Annie Rensselaer Tinker

Annie Rensselaer Tinker was an American suffragist, volunteer nurse, and philanthropist. The daughter of wealthy parents, she sailed to Europe to volunteer as a nurse in World War I, three years before the United States joined the war. Upon her death at the age of 39, Tinker left her sizeable estate to form the Annie R. Tinker Memorial Fund nonprofit organization, whose mission is to provide financial assistance to elderly retired women. The organization was later renamed the Annie Tinker Association for Women and remained active until 2018.

Early life and education

Tinker was born in New York City, New York to the wealthy family of Henry Chapman Tinker, a successful banker and president of Liberty National Bank, and Louise Larocque Tinker. Annie's brother was Edward Larocque Tinker, a writer and philanthropist. Tinker is the granddaughter of Joseph Larocque, a New York City lawyer. Growing up, her family spent summers in Setauket, New York, where Tinker learned to sail. Tinker spent a year at Brearley School, a private all-girls school, from 1896 to 1897.

Women's suffrage

Tinker's family wealth allowed her to focus on social issues, including women's suffrage. As a young adult, Tinker joined the Woman's Political Union, an organization dedicated to promoting women's rights. Tinker was a practiced equestrian, and organized multiple parades and marches of women on horseback in support of a woman's right to vote:

In 1911, Tinker led a "women's cavalry" of suffragists in horseback to march in parades In 1912, Tinker led a parade of 30,000 suffragists down Fifth Avenue In May 1913, Tinker and her cavalry marched in the New York City suffrage parade

Tinker was also known to comment on a woman's involvement in wartime, making statements about the need for women to fight alongside men, "scandaliz[ing] elite society" with these comments.

World War I

At the start of World War I in 1914, three years before the United States joined the war, Tinker sailed herself to Europe to volunteer with the British Red Cross. She served as a nurse, working on the front lines in Belgium, France, and Italy. She was placed in charge of a hospital in Ostend, Belgium. The hospital was overtaken by Germans soldiers during her time as director.

For her services during the war, the French government awarded her a medal of honor in 1921. The fund remained active until 2018, when it legally transferred its assets to The New York Community Trust. A new fund was created in Tinker's name to continue her charitable mission.