Zilfa Estcourt

Zilfa Estcourt (born Zilpha Eugenie Phillips, May 3, 1883 – December 17, 1959) was an American newspaper columnist and editor. Described variously as "the dean of west coast woman writers" and as being "to newspapers what Ethel Barrymore is to the stage," Estcourt was the women's editor at the Tacoma Tribune and San Francisco Chronicle.

Early life and career On May 3, 1883, Zilpha Eugenie Phillips was born in Black River Falls, Wisconsin, the oldest of four children born to Thomas Henry Phillips and Emma Eugenie Jesse. Sometime between 1991 and 1900, the family relocated to Tacoma, Washington, and, in 1904, Pillips received a Bachelor of Art's degree from Whitworth College in Spokane. At that time, she was awarded a scholarship to the University of Chicago, where she earned her master's degree the following year.

Death On December 17, 1959, Estcourt, whose health had been failing since her retirement in 1949, died in a San Francisco nursing home.