grandfather, Otto Lange, founded Lange Insurance Company, Inc. in 1907.

At the age of 13, Barbara was introduced to golf -- a game she quickly came to love. She was known for her fluid, perfectly timed swing and her competitive spirit. She excelled at the game and enjoyed playing for the rest of her life, winning the championship at Dubuque Golf & Country Club three times during the 1950s while raising her family.

Barbara went to St. Katharine's School in Davenport, Iowa, and, during her high school days, she met Ted Ellsworth, a local boy who also had deep roots in the area. Ted grew up at 1492 Locust Street in Dubuque in a house that his grandfather built in 1883. Today it is known as The Richards House Bed & Breakfast. Ellsworth's grandfather, B. B. Richards, owned banks in the state and helped to found Linwood Cemetery.

Upon graduation from St. Katharine's in 1938, Barbara attended Smith College for two years and when Ted graduated from Dartmouth in 1940 he proposed marriage. Barbara did as many women did in that time and her college education was replaced with marriage and a family. Their wedding was held in the Lange home on April 26, 1941.

The newlyweds moved to Chicago, where they found employment. But the war had started in Europe and while the United States was officially neutral, everyone was nervously awaiting what would come next. That fall, Ted and his friend, Tom Braden, decided to volunteer. Since America had not yet entered the war, they secured the U.S. government's permission to join a special British Army regiment known as The King's Royal Rifle Corps.

Barbara returned to Dubuque and worked for the ration board to keep busy while she awaited Ted's return. And it was a long wait.

Ellsworth served not only with the British Army but with the United States Army as well. He saw action on three fronts: as an infantry soldier in the famed Desert Rats with General Montgomery in North Africa and Italy, and after his transfer to the U.S. Third Army in 1944, he fought with General Patton to chase the Germans out of France in the second wave of D-Day.

Captured during the Battle of Sivry, reported MIA and presumed dead, Ellsworth was held in a POW camp in Poland before being liberated by the Russians and finally making his way across war-torn Eastern Europe to the Black Sea and a ship for home.

Barbara never doubted she would be reunited with her husband. When he came home at last in 1945, a decorated war hero, the couple took a second honeymoon to California where Ted wrote a memoir of his wartime experiences. Barbara typed the hand-written manuscript on her Smith-Corona and the young couple attempted to interest a book publisher. There were no takers.

But four decades later, when the manuscript resurfaced in the attic of the Richards/Ellsworth ancestral home where the couple had raised their family, the five Ellsworth children reinvigorated the effort. In 2006, Avalon Publishing of New York published his story under the title "YANK, Memoir of a World War II Soldier. From the Desert War of North Africa to the Allied Invasion of Europe, from German POW Camp to Home Again."

After the war, Ted joined the Lange Insurance Agency in Dubuque and the couple settled down to raise a family. Their first child, Ann, arrived in May 1946. Four more children followed over the next six years: Sarah, Mareth, Kitty and Dick (Ted Jr.).

In 1965, with his five children either in high school or college, Ted told Barbara he wanted to help shape public policy in Des Moines for the people of his home district, to give back to the community where he had grown up and thrived. With typical enthusiasm and encouragement, Barbara supported him. Their decision, put into action, helped to shape much of Dubuque's Republican Party political history during the second half of the last century.

Upon Ted's untimely death from cancer in 1986, Mrs. Ellsworth stepped up from vice president, the office she had held for 15 years, to take his place at the helm of Lange Insurance. She again applied her trademark talent for keeping an eye on the organization's mechanics. She knew it was important to ensure a smooth and secure transition for the agency's clients, customers and staff; three years later she sold the company.

Kate Mulgrew, longtime family friend and Dubuque native, wrote to Barbara upon Ted's death and said, "You are and have always been a great lady and Ted was a genius to have chosen you. Everything about you represents love and gladness and goodness. And, though I cannot know the extent of your sadness, I can honestly say that it is just like life to leave the courageous person behind, because you have so much to give and we all have so much to learn from a great heart like yours."

In addition to her political and civic achievements and her roles as wife, mother and grandmother, Barbara Ellsworth's legacy is inscribed in an array of community and social service organizations to which she volunteered her time and talent: She served on the board and as president of the Dubuque County Humane Society. From 1987 to 2003, she was a member of the board of Linwood Cemetery and president for two of those years. As president, she chaired a fundraising drive to name all the lanes and streets on the cemetery grounds.

Mrs. Ellsworth was active in the Girl Scouts, the Red Cross, the Visiting Nurse Association and the Mt. Pleasant Home for Elderly Women. As had her father before her, she served on the board of Finley Hospital. She was a member of St. John's Episcopal Church and active in the Altar Guild and the Vestry.

She is survived by her children, Ann Ellsworth Bissell, of Dubuque; Sarah Ellsworth Bogan (Ralph), of Chicago, IL; Mareth Ellsworth, of Livingston, LA; Katharine (Kitty) Ellsworth Stoner (Thomas H.), of Annapolis, MD; Theodore R. Ellsworth, Jr. (Dick) (Joanne), of Fairbanks, AK; four grandchildren, Frederick E. IV (Fritz) and Theodore A. Bissell, (Ted), Alden E. Stoner and Lavonne E. (Loni) Ellsworth; three step-grandchildren survive her, Chelle, Tom and Ted Stoner; and four step-great-grandchildren. She also is survived by her sister, Marjorie Lange Richardson, of Petaluma, CA., and five nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial contributions be made to the organization of your choice.

The Siegert-Casper Colonial Funeral Home, 390 N. Grandview, is in charge of arrangements.