Distinguished Women of Jefferson County

Miss Elsie of Claymont shines a light on the most generous philanthropist in Charles Town, West Virginia's history. Heiress to a timber fortune, Elsie Bogardus Murphy adopted Charles Town as her home and made it her mission to ensure the town's necessities were well funded. Thanks to her generosity the Old Charles Town Library was established, the Charles Town General Hospital had the funds needed to build a new, modern building, and Citizens Fire Company had the resources to keep the town safe. A prominent suffragette who regularly traveled from coast to coast, Miss Elsie never took her eye off the betterment of Charles Town. Koonce presents a light, but informative biography detailing Miss Elsie's family, her early life, and the lasting impact she made to so many. Readers will also enjoy learning of her visit to post-World War II France to check on her villa, the time she had a car shipped from Washington, DC to Charles Town, and her service at the frappe table at a society ball.