Countess Stoeffel
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
1874
"Count' Lewis K. Stoeffel
W. O. Wood
Herbert Henshall
Carl H. Ustick
Countess Stoeffel | |
|---|---|
 A 1919 photo of "Gretchen" Wood | |
| Born | Margarita Gager 1874 |
| Died | June 19, 1928 (aged 53–54) |
| Occupations | Physician, Opera Singer, Actress |
| Spouse(s) | Fischer "Count' Lewis K. Stoeffel W. O. Wood Herbert Henshall Carl H. Ustick |
Margaret “Gretchen” Ustick (aka Countess Stoeffel; 1874 – June 19, 1928) was an American actress.
Mrs. Wood, as she was known, was born Margarita Gager in 1874, Vienna, Austria. She married a German national named Fischer and on December 22, 1896, in Todtmoos, Waldshut, Baden-Württemberg, Germany they had one child, Phillip Heinrich Carl Fischer. Margarita and Fischer divorced in 1900. Margarita returned home to Vienna and in 1898, with the help of Count Louis K. Stoeffel of the Arbon Castle at Lake Maggiore at Ticino, she regained custody of her son. She later married "Count" Stoeffel, and it was in Switzerland in 1900 that her son, Heinrich Carl Fischer, was abducted by his father's family.[1][2]
Mrs. Wood was the first woman in Europe to attain a degree of doctor of medicine from the University of Vienna and permitted to practice abroad. She gained much fame through her skill as a practicing physician and surgeon.[3]
Mrs. Wood studied opera in Milan, Italy under Fritzi Scheff and gave concerts in Vienna, Milan and Paris.[4]
Career in America
After the death of "Count" Stoeffel, around 1909, Mrs. Wood married William O. Wood a wealthy Philadelphia businessman, who died in 1913. Together they owned land in Wyoming and in Colorado including the Wigwam Ranch in Jefferson County, Colorado, later renamed the Flying G. Ranch and owned by Girl Scouts. Edsel Ford made a stop at Mrs. Wood's Wigwam Ranch on July 1, 1915, as part of his Transcontinental Tour.[5]
In 1917 she had a Colorado Delegation address Congress in an attempt to get the Defense Department to make an exception and allow her to work as a physician for the United States Military in support of the war effort.[6]
In 1919, Mrs. Wood founded the Art-O-Graf film company of Denver, Colorado,[7] and she was on the board of directors.
In 1920 Mrs. Wood was an actress in the films; Wolves of the Street and The Desert Scorpion.
