Ethel Frances Donaghue
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Ethel Frances Donaghue | |
|---|---|
 Ethel Frances Donaghue, from the 1917 yearbook of Vassar College | |
| Born | July 6, 1896 Hartford, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Died | December 30, 1989 (age 93) West Hartford, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Lawyer, philanthropist |
Ethel Frances Weldon Donaghue (July 6, 1896 – December 30, 1989) was an American lawyer, socialite, and philanthropist. She left over $50 million to fund medical research, through the Donaghue Foundation.
Donaghue was born in Hartford, Connecticut, the daughter of Patrick Donaghue and Catherine Weldon Donaghue.[1] Her father was an Irish immigrant who built a fortune in real estate and liquor sales in Connecticut, and died when she was a teenager. She graduated from Vassar College in 1917, and from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1920. She earned an Doctor of Juridical Science degree from New York University School of Law in 1922.[2]
Career
Donaghue worked for the United States Department of Justice, where she specialized in admiralty law from 1920 to 1922.[3] She was admitted to the New York bar in 1922,[4] and the Connecticut bar in 1926.[5] She practiced law focused on trusts and real estate in Hartford until 1933, when she retired to care for her mother and her family's properties. She traveled with her mother and brother,[6] and threw lavish parties.[7] Her brother sued her in 1941, over the division of their inherited properties.[8]
She established the Donaghue Foundation in 1977, to fund medical research on cancer and heart disease.[2][9]