Fantinekill Cemetery
FANTINEKILL NOTABLES
Dr. Alice Divine
1868-1950
Alice Divine was born in Ellenville, NY on January 20th, 1868. She was the great-granddaughter of noted Quaker abolitionist Mehetabel (Hall) Divine, and the daughter of Dwight and Millicent J. (Hatch) Divine.
Alice was very active in the political community, serving on the Ulster County Republican Central Committee. She also served on the Ulster County Equal Suffrage Committee, a subcommittee of the New York State Woman Suffrage Association. Only in her mid-twenties in 1894, Alice helped collect the signatures and estate values of those in support of suffrage in Wawarsing, the town where she lived. Due to the hard work of Alice and her peers, Wawarsing was one of the top 3 towns in Ulster County for signatures collected in that year.
On June 6, 1900, Alice Divine graduated from Cornell University and received her degree as a Doctor of Medicine. She quickly became focused on the safety of others, especially children, and served on the New York State Board of Child Welfare. She was well known for her compassionate care and charitable efforts.
Due to an incident at the 1906 Ulster County Fair, Alice Divine became a national name. During an aerial trapeze act by Maggie Dailey, a female bystander named Mary S. Roper got her foot caught in a rope tied to an unanchored hot air balloon and was pulled into the air with the balloon. Accounts say she was raised anywhere from 500 to 1000 feet until she was finally released a few feet from the ground. She was rushed to Dr. Divine’s home in the aftermath with a broken hand, cuts, and bruises but ultimately made a full recovery. This story made headlines around the country, appearing in newspapers from New York to Colorado.
The Walsenburg World Article on Alice Divine and Mrs. Roper (September 21st, 1906)
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