Ellen (Quinlan) Reed (1889 - 1991)

Born 6 Mar 1889 in Parsons, Labette, Kansas, United States

Died 8 Sep 1991 at age 102 in Kansas City, Jackson, Missouri, United States

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Biography

Nell (Quinlan) Reed is Notable.

Nell (Quinlan) Reed was a centenarian, living to age 102.

Fashion Designer "Nelly Don"

Born Ellen Quinlan in Parsons, Kansas, the twelfth child of an Irish immigrant railroad worker and his wife. She attended Parsons High School, and following graduation, worked as a stenographer in Kansas City where, at age 17, she married a fellow tenant at her boarding-house, Paul Donnelly. A local representative for a shoe company, Donnelly supported her by pooling his earnings with hers to fund her studies at Lindenwood College where she was the only married student.

While Nell and Paul had no biological children, he later adopted her son David, who was fathered in 1931 by Senator James Reed. Nell and Paul divorced in 1932, and she married Senator Reed in 1933.

Nell donated land in Jackson County, Missouri to the Missouri Department of Conservation in the name of her second husband, which is now known as the James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area. She died at age 102, and was survived by her son and four grandchildren.

Abduction

On December 16, 1931, Nell was abducted along with George Blair, her chauffeur, by three men and held for $75,000 ransom. The men reportedly hijacked her car at gunpoint, driving them to a cottage in Bonner Springs, Kansas, where she and Blair were held captive for 34 hours. The kidnappers mailed a ransom demand to her husband Paul which arrived the following morning.

The search for Nell became an immediate media sensation, with Senator Reed's involvement attracting a great deal of media attention. Reed was alleged to have called upon John Lazia, a major figure in the Kansas city organized crime scene, for assistance with tracing Nell. The gangsters apparently found and rescued them.

Sources

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nell_Donnelly_Reed

• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/6137912/nell-reed : accessed 30 November 2021), memorial page for Nell “Ellen” Quinlan Reed (6 Mar 1889–8 Sep 1991), Find a Grave Memorial ID 6137912, citing Mount Washington Cemetery, Independence, Jackson County, Missouri, USA ; Maintained by Bill Walker (contributor 656) .

• https://www.seamwork.com/issues/2015/12/nelly-don-self-made-in-america/memorial/6137912

• https://www.kansascity.com/entertainment/performing-arts/article227252554.html

• https://nellydon.com/products/nelly-don-a-stitch-in-time-book

• https://shsmo.org/historicmissourians/name/r/reed/

• https://nellydon.com/blogs/news/the-kidnapping-of-nell-donnelly