Effie Isobel Raitt (June 13, 1878[1] – December 4, 1945) was an American dietitian and college professor. She was head of the University of Washington's School of Home Economics for more than thirty years, from 1912 to 1945. Raitt Hall on the university's central Quad is named in her honor.[2] She was a national leader of both the American Home Economics Association and the American Dietetic Association.

Effie Raitt
A white woman with hair dressed to the nape, wearing a dark dress with a square neckline and a lace-trimmed collar
Effie Raitt, from a 1923 publication
Born
Effie Isobel Raitt

June 13, 1878
Patterson, Iowa
DiedDecember 4, 1945
Seattle, Washington
Occupation(s)Home economist, dietitian, college professor

Early life and education

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Effie Raitt was born in Patterson, Iowa, the daughter of George Patterson Raitt and Janet (or Jeanette) McFadden Raitt.[1] All of her grandparents were born in Scotland; her father was a Presbyterian minister. She trained as a dietitian at Columbia University and Northwestern University.[3]

Career

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Raitt was a professor and dean of home economics at the University of Washington from 1912 to 1945.[3][4][5] She also taught summer courses at the University of California.[6] She was president of the American Home Economics Association from 1934 to 1936,[3][7] and vice-president of the American Dietetic Association in 1924.[8][9][10] In 1929, she spoke at the annual meeting of the Western Hospital Association, in Los Angeles, on the education of dietitians.[11] She was one of the experts who attended the White House Conference on Home Building and Home Ownership in 1931.[12] She served on the board of the Seattle Visiting Nurse Service in the 1930s.[13] She attended the 4th Pan-Pacific Women's Conference in Vancouver in 1937.[14]

During World War I, Raitt was featured as an expert in promotional materials published by dairy industries in Canada and the Pacific Northwest.[15][16] During World War II she joined other home economists in supporting a newspaper columnist's campaign of "nutrition for national defense".[17][18]

Publications

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  • "A Survey of the Status of the Hospital Dietitian" (1923)[19]
  • "The Institutional Manager" (1927)[20]
  • "Home Economics in the State of Washington" (1929)[21]
  • "The Nature and Function of Home Economics" (1935)[22]
  • "What Can Business Do to Remove Consumer Suspicion?" (1936)[23]

Personal life

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Raitt lived with her sister Elsie in Seattle for much of her adult life. She died in 1945, at the age of 67.[3] The University of Washington renamed the home economics department's building "Raitt Hall" in 1946;[24] a fellowship award was also named in her memory.[4]

References

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  1. ^ a b Some sources give her birth year as 1879; June 13, 1878 is the birth date given on her 1910 application for a United States passport, and Patterson, Iowa is the birth place given; from the National Archives, via Ancestry.
  2. ^ "History". University of Washington Nutritional Sciences Program, School of Public Health. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  3. ^ a b c d "Prof. Effie Raitt Passes at Seattle". The Bellingham Herald. 1945-12-04. p. 6. Retrieved 2023-03-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b "Fellowship Award". The Seattle Star. 1946-05-20. p. 14. Retrieved 2023-03-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Scientific Notes and News". Science. 80 (2063): 30–33. 1934-07-13. doi:10.1126/science.80.2063.30. ISSN 0036-8075.
  6. ^ University of California (1933). Register of the University of California. D.W. Gelwicks, State printer. p. 85.
  7. ^ "Home Economics Chief". Chicago Tribune. 1935-02-23. p. 13. Retrieved 2023-03-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Officers of the Association". Bulletin of the American Dietetic Association: 3. February 1924.
  9. ^ "Dietitians to Meet at Indianapolis". Trained Nurse and Hospital Review. 71 (3): 254. September 1923.
  10. ^ "Dietitians Make Final Plans for Annual Conference", Modern Hospital 21(October 1923): 400.
  11. ^ "Western Hospital Convention is 'Round Table' Conference". Modern Hospital. 29 (1): 116. July 1927.
  12. ^ "Statement Announcing the White House Conference on Home Building and Home Ownership". The American Presidency Project, UCSB. 1931. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  13. ^ "Friends Anticipating Food Sale". The Seattle Star. 1937-10-26. p. 7. Retrieved 2023-03-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Two U.S. Government Officials Will Attend Pan-Pacific Meet". The Honolulu Advertiser. 1937-06-20. p. 24. Retrieved 2023-03-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Woodman, E. F. (1916-11-23). "Best Food for Invalids and Children is Milk". The Bellingham Herald. p. 9. Retrieved 2023-03-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ Woodman, E. F. (1917-09-04). "Expert Gives Advice about Milk". The Province. p. 12. Retrieved 2023-03-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ Dean, Dorothy (1942-04-13). "Teachers Show Interest in 'Nutrition for Defense'". The Spokesman-Review. p. 8. Retrieved 2023-03-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Home Economics Heads Are to Have Luncheon". Spokane Chronicle. 1942-04-07. p. 8. Retrieved 2023-03-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ Raitt, Effie I. (December 1923). "A Survey of the Status of the Hospital Dietitian". Modern Hospital. 21 (6): 626–632.
  20. ^ Lyon, Leverett Samuel; Butler, A. Marie (1927). Vocational Readings. Macmillan Company. pp. 380–384.
  21. ^ Raitt, Effie I. (April 1929). "Home Economics in the State of Washington". Washington Historical Quarterly. 20 (2): 98–110. JSTOR 23908716.
  22. ^ Raitt, Effie I. "The nature and function of home economics." Journal of Home Economics 27, no. 5 (1935): 265-273.
  23. ^ Raitt, Effie I. "What can business do to remove consumer suspicion." Journal of Home Economics 28, no. 5 (1936).
  24. ^ Geerkens, Joy (August 27, 2018). "Legacies & traditions at the UW". The Daily of the University of Washington. Retrieved 2023-03-22.