Quick Facts
Biography
Geraldine Livingston Morgan Thompson (1872–1967) was an American social reform pioneer who was became known as the "First Lady of New Jersey" due to her philanthropic and social service activities in New Jersey. Thompson owned Brookdale Farm, an 800-acre estate in Red Bank, New Jersey that became the administrative headquarters of the Monmouth County Park System.
Early life
Thompson was born March 2, 1872 in New York City, the daughter of William Dare Morgan and Angelica Livingston Hoyt. She married Lewis Steenrod Thompson (1865 - 1936), who established Sunny Hill Plantation with whom she had two children.
Activism
Thompson was a feminist social worker and her activism was aimed at female prison reform, public health and juvenile justice. She also donated money to psychiatric services and college scholarships. She was the first female New Jersey delegate to a Republican National Convention in 1923. She was a lifelong friend of Eleanor Roosevelt. She was also involved in environmental preservation programs, like preserving Island Beach as a state park.
She received awards and honors, like an honorary Master of Philanthropy degree from Rutgers University in 1931, the first woman in New Jersey to receive such honor.
Personal life
Thompson maintained a lifelong relationship with Miriam Van Waters, a social worker who served as superintendent of the Massachusetts Reformatory for Women at Framingham. Van Waters was also a closeted lesbian during this period and destroyed the romantic letters she received from Thompson. Van Waters and Thompson remained together 40 years.
Thompson died on September 9, 1967 at Brookdale Farm, Lincroft, New Jersey. She is buried at Saint James Episcopal Churchyard, Hyde Park, NY.