Ellen Taylor Huppert

May 7, 1936 - November 13, 2018

Ellen Taylor Huppert died in San Francisco on November 13. Preceded in death by her husband Peter A. Huppert, parents Hartley and Sylvia Taylor, and brother, Bruce Taylor, she is survived by her daughter, Ann Huppert, and her husband, Robert Corser; her son, Paul, and his wife, Frances Crouter; and three grandsons, Silas and Lars Huppert and Will Corser, all of Seattle, Washington. She is also survived by her sister, Frances Taylor, and cousins, Tom Brooks and Cindy Carlson, of San Francisco, along with and extended family of cousins and numerous nieces and nephews.

Born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Ellen grew up in Wisconsin and Illinois. She attended Grinnell College, received a BA from Northwestern University, an MA from Harvard University and a PhD in modern European history from the University of California, Berkeley.

Ellen spent her adult life in San Francisco and channeled her interests in history and education into multiple civic enterprises. After teaching at San Francisco State University and Holy Names College, Oakland, she continued her career as an independent scholar. She was founding member of the Institute for Historical Study, established in 1979. Ellen served as the second president of the Institute and remained actively engaged throughout her lifetime. In the same period she helped found the San Francisco Parents’ Lobby in the wake of funding cuts to public education. As founding president, she guided the group in campaigning for candidates to the Board of Education, followed by continuing activities as a lobby group at the district level over the ensuing decade. From 1981 to 1995, Ellen served on the board of the San Francisco Education Fund, and also for a period as its interim Executive Director. In 1993, she joined the Board of Directors of the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library, and her decade of participation included chairing the board during the campaign to build the new Main Library. She remained a staunch supporter of the Friends and an active volunteer for the libraries until her death.

In recent years Ellen turned her attention to family history, investigating both her own family with roots in Montana and the Midwest, those of Peter Huppert in Europe. She combined her keen interest in the past with her love of travel, completing trips throughout the world with both Peter and her sister, Fran.

During her five year battle with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, Ellen continued to relish family, friends, research and travel. She remained an avid reader, knitter, seamstress and cook. Ellen was a congenial host and her home served as the site of many meetings and festive gatherings. Those who regularly attended Ellen and Peter’s New Year’s Eve party should raise a glass in remembrance on the 31st .

A memorial service is planned for February. Contact ellenhuppertmemorial@ gmail.com for details.