Timberg, Eleanor Ernst

Eleanor Ernst was born in New York City in 1913. She graduated from Horace Mann School, received a B.A. from Smith College in 1934, and a certificate in political science from the London School of Economics in 1935. She worked as secretary to the editor of Encyclopedia Britannica from 1935-38; for Louis Finkelstein, chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary from 1938-40; and conducted weekly radio programs on Jewish holidays for WNYX. In 1940 she married Sigmund Timberg, a lawyer who worked in the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration. She knew Alger Hiss and her diaries were subpoenaed by Joseph McCarthy to support his contention that certain social events she attended were actually meetings for Communist-front organizations. She co-founded Touch Toys, a business that makes surgical dolls for children and toys for people with developmental disabilities, in 1972.

From the guide to the Eleanor Ernst Timberg Papers MS 308., 1930-2002, (Sophia Smith Collection)

Secretary; Volunteer; Radio broadcaster; Businesswoman.

Eleanor Ernst was born in New York City in 1913. She graduated from Horace Mann School, received a B.A. from Smith College in 1934, and a certificate in political science from the London School of Economics in 1935. She worked as secretary to the editor of Encyclopedia Britannica from 1935-38; for Louis Finkelstein, chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary from 1938-40; and conducted weekly radio programs on Jewish holidays for WNYX. In 1940 she married Sigmund Timberg, a lawyer who worked in the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration. She knew Alger Hiss and her diaries were subpoenaed by Joseph McCarthy to support his contention that certain social events she attended were actually meetings for Communist-front organizations. She co-founded Touch Toys, a business that makes surgical dolls for children and toys for people with developmental disabilities, in 1972.

From the description of Eleanor Ernst Timberg Papers, 1930-2002. (Smith College). WorldCat record id: 181591740