Fae Searcy
Clerk of the Supreme Court of Illinois
In office
April 13, 1955 – March 23, 1968
Preceded byEarle Benjamin Searcy
Succeeded byJustin Taft
Personal details
Born
Fae Isenberg
DiedMarch 23, 1968 (aged 75)
Political partyRepublican
SpouseEarle Benjamin Searcy
Children2

Fae Searcy (née Isenberg) was an American politician who served as clerk of the Supreme Court of Illinois. She was the first woman to hold a statewide elected office in Illinois. First appointed in a widow's succession following her husband's death in office, Searcy won election to two full terms.

Biography

Searcy was born in Shelby County, Illinois as Fae Isenberg.[1][2] She attended public school in Shelbyville.[1]

Searcy attended Oberlin College, and graduated from the Hinshaw Conservatory of Music in Chicago.[1]

She married Earle Benjamin Searcy in 1917,[1][2] taking his surname.[1] The Searcys would be parents to daughter Barbara Jane Searcy Damewood and son Earle B. Searcy.[1]

Searcy's husband became a politician. She joined him frequently on campaign trips, and was involved in Republican Party women's clubs.[3]

Clerk of the Supreme Court of Illinois

In 1955, Searcy's husband, serving in the statewide elected office of clerk of the Illinois Supreme Court, died in office of a heart attack.[1][3] On April 13, 1955, in an instance of widow's succession, she was appointed by the court to fill the vacant office, becoming the first woman to fill a statewide elected office in Illinois.[1][3] She won election as a Republican to a full term in 1956.[1][4] Searcy was reelected to an additional full term in 1962.[5]

Death

On March 23, 1968, Searcy died at the age of 75, after having ailed from a lingering illness.[1] Searcy still placed second out of three candidates in the June 1968 Republican primary election for the office of Clerk of the Illinois Supreme Court,[6] which she had already filed to appear on the ballot for prior to her death.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Mrs. Fae Searcy Dies; Clerk of Supreme Court". The Dispatch (Moline Illinois). The Associated Press. 25 March 1968. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  2. ^ a b "MISS ISENBERG TO WED IN SHELBYVILLE". Newspapers.com. The Daily Review (Decatur, Illinois). 11 Jan 1917. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  3. ^ a b c "Mrs. Fae Searcy Named to Post Of Late Husband". Newspapers.com. Dixon Evening Telegraph (Dixon, Illinois). The Associated Press. 14 Apr 1955. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  4. ^ "OFFICIAL VOTE of the STATE OF ILLINOIS Cast at the GENERAL ELECTION, NOVEMBER 6, 1956 JUDICIAL ELECTION, 1955, 1956 • PRIMARY ELECTION GENERAL PRIMARY, APRIL 10 1958" (PDF). Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  5. ^ "OFFICIAL VOTE of the STATE OF ILLINOIS Cast at the GENERAL ELECTION, NOVEMBER 6, 1960 JUDICIAL ELECTION, 1961–1962 • PRIMARY ELECTION GENERAL PRIMARY, APRIL, 10, 1962" (PDF). Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  6. ^ "OFFICIAL VOTE Cast at the GENERAL ELECTION NOVEMBER 5, 1968 JUDICIAL PRIMARY ELECTION GENERAL PRIMARY, JUNE, 11, 1972" (PDF). Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
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