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life | ruth ellis
TEXT BY ELLEN LUPTON
Born in Springfield, Illinois, in 1899, Ruth El- lis became the first woman in Michigan to run her own printing company. Ellis, whose mother died when she was twelve years old, lived openly as a lesbian throughout her life. She brought girlfriends home as
a teenager, and her father accepted her sexuality without judgment.
In 1937, Ellis moved to Detroit with her partner, Ceciline “Babe” Franklin. They started the Ellis and Franklin Printing Com- pany in the front room of their house. Ellis later recalled, “I was working for a printer and I said to myself, if I can do this for him, how come I can’t do it for myself?”
Ellis and Franklin’s home was both a let- terpress printshop and a vibrant gathering place—known as “The Spot”—for Detroit’s
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African American queer community. Ellis and Franklin offered assistance to young people in need of food, books, or a place to stay. The couple parted ways in the 1960s.
When Ellis was seventy years old, the Stonewall Riots erupted in New York City, bringing new power and visibility to the fight for LGBTQIA+ rights. Ellis joined the burgeoning movement, appearing at national events and speaking out for gay and lesbian equality. On her one-hundredth birthday, Ellis led the annual dyke march
in San Francisco in 1998. She died at age 101. Today, the Ruth Ellis Center in Detroit carries on the legacy of this remarkable activist and businesswoman by serving the city’s at-risk LGBTQIA+ youth.
RUTH ELLIS In her printshop, Ruth Ellis produced letterheads, fliers, posters, and raffle tickets for churches and businesses using a platen press, also called a jobber. This type of press was commonly used in small printing establishments.
SOURCES Terrance Heath, “Over the Course of 101 Years, the Nation’s Longest-Lived Lesbian Was Always Out & Proud,” LGBTQ Nation, Feb 13, 2019 >lgbtqnation.com/2019/02/course- 101-years-nations-longest-lived-lesbian-always-proud/;
Jason A. Michael, “Ruth Ellis: A Century Worth of History,” Pride Source, May 2, 2003 >pridesource.com/article/11497.