This article will be permanently flagged as inappropriate and made unaccessible to everyone. Are you certain this article is inappropriate? Excessive Violence Sexual Content Political / Social
Email Address:
Article Id: WHEBN0014796507 Reproduction Date:
Nelle Clyde Wilson Reagan (July 24, 1883 – July 25, 1962) was the mother of United States President Ronald Reagan (1911–2004) and his older brother Neil "Moon" Reagan (1908–1996).
Nelle was of Scots-English ancestry, the oldest of seven children[1] born to Mary Ann (née Elsey) and Thomas Wilson.[2] She met Jack Reagan in a farm town along the Illinois prairie. The two were married in Fulton, Illinois in November 1904.[3] They had two children: Neil "Moon" Reagan and Ronald Wilson Reagan. After the birth of her second son, Nelle was told not to have any more children.[4] The Reagan family moved from Tampico to many small Illinois towns, and Chicago, depending on Jack's employment.
Ronald Reagan wrote that his mother "always expected to find the best in people and often did".[3] She attended the Disciples of Christ church regularly and was active, and very influential, within it; she frequently led Sunday school services and gave the Bible readings to the congregation during the services. A strong believer in the power of prayer, she led prayer meetings at church and was in charge of mid-week prayers when the pastor was out of town.[5] Her strong commitment to the church is what induced her son Ronald to become a Protestant Christian rather than a Roman Catholic like his father.[1] He also stated that she strongly influenced his own beliefs: "I know that she planted that faith very deeply in me."[6] For example, Ronald Reagan attended Eureka College, founded by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in 1855. While pursuing the degree he earned in economics-sociology in 1932, Ronald Reagan continued to be surrounded with the same faith his mother had introduced in his life.
Due to her influence within the church community, one member of the congregation said that "Many of us believed Nelle Reagan had the gift to heal", and fellow churchgoer Mildred Neer recalled Reagan's strong passion for prayer:
Aside from her work with the church, Nelle acted in many plays. One 1926 review of the play The Ship of Faith said, "Mrs. Reagan is one of Dixon's favorite readers and has appeared before many audiences, always greatly pleasing them."[8]
In 1938, after both Neil and Ronald Reagan had moved to California, Ronald bought his parents a new home in Hollywood; it was the first home they had ever owned.[9] Nelle's life also changed after her husband Jack's death on May 18, 1941, leaving her widowed. She maintained her connections to the church in Dixon and began working at a tuberculosis sanitarium in Southern California.[10] In her later years, however, Nelle had problems with her physical health and senility (later diagnosed as Alzheimer's disease).[10] Speaking of her illness, she said "I just kept my mind on God."[11] Nelle died from complications of the disease on July 25, 1962, aged 79.
Jimmy Carter, Richard Nixon, Republican Party (United States), Gerald Ford, Berlin Wall
San Francisco Bay Area, San Jose, California, Arizona, Sacramento, California, Los Angeles
Judaism, Christianity, Hebrew Bible, Biblical canon, Torah
American Civil War, Kentucky, Christianity, Restoration Movement, Indianapolis
United Kingdom, Angles, Cornwall, Isle of Man, English language
Ronald Reagan, Canada, Neil Reagan, London, Cold War
Ronald Reagan, California, United States, Eureka College, Cold War
National Register of Historic Places, Ronald Reagan, United States, Historic districts in the United States, Tampico, Illinois
Ronald Reagan, Cold War, California, United States presidential election, 1976, United States presidential election, 1980