Student at Baltimore Law School, 1903-.
Present address: 733 West Lombard Street, Baltimore, MD.
June 1905 Kalends:
Emily Doetsch is studying law at the Baltimore Law School.
June 1906 Kalends:
Emilie Doetsch will be graduated at the University of Maryland Law School in June.
March 1925, Goucher Alumnae Quarterly:
Secretary-Emilie Doetsch, 14 Merrymount Road, Roland Park, Baltimore, Md.
July 1928 Goucher Alumnae Quarterly:
Emillie Doetsch has been recently appointed Deputy City Solicitor of Baltimore. Miss Doetsch is the first woman as well as the only woman in the entire legal employ of the city of Baltimore.
July 1930 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch is assistant City Solicitor, and President of the Women's Bar Association of Maryland.
May 1932 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch spoke before the Maryland branch of the National Women's Party in Baltimore on April2 at a luncheon meeting of the Woman's City Club. She also spoke recently before a meeting of the Party at its headquarters in Washington, DC.
July 1935 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch brought her sister and brother-in-law and their two children with her on the alumnae boatride.
November 1937 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch and Edna Frizzell Thurlow '04 visited Thyra Crawford Rees at the latter's cottage in the "wilds" of New Jersey for a few days in August. Business called Emilie back to Baltimore and Washington, but Edna stayed a few days longer and she and Thyra drove over to Trenton and had a delightful visit with Claire Ackerman Vliet and her family.
July 1939 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch, the efficient chairman for Reunion, is the same old EMilie, tall and calm and sure. She was with us everywhere, and climaxed her loyalty to the class by a buffet supper onSunday night in her lovely home in Roland Oark. We went there, one and all including Dr. Shefloe, and several perfect hours soon passed in the late afternoon sun. We cannot refrain from speaking of the garden- roses, vines, trees, and shrubbery- and all the home and personal touches in the house itself.
August 1950 Alumnae Quarterly:
Clara Robinson Hand tells us the sad news of the death of Elsa Doetsch. To Emilie, and to her family, 1903 extends sincere and deep sympathy. We were all shocked to learn of Elsa's death. As our president wrote me, "Whenever 1903 has had a reunion in Baltimore the four Doetsch sisters have done something to make our reunion more pleasant, and I feel that the class as well as the family has had a loss."
Winter 1952 Alumnae Quarterly:
When Emilie Doetsch wrote, the roads were glassy with ice, their car was frozen in, her sister Louisa was marooned in Baltimore with the main part of their Sunday dinner!
"My sister Elsa's death has made a great difference in the lives of the three of us at home here. . . . In the fall before her death, all four of us spent, a vacation in Mexico, delightful while it lasted. But soon after our return, an old aunt who had lived with us for twenty years died; and after that Elsa, whose work had piled up in the meantime, began to show signs of failing health. At first it was thought she had picked up a germ in Mexico. Repeated X-rays revealed nothing. It was only when the surgeon 'went in' that the real cause of the trouble was discovered. She only lived a week.
The only thing, outside of routine, that I have done was to campaign for General Devereaux, a lawyer, Republican, and war hero, whom, I felt, I could support enthusiastically on all three counts. And I intend to do whatever I can to secure the nomination and election of Senator Taft. If ever we women were called upon to do our bit, it is now!!!"
Fall 1953 Alumnae Quarterly:
Though Emilie Doetsch worked so hard for our reunion, she seemed to find time to relax and enjoy it with the rest of us: "It surpassed my fondest expectations,"she says," and no one ever had a finer committee to work with. There were five besides myself: Florence Carmine Bankard, Clara Robinson Hand, Charlotte and May Jones, and Anna Slease. Without exception they threw themselves into the preparations with the "wim and wigor" that characterized our class in college. If I deserve any credit at all, as you seem to think, for the success of the reunion, it is because I had the wit to choose such excellent co-workers.
Another thing that pleased me greatly was the discovery that several of our members, you among them, Eda, had written books. Another of our author members is Claire Ackerman Vliet, who has prepared a geneological history of the Ackerman family from the time the first German of that name set foot upon the soil of Pennsylvania. Bertha Stevens wrote several books, but only one was available - 'The Child and the Univese,' at the Pratt Library. I know of one book authored by Nancy Catching Shields; no doubt there are others, but time ran out on me, for I had only 10 days to find out who among us had written books and how to find copies." (Note: Will all 1903 authors please send information to Emilie or to me? E.B.F.) "A word about Mary Abercrombie Verner. She and her husband have had great success in hybridizing flowers, and while living in Vancouver produced a rare and very large jonquil. Now in California, they are specializing in gladioli. Their flowers were of such unusual beauty and perfection that a Canadian shipper bought 240 dozen spikes for decorations at the Coronation. Mary brought a sheaf of them with her on the plane from California and we all enjoyed them in Froelicher Hall. They were there to greet us the very first thing.
One great satisfaction of our committee lay in the fact that so many of our members returned. We are a comparatively small class and our homes are widely scattered, so there is just so much more credit for our showing at roll call. I am sure Dr. Shefloe and Dr. Goucher, who always liked to attend our reunions, would have been proud of us."
Emilie, by the way, is working with other Baltimore women to secure worthy political candidates for the less important positions, beginning with the precincts and the wards, scrutinizing every candidate for office, large or small, and campaigning accordingly. "After all," she says, "The bosses derive their power, not so much from the leading citizens as from the rank and file in the precincts. This is work that we older women, who have more leisure can do, and if we all pitched in , think what a contribution we could make to good government!"
Summer 1954 Alumnae Quarterly:
Now where do you suppose our Emilie has journeyed to this summer? Scandinavia! Her sister, Louisa (1910), after a rather unexpected operation, was in need of a change and rest, something entirely different. Emilie and Agnes (1921) thought so well of the idea that they all sailed off together to the long days and the wonderful scenery of Norseland. "Just before leaving,"says Emilie. "We had twelve guests for dinner, the occasion being a visit from Helene's (Mrs. Rudolph Michel's, 1916) second daughter and her fifteen month old son, and Helene's first grandchild, together with sundry close relatives and admirers of the infant prodigy."
Summer 1956 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch and Florence Carmine Bankard attended our Alumnae Day celebration. Emilie said, "The campus never looked lovelier, the ceremony of presentation of the Alumnae House was all very fine, and we enjoyed the inspection of the building and the delicious refreshments." Emilie is thinking about cutting her hair!
Spring 1957 Alumnae Quarterly:
Wouldn't it be fine if we all could have Emilie Doetsch help us out with our income tax worries! I had a delightful time with ehr on March 8 when I was her guest at a luncheon where the program was an exhibition of silver-antique and modern. The subject was out of my line but the speaker, Mrs. James Cute, an expert indeed, made it fascinating. It was a most enjoyable afternoon.
Fall 1958 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch and her sisters had a late summer vacation at Rehoboth Beach; she isn't really an agent for Rehoboth property, but she surely does make the place seem most attractive.
Winter 1959 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch sent me her Christmas copy of Holiday which she says "gives you the feeling of soaking up atmosphere and an appreciation of what we owe to those old, old centers of civilization in art, literature, language, and just plain everyday living."
Fall 1959 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch and her sisters were just about to leave home for a vacation at Ocean City, after a busy and rather hard summer. Her letter was full of enthusiasm for the wonderful service for the blind carried on by the Library of Congress; her knowledge of the service is first hand for her sister Agnes '21 has an elderly patient whose eyesight has almost gone. The Library sends talking books, beautifully recorded and free of charge, to the person applying. The books so recorded are almost as varied in subject as the catalogue of the Library itself. Emilie said that the whole family enjoyed them and the task of entertaining the patient had been enormously lightened. I should like to add my sincere appreciation to Emilie's for all the Library does, and urge any of you who know of persons who might be happier with the books to write and get information about all the things the Library does for us.
Spring 1961 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emile Doetsch sends me her Holiday magazines and I pass them on to others here. Holiday always gives me the feeling of having met so many persons that would never actually cross my path.
Winter 1963 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch and sisters shopped for nieces, grand nieces, nephews and grand nephews, and they even made dresses for the young misses. Good! A button is lucky that gets back on its right garment with me.
Fall 1964 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch and I had a telephone visit last night. She is, as you know, a most conscientious citizen and is watching the political situation closely. We talked politics a bit. She is rather house-bound, as some of the rest of us are, so claims that her story is a dull one. Not hers! The ideas hatch just as they always did. -EBF
Winter 1967 Alumnae Quarterly:
...since the world does move, we must not let it leave us too far behind; we must understand what is happening, for we are not going to withdraw and live in our shells. Emilie Doetsch is not going to, certainly; if she votes (and she does and did) it will be as well-informed a vote as she can make it.
Spring 1967 Alumnae Quarterly:
With a house and garden, a car, numerous nephews and nieces, and many friends the Doetsch ladies are really busy. I shall miss Louisa's 1906 contributions to the Quarterly. Emilie looks upon civic duties as religious duties, as they are, so her reading and outside activities are closely akin.
Winter 1969 Alumnae Quarterly:
Emilie Doetsch, in spite of her confinement to a chair - not even one with wheels - has kept up her interest in political news and reads things she passed over casually when she was young. That's the way to grow old - intelligently.
Summer 1969 Alumnae Quarterly:
We are sorry to report the death of Emilie Doetsch on June 8.
Winter 1970 Alumnae Quarterly:
In the recent death of Emilie Doetsch, Goucher has lost a distinguished graduate and loyal friend.
She found her life work in years of service to the cause of women's rights in politics, industry, finance and the family. She was the reporter for the women's march from New York to Washington, which ended March 5, 1913, when the women marched up Pennsylvania Avenue to be received by President Wilson the day after his inauguration. The plea for suffrage was not answered by the states until 1920, when the amendment to the Constitution was adopted.
Emilie edited "Equal Rights" for several years, thus remaining at the center of the continuing struggle for justice to women in industry, in the professions, in property and family rights. The suffrage amendment did not remove all discrimination against women.
The story is that of a pioneer, for she was among the first women to receive a law diploma from Maryland U. when it absorbed the Baltimore Law School; she was the first woman to hold a high office of any kind in municipal affairs when she became assistant city solicitor under Mayor Broening. She was the first woman to run for office in Baltimore when she stood for a place on the Council from the Fifth District. A good showing but defeated.
Emilie served the class of 1903 all these years and will be sadly missed. We never thought of her as a militant suffragist, for she was such a good listener - a model which some modern reformers might profitably follow. For she made converts; her reasonableness, so quiet and friendly, made friends who became converts. We like to remember her hospitable spirit, her serenity, and intellectual honesty, and her loyalties. This was our Emilie.
