Kathleen Josephine “Jill” Elgin was born on January 13, 1923 in Trenton, New Jersey according to the New Jersey Birth Index at Ancestry.com. The same birth information was in Who Was Who in America (2006). Some bios said her birthplace was Princeton which is about 12 miles [19 kilometers] north of Trenton. Elgin’s Social Security application said her birthplace was Princeton Meadows.
Elgin’s parents were Charles Porter Elgin and Mary L. Poore who married on August 30, 1919 in Franklin County, Ohio. In 1915, Charles Elgin was a freshman at Princeton University. The Princeton Alumni Weekly, July 4, 1967, said
The 1930 census counted Elgin (line 92), her parents and sisters, Susanne and Charlene, at the same Bexley address. Her father was an electrical engineer.
... Mary Poore and Chick were married in August, 1919. They joined other married undergraduate couples in Princeton in the fall of 1920. He received his C.E. degree in June, 1921, and the Graduate E.E. degree in June 1922. He worked for the New York Telephone Company, then the Ohio Bell Telephone organization, returning to his home town of Columbus, Ohio in 1923. ...According to the 1920 United States Census, Elgin’s parents lived with her maternal grandparents, George and Belle Poore, in Columbus at 232 South Monroe Avenue. Elgin’s parents were at the same address in the 1924 city directory. The 1927 directory listed her parents at 247 North Remington Road in Bexley, a suburb of Columbus.
The 1930 census counted Elgin (line 92), her parents and sisters, Susanne and Charlene, at the same Bexley address. Her father was an electrical engineer.
The Columbus Dispatch, October 29, 1932, mentioned Elgin as a student at Cassingham Avenue School. The Dispatch, August 2, 1931, said Elgin was a Camp Fire Girl.
By the mid-1930s, Elgin (line 80) and her family were residents of Xenia, Ohio at 241 North King Street, according to the 1940 census.
The Dispatch, August 25, 1940, listed Elgin’s state fair awards:
Special Students ClassificationThe Dispatch, August 23, 1941, said Elgin won three state fair ceramics awards.
Any Subject—Any Medium—First, Kathleen Elgin, Xenia; ...
Sculpture—First, Kathleen Elgin, Xenia; ...
Unclassified—Fourth, Kathleen Elgin, Xenia; ...
Design—First, Kathleen Elgin, Xenia;...
Kathleen Elgin, Xenia, three firsts for “St. Catherine,” in stained glass, tile tableware and a pottery punch bowlElgin’s father signed his World War II draft card on February 16, 1942. His address was 241 North King Street in Xenia, Ohio. Sometime later, the address was updated to R.R. 8, Shakertown Pike, Dayton, Ohio. The Princeton Alumni Weekly said
... He served as a Major in the Air Force in World War II. Chick was an Engineer for Lindly and Company of Mineola, N.Y. from the end of the war until his retirement in 1964. All Engineering pursuits held a keen interest for him, and he was at his best when engineering problems were involved. The Elgins built a lovely home in Hampton Bays, N.Y. after retirement, where Mary and Chick were very happy. ...Some of the books by Elgin included a brief biography. Science Fiction & Readers Guide (1953) said
Jill Elgin enjoys people, books, and dogs. She was brought up in Baltimore [sic] and studied at the Maryland Institute of Art [sic] and at the Grand Central School of Art in New York City. She has done a number of portraits and has illustrated several children’s books. She likes to travel throughout the United States, especially in the West.The bio in The First Book of Norse Legends (1956) said
Kathleen Elgin began to draw when she was five years old, and she has never stopped since then. She studied at the Dayton, Ohio, Art Institute for two years, then went to work in a stained glass studio. During World War II she illustrated technical manuals for the U.S. Air Force. After the war she moved to New York City, where she studied at the American School of Design.Another bio, in Billions of Years of You (1967), said
Today Miss Elgin divides her career between advertising and book illustrating. She illustrated The First Book of Japan, The First Book of Poetry, and The Science Book of the Human Body. She both wrote and illustrated The First Book of Mythology.
Kathleen Elgin, who has illustrated over thirty-five books is also an author. Born in Trenton, New Jersey, she studied at the Dayton Art Institute in Ohio and the School of General Studies, Columbia University. A wintertime resident of New York City, Miss Elgin makes her home on New York’s Fire Island during the summer months.Illustrators of Children’s Books, 1957–1966 (1968) said
After graduating from high school in Xenia, Ohio, Kathleen Elgin attended the Dayton Art Institute for two years, studying in Decorative Arts, her interest developing in stained glass. Later she worked in a glass studio for two years on the commission of a History of Medicine window for the Mayo Clinic. During the Second World War she executed technical manuals for the Air Force. She came to New York in 1945 and began free lancing in advertising, turning after six years to the field of book illustration. Since then, she has written as well as illustrated several books. Miss Elgin, who works primarily in black and white, describes her work as representational and decorative. She notes that in the last ten years her style has changed from pure line to half tone, and that she has perfected her dry brush technique. In 1962, she had a one-man show of her dry brush drawings. Miss Elgin lives on Fire Island, New York.According to the bio in The Human Body: The Skeleton (1973), Elgin came to New York in 1944.
Before Elgin began work for a living, she needed a Social Security number. In Ohio, Elgin filed an application in August 1942. She moved to New York and quickly found an assignment. Elgin’s first book, Gay Legends of the Saints, was published in November 1942 by Sheed and Ward.
Science Fiction & Readers Guide and A.D., Summer 1951 said Elgin studied at Grand Central Art School which closed in 1944. A.D. said she also attended Art Career School in the Flatiron Building.
Elgin’s comic book work was not mentioned in the bios. Elgin’s Grand Comics Database credits, including questionable ones, place her in New York as early as 1941. The League of Regrettable Superheroes: Half-Baked Heroes from Comic Book History (2015) claimed Pat Parker, War Nurse was created by Elgin. Secondary Superheroes of Golden Age Comics (2020) questioned Elgin’s involvement with Pat Parker. The character debuted in Speed Comics #13, May 1941. In 1941, Elgin still lived with her parents in Xenia.
Elgin is credited with many stories from 1943 to 1946. Elgin signed the splash page on five stories published in 1945.
Green Hornet Comics #22, January 1945, Blonde Bomber
Green Hornet Comics #22, January 1945, Blonde Bomber
Speed Comics #37, May 1945, Girl Commandos (Original art is here. The cover of War Sirens and Liberty Belles #1, 1991, used part of the splash page and reprinted four of her Girl Commandos stories.)
Elgin’s work on Girl Commandos and the Black Cat was mentioned in Women and the Comics (1985); The Encyclopedia of American Comics (1990), here and here; A Century of Women Cartoonists (1993); The Comic Book Reader’s Companion: An A-to-Z Guide to Everyone’s Favorite Art Form (1993); The Great Women Cartoonists (2001); 500 Great Comic Book Action Heroes (2002); Comic Book Encyclopedia (2004); The Superhero Book: The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Comic-Book Icons and Hollywood Heroes (2004); The Ten-Cent Plague (2008); Women in Science Fiction and Fantasy Volume 1: Overviews (2009); Divas, Dames & Daredevils: Lost Heroines of Golden Age Comics (2013); Pretty in Ink: North American Women Cartoonists 1896–2010 (2013); Comics Through Time: A History of Icons, Idols, and Ideas, Volume 1: 1800–1960 (2014); and Babes in Arms: Women in the Comics During the Second World War (2017).
Elgin’s Girl Commandos art was included in the exhibition, “Wonder Women, on Page and Off”, which opened at the Women’s Museum of California. The exhibit was curated by Trina Robbins from her personal collection and other artists. The show ran from June 7, 2013 to September 1, 2013. In 2014 the exhibit traveled to Pittsburgh’s ToonSeum. The Associated Press article is here.
When the war ended, Elgin pursued book illustration at various publishers. For the Catechetical Guild, Elgin illustrated the books, Wopsy, The Adventures of a Guardian Angel (1946) and Wopsy Again (1947).
The 1950 census counted Elgin (line 25) as a Manhattan, New York City resident in the Ansonia Hotel at 2109 Broadway. She was a freelance book illustrator. Her roommate was Bernice Shepard. The Dispatch, March 6, 1955, said Elgin was Shepard’s maid of honor. Elgin’s parents and sister, Charlene, resided in Northport, New York at 168 Bayview.
The 1950 census counted Elgin (line 25) as a Manhattan, New York City resident in the Ansonia Hotel at 2109 Broadway. She was a freelance book illustrator. Her roommate was Bernice Shepard. The Dispatch, March 6, 1955, said Elgin was Shepard’s maid of honor. Elgin’s parents and sister, Charlene, resided in Northport, New York at 168 Bayview.
Elgin’s books were credited to either Jill Elgin or Kathleen Elgin. In the early 1950s, some of her books include
1950: Lollipop Farm; The Size of It; Ups and Downs; The Wanderings of Wopsy; Wopsy and the Witch Doctor
1951: Let’s Start Cooking
1952: All Ready for Winter; Climb a Lofty Ladder; The News Is Good; Passage to Texas; and Speckles Goes to School
For a brief time, Elgin was art editor of A.D. magazine. The Summer 1951 issue said
For a brief time, Elgin was art editor of A.D. magazine. The Summer 1951 issue said
As this issue goes to press the editorial staff welcomes a new member. Miss Jill Elgin, one of New York’s better commercial artists, becomes our Art Editor. You have seen her work in our previous issues. “Now,” she says, “I intend to introduce the best art talent I can find to the readers of A. D.” She tells us she will welcome correspondence with young artists. Miss Elgin graduated from the Grand [Central] Art School and the Art Career School, specializing in illustration and portrait painting.Elgin illustrated the articles, “A Sense of Belonging” and “Jean Cocteau, The Frivolous Prince”.
Elgin was a contributor to Story Parade magazine. Her art appeared in issues dated May 1952 and October 1952.
In 1952 Elgin visited Europe. She was aboard the ship Nieuw Amsterdam when it departed Havre, France on May 28. One week later, she arrived in New York on June 4.
In the 1950s, Elgin lived on the southeast corner of Ocean Parkway and Superior Street in Ocean Bay Park, New York. Some Manhattan, New York City telephone directories are available at Ancestry.com. Elgin was listed in directories, from 1957 to 1960, at Midway Walk, Ocean Bay Park.
Elgin’s books from 1953 to 1959 include
1953: The Hungriest Robin; It Was All Very Strange; The Mysterious Treasure of Cloud Rock; The Real Book About Bugs, Insects and Such; and Stories of Today
1954: A Dangerous Day for Mrs. Doodlepunk; The First Book of Poetry; Land of Gray Gold: Lead Mining in Wisconsin; and Mixups and Fixups
1955: 365 Bedtime Stories; Best Friends; Dinah Shore Coloring Book; Finding Answers; A Crown for Carly; The First Book of Mythology; Little Men; Little Women; and The Science Book of the Human Body; and Ten-in-One Coloring Book
1956: All Ready for Summer; Away I, Go; The First Book of Norse Legends; Guess and Color Coloring Book ; We Live on a Farm; and A Wish for Billy
1957: All Ready for School; Speckles Goes to School; and Toys to Color
1958: Five-in-One Coloring Book; Little Schoolhouse
1959: Plants That Heal
Elgin’s career overview at Who’s Who of American Comic Books 1928–1999 includes unconfirmed employment at the studio of Joe Simon and Jack Kirby in the 1950s.
In 1952 Elgin visited Europe. She was aboard the ship Nieuw Amsterdam when it departed Havre, France on May 28. One week later, she arrived in New York on June 4.
In the 1950s, Elgin lived on the southeast corner of Ocean Parkway and Superior Street in Ocean Bay Park, New York. Some Manhattan, New York City telephone directories are available at Ancestry.com. Elgin was listed in directories, from 1957 to 1960, at Midway Walk, Ocean Bay Park.
Elgin’s books from 1953 to 1959 include
1953: The Hungriest Robin; It Was All Very Strange; The Mysterious Treasure of Cloud Rock; The Real Book About Bugs, Insects and Such; and Stories of Today
1954: A Dangerous Day for Mrs. Doodlepunk; The First Book of Poetry; Land of Gray Gold: Lead Mining in Wisconsin; and Mixups and Fixups
1955: 365 Bedtime Stories; Best Friends; Dinah Shore Coloring Book; Finding Answers; A Crown for Carly; The First Book of Mythology; Little Men; Little Women; and The Science Book of the Human Body; and Ten-in-One Coloring Book
1956: All Ready for Summer; Away I, Go; The First Book of Norse Legends; Guess and Color Coloring Book ; We Live on a Farm; and A Wish for Billy
1957: All Ready for School; Speckles Goes to School; and Toys to Color
1958: Five-in-One Coloring Book; Little Schoolhouse
1959: Plants That Heal
Elgin’s career overview at Who’s Who of American Comic Books 1928–1999 includes unconfirmed employment at the studio of Joe Simon and Jack Kirby in the 1950s.
Elgin’s books from 1960 to 1969 include
1960: ABC 1-2-3 Dot-to-Dot Coloring Book; Fairy Tales to Read Aloud; Farm Fun Coloring Book; Getting to Know India; Getting to Know Israel; How to Grow House Plants; and The Story of Archaeology in the Americas
1961: ABC 1-2-3, Color and Follow the Dots; ABC Science Series 3; The Adventures of Silly Billy; All Ready for Summer; From This to That; and Underwater Zoos
1962: Attorneys’ Dictionary of Medicine; Farmyard Friends to Color; Grandpa’s Wonderful Glass; James Whitcomb Riley, Hoosier Boy; The Language of Animals; Living in Places Near and Far; My Circus Coloring Book; and The Story of Life: Plants and Animals Through the Ages
1963: Bible Pictures to Color; Ham the Astrochimp; How Animals Live Together; and See This Little Line?
1964: Nun: A Gallery of Sisters; and The Secret Story of Pueblo Bonito
1965: Keeping Your Friends
1966: The Beginnings of the Church; English This Way Book 7; and In the Steps of the Great American Zoologist: William Temple Hornaday
1967: Billions of Years of You; The Human Body: The Brain; Human Body: The Ear; and Human Body: The Eye
1968: Alphabets to Color; The Great Reaching Out: How Living Beings Communicate; The Human Body: The Hand; More Reading 2; and The Quakers: The Religious Society of Friends
1969: Ballet Coloring Book; The Female Reproductive System; The Male Reproductive System; and The Mormons, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
In 1966 Elgin was president of the Ocean Bay Property Owners Association. The Long Island Advance, July 14, 1966, said she presented a petition to the Brookhaven Town Board seeking action to “protect the residents of the beach area from excessive noises and rowdyism during the weekend.”
Elgin’s father passed away on April 21, 1967. An obituary appeared in The Long-Islander, April 27, 1967.
Elgin’s books from 1970 to the early 1980s include
1970: The Episcopalians: The Protestant Episcopal Church; The Human Body: The Respiratory System; Santa’s Paint with Water; and Simple Objects to Color
1971: The Human Body: The Glands; The Human Body: The Skin; and The Unitarians: The Unitarian Universalist Association
1972: The Ups and Downs of Drugs
1973: African Treehouse; The Human Body: The Skeleton; The Human Body: The Digestive System; and Twenty-Eight Days
1974: The Fall Down, Break a Bone, Skin Your Knee, Book; and The Human Body: The Muscles
1979: Baby Mouse Learns His ABC’s
1981: Baby Mouse Goes Shopping
1982: Baby Mouse Goes Searching
1960: ABC 1-2-3 Dot-to-Dot Coloring Book; Fairy Tales to Read Aloud; Farm Fun Coloring Book; Getting to Know India; Getting to Know Israel; How to Grow House Plants; and The Story of Archaeology in the Americas
1961: ABC 1-2-3, Color and Follow the Dots; ABC Science Series 3; The Adventures of Silly Billy; All Ready for Summer; From This to That; and Underwater Zoos
1962: Attorneys’ Dictionary of Medicine; Farmyard Friends to Color; Grandpa’s Wonderful Glass; James Whitcomb Riley, Hoosier Boy; The Language of Animals; Living in Places Near and Far; My Circus Coloring Book; and The Story of Life: Plants and Animals Through the Ages
1963: Bible Pictures to Color; Ham the Astrochimp; How Animals Live Together; and See This Little Line?
1964: Nun: A Gallery of Sisters; and The Secret Story of Pueblo Bonito
1965: Keeping Your Friends
1966: The Beginnings of the Church; English This Way Book 7; and In the Steps of the Great American Zoologist: William Temple Hornaday
1967: Billions of Years of You; The Human Body: The Brain; Human Body: The Ear; and Human Body: The Eye
1968: Alphabets to Color; The Great Reaching Out: How Living Beings Communicate; The Human Body: The Hand; More Reading 2; and The Quakers: The Religious Society of Friends
1969: Ballet Coloring Book; The Female Reproductive System; The Male Reproductive System; and The Mormons, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
In 1966 Elgin was president of the Ocean Bay Property Owners Association. The Long Island Advance, July 14, 1966, said she presented a petition to the Brookhaven Town Board seeking action to “protect the residents of the beach area from excessive noises and rowdyism during the weekend.”
Elgin’s father passed away on April 21, 1967. An obituary appeared in The Long-Islander, April 27, 1967.
Elgin’s books from 1970 to the early 1980s include
1970: The Episcopalians: The Protestant Episcopal Church; The Human Body: The Respiratory System; Santa’s Paint with Water; and Simple Objects to Color
1971: The Human Body: The Glands; The Human Body: The Skin; and The Unitarians: The Unitarian Universalist Association
1972: The Ups and Downs of Drugs
1973: African Treehouse; The Human Body: The Skeleton; The Human Body: The Digestive System; and Twenty-Eight Days
1974: The Fall Down, Break a Bone, Skin Your Knee, Book; and The Human Body: The Muscles
1979: Baby Mouse Learns His ABC’s
1981: Baby Mouse Goes Shopping
1982: Baby Mouse Goes Searching
On August 28, 1979, Elgin’s mother passed away.
Elgin retired in Florida. Her illustration, “Wreck Ashore!”, was reproduced in The Florida Keys Volume 3: The Wreckers (2001).
Elgin retired in Florida. Her illustration, “Wreck Ashore!”, was reproduced in The Florida Keys Volume 3: The Wreckers (2001).
Elgin passed away on January 25, 2005. The Social Security Death Index said her last residence was Key West, Florida.
Further Reading and Viewing
Field Guide to Wild American Pulp Artists
Four-Color Shadows, Girl Commandos
Lambiek Comiclopedia
Who’s Who of American Comic Books 1928–1999
Heritage Auctions, original art
Field Guide to Wild American Pulp Artists
Four-Color Shadows, Girl Commandos
Lambiek Comiclopedia
Who’s Who of American Comic Books 1928–1999
Heritage Auctions, original art
Women in Comics Posts
Barbara Clark Fogel, Laura E. Foster, Evelyn Gaines aka Lynn Lovelace, Merna Gamble, Gerda Gattel, Selma Meyers Gleit, Jane Krom Grammer, Anita Greene,
Anna Kaufman, Bessie Mae Kelley, Nadine French King, Alice Kirkpatrick, Grace Kremer, Ada Levy, Pauline Loth, Veda Lufkin,
Marion McDermott, Emma C. McKean, Tarpé Mills, Claire S. Moe, Phyllis Muchow, Lily Reneé, Ruth Roche,
Georgette Sauterel, Marie Severin, Marcia Snyder, Lora Sprang aka Pat Gordon, Serena Summerfield, Daisy Swayze, Terry Szenics, Claire Szep,
