Frances Belford Wayne
Frances Belford Wayne | |
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Born | Frances Belford June 17, 1870 |
Died | July 16, 1951 | (aged 81)
Occupation | Journalist |
Parents |
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Frances Belford "Pinky" Wayne (June 17, 1870 – July 16, 1951) was an American journalist based in
Early life
Frances Belford was born in La Porte, Indiana on June 17, 1870, the daughter of James B. Belford and Frances McEwen Belford.[2] Her father was a judge and a congressman and her mother was a temperance activist and a trustee at two colleges.[3] The family moved west to Central City, Colorado in 1874, when Frances was a girl.[4]
Career
Frances Belford Wayne joined the Rocky Mountain News in 1906, as a drama and music critic. She became a features writer and investigative reporter. She worked for the
In 1918, Frances Wayne saw the possibilities of outdoor lighting decorations for Christmas, and started spotlighting colorful lighting displays in Denver.[9] This developed into one of the largest urban holiday lighting displays in the United States.[5][10] She also helped to found the Myron Stratton Home for the Aged and Dependent Youth, and a state reformatory for boys.[11] In 1944, she persuaded the governor of Colorado to appoint scientist Florence R. Sabin to a post-war planning commission.[12]
Awards
In 1922, she was awarded a University Recognition gold medal from the University of Colorado for "ready and effective championship of sound efforts and movements for the public well being."[11][13] Wayne was named "Woman of the Year" by the Business and Professional Women's Club of Denver in 1946.
Personal life
Frances Belford married John Anthony Wayne before 1906; they soon separated and divorced in 1908.[14] She died in Central City from cancer on July 16, 1951.[1][5]
References
- ^ a b "Newspaper Woman Taken By Death". Reno Gazette-Journal. July 17, 1951. Retrieved January 19, 2020.
- ^ U.S. Passport Applications, 1795–1925
- ISBN 9781891424014
- ^ Rosemary Fetter, "Colorado History: How Denver Became the Christmas Capital of the World" Colorado Gambler (December 18, 2013).
- ^ a b c Nancy Pike Hause, The unsinkable Frances Wayne : an overview of her work as a reporter for the Denver Post from 1909 to 1946 (M. A. thesis, 1982, Kansas State University.
- ^ Emily Griffith Technical College, History, "Emily's Dream".
- ^ "The Denver Woman's Press Club" Colorado Encyclopedia.
- ^ Denver Women's Press Club, Scholarships.
- ^ Brian K. Trembath, "Civic Center Lights (The Early Years)" Denver Public Library (November 30, 2016).
- ^ Patricia Calhoun, "Denver Showed it Had the Light Stuff a Century Ago, with the First Christmas Tree" Westword (November 26, 2014).
- ^ a b "Woman Awarded Gold Medal by University" Fourth Estate (July 29, 1922): 13.
- ISBN 9781607324201
- ^ Colorado, Divorce Index, 1851–1985