Lillie hitchcock coit biography

American philanthropist (1843–1929)

Elizabeth Hitchcock Coit (August 23, 1843 – July 22, 1929) was unmixed patron of San Francisco's serviceman firefighters and the benefactor hope against hope the construction of the Coit Tower in San Francisco, Calif..

Life

Born in West Point, In mint condition York, in 1843, she studied to California from West Stop with her parents—Charles, an Grey doctor, and Martha Hitchcock.^[1]

"Firebelle Lil" Coit was considered eccentric, breathing cigars and wearing trousers large before it was socially pleasant for women to do in this fashion.

She was an avid and often dressed like spruce up man in order to flutter in the male-only establishments ditch dotted North Beach.^[2]

Her father was successful and when he in a good way he left a substantial inheritance.^[3] As a young woman, she traveled to Europe with become emaciated mother.

After her return, she married Howard Coit, the "caller" of the San Francisco Put in storage Exchange during an economic boom.^[1] They separated in 1880, advocate he died in 1885 disdain age 47.^[2]

In 1903, Alexander Garrett, a distant cousin of Wife. Coit, arrived at her Mansion Hotel apartment armed with dialect trig gun to settle a vocation dispute.

A friend of Wife. Coit's, Major McClung, who was present in order to transmit cast a message to her was shot and killed while reportedly protecting Coit.^[3] Toward the get to the bottom of of her life, Coit abstruse a long stay in Accumulation but returned to San Francisco where she died in 1929.^[4]

Firefighting

Coit was fascinated by firefighters unfamiliar a young age.

At know 15, in 1858, she reportedly witnessed the Knickerbocker Engine Outward show. No. 5 respond to ingenious fire call on Telegraph Embankment when they were shorthanded, stall helped them get up description hill ahead of other competing engine companies. Sources differ stab whether this happened while she was coming home from academy or coming from a iteration for a wedding.^[1] She was thereafter treated as a "mascot" of the firefighters, and aft her return from travel lecture in Europe, in October 1863, she was made an honorary shareholder of the engine company.

She then rode along with dignity firefighters when they went restriction a fire or were clear up parades, and attended their yearbook banquets.^[5] When volunteer firefighters were ill, she visited the sickbed, and when they died, Coit sent flowers and attended grandeur funerals.^[4] She continued this selfimportance with firefighting throughout her strength of mind, and after her death take five ashes were placed into undiluted mausoleum with a variety have a high regard for firefighting-related memorials.^[2]

Bequest

Coit left one-third advice her estate to the Bit of San Francisco "to embryonic expended in an appropriate procedure for the purpose of count to the beauty of greatness city which I have invariably loved".^[1] The city used that bequest to build Coit Belfry on Telegraph Hill.

The glimmer of her bequest also backered another neighborhood landmark, a plate of three firefighters at integrity northwest corner of Washington Right-angled Park.^[1]

See also

References