Nellie Mighels Davis
Nellie Mighels Davis | |
|---|---|
Davis in 1870 | |
| Born | Nellie Verrill September 10, 1844 Greenwood, Maine, U.S. |
| Died | June 24, 1945 (aged 100) |
| Occupations | Civic leader and journalist |
Nellie Mighels Davis (née Verrill; after first marriage, Mighels; after second marriage, Davis; September 10, 1844 – June 24, 1945) was a US civic leader and journalist. In 1897, she was the first woman to report a boxing prize fight (Fitzsimmons/Corbett) in the United States. She was also the first state president of the American Red Cross in Nevada, and an officer of the Pacific Coast Women's Press Association. In 2020, she was inducted into the Nevada Newspaper Hall of Fame.[1]
Biography
Lucy Ellen (nickname "Nellie") Verrill was born in Greenwood, Maine, on September 10, 1844. In 1866, she married Henry Rust Mighels, owner and editor of the Nevada Appeal in Carson City, Nevada. They had three sons and two daughters. In 1877 and 1879, Davis was the first woman to report to the state Legislature, which is located in Carson City. Their son, Henry R. Mighels Jr., eventually took over as editor of the Appeal in 1898.[2] Ella Sterling Mighels, former wife of their son Philip, was the "First Literary Historian of California".[3]
Widowed at the age of 35, she hired Samuel Post Davis, of the Virginia Chronicle[2] as her editor and she took the role of publisher. She married Davis in 1880, and he took over operations of the Nevada Appeal. They had two daughters. In 1897, she was the first woman to report a prize fight (Fitzsimmons/Corbett) as Nevada at the time was the only state in the US where prize fighting was legal. She was also the organizer and first state president of the American Red Cross in Nevada.[4]
Death and legacy
Nellis Davis died in Carson City on June 24, 1945. She was buried at Lone Mountain Cemetery in Carson City.[5]
An 1870s oil painting of Davis is held by the Nevada State Historical Society.[6]
References
- ^ Hoover, R. (September 28, 2020). "Nellie Mighels Davis takes her place in Nevada Newspaper Hall of Fame". www.nevadaappeal.com. Retrieved March 11, 2026.
- ^ a b Earl, Phillip I. (April 18, 1996). "Nevada Then and Now - Nellie Verrill Mighels Davis". Death Valley Gateway Gazette. Retrieved February 25, 2012 – via Google News.
- ^ "'Aurora Esmerelda', Nevada Historian, Dies In Bay City". Nevada State Journal. December 11, 1934. Retrieved March 11, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Nellie Mighels Davis". Nevada Women's History Project. University of Nevada, Reno. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved February 25, 2012.
- ^ "Mrs. Davis Rites Attended by Many". Reno Gazette-Journal. June 27, 1945. Retrieved March 11, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Paintings Given To Museum Here". Reno Gazette-Journal. July 18, 1945. Retrieved March 11, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.