Greenway, Isabella Selmes
Item
Title
Greenway, Isabella Selmes
Alias
Selmes, Isabella
Ferguson, Isabella
Greenway, Isabelle
Greenway, Isabella Dinsmore
King, Isabella
King, Isabelle Greenway
Gender
Female
Biography
"Like her mother before her, Isabella was born on the Dinsmore farm. Although educated in St. Paul and New York, she often returned to Boone County to spend her summers. At the age of nineteen, Isabella married Robert H. Munro Ferguson, nineteen years her senior. They had two children, Martha and Bobby. One year after Robert died of tuberculosis, Isabella married his good friend, John C. Greenway and the couple had one son, Jack. Following Greenway’s death, Isabella started her own furniture company, the Arizona Hut, and then designed a hotel on the edge of Tucson, Arizona, called the Arizona Inn. It is a historic inn and is still owned and managed by her descendants. " --Cathy Callopy
Isabella Greenway was a cattle rancher and businesswoman. She owned Gilpin Air Lines (Los Angeles, Calif.), and founded the Arizona Inn (Tucson, Ariz.). She was the first woman elected to Congress from Arizona. Initially she filled the seat left vacant by Lewis W. Douglas when he resigned. She was re-elected in her own right for another term, serving from 1933 to 1937.
Isabelle once sailed on the 'R.M.S. Olympic', the 'Titanic's' sister ship, She departed Cherbourg, France, arriving in New York City on 28 Sep 1926. She had previously sailed on the 'Colombia' with her husband Robert Ferguson, leaving Glasgow, Scotland and arriving in New York City on 14 Oct 1907.
Member
Birth date
22 Mar 1886
Place of birth
Father
Mother
Life event(s)
Marriage 1: 15 Jul 1905; Oyster Bay (N.Y.)
Marriage 2: 1923; location unknown
Marriage 3: 22 Apr1939; Manhattan (New York, N.Y.)
Spouse(s)
Death date
18 Dec 1953
Place of death
Tucson (Ariz.)
Death and burial information
Cause of death: Coronary thrombosis
Occupation(s)
Rancher
Business owner
U.S. Congresswoman (1933-1937)
Resided in
St. Paul (Minn.)
St. Armand (N.Y.)
Tyrone (N.M.)
Tucson (Ariz.)
Related resource
Bibliographic citation(s)
FindAGrave.com, memorial #7907916
New York State, Marriage Index, 1881-1967
New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957
New York, New York, Index to Marriage Licenses, 1908-1910, 1938-1940
Arizona, Death Records, 1887-1960
Source(s)
Item sets
Linked resources
Filter by property
| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Flandrau, Martha Macomb | Child(ren) | Person |
| Selmes, Tilden Russell | Child(ren) | Person |
| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Ferguson, Robert H. Munro | Spouse(s) | Person |
 Greenway, John Campbell |
Spouse(s) | Person |
| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Ferguson, Robert Munro | Mother | Person |
| Ferguson, Martha Munro | Mother | Person |
| Greenway, John Selmes | Mother | Person |
| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Loving, Julia Farley | Employed by | Person |