Eunice Viola Babcock Miller was born on January 25, 1937, on a farm near Washington, Iowa. She was the daughter of Nathan L. Babcock, a respected local stock buyer, and Ophelia (Smith) Babcock. In 1876 the family moved into the town of Washington.
In 1876 Eunice Miller attended local public schools and the Washington Academy. After graduating from Iowa Wesleyan College (now Iowa Wesleyan University) in Mount Pleasant, she taught in rural schools in Washington County.
In 1928 Eunice Miller endorsed Democratic candidate Alfred E. Smith for president. In 1932 she endorsed Democratic candidate Franklin Roosevelt after interviewing him in New York City for the Des Moines Register. That year, in recognition of her work for the party and to honor her husband, the Iowa Democratic Party nominated her as its candidate for secretary of state. Eunice Miller consented to be on the ballot because it would "please Alex," and she was willing to be a martyr for the cause (given the historical unlikelihood of electing a Democrat to statewide office in Iowa). Her son-in-law George Gallup got his start in political polling by correctly predicting her election victory.
When Eunice Miller was elected in 1932, the Motor Vehicle Department was a division of the Secretary of State’s office, with 15 employees who were primarily license inspectors. Eunice Miller who learned just before her term began that a close friend’s young son had been killed in a traffic accident, immediately set out to improve motor vehicle safety. Without legislative authorization or support, she reassigned the duties of her 15 Motor Vehicle Department employees. Each man was assigned to patrol several counties for unsafe vehicles and reckless drivers. "From now on," she said, "save lives first, money afterward." She instructed the men to be courteous, give roadside assistance, and spread the word about highway safety. A widespread campaign of public programs and speeches called attention to the new work, and its dramatic success in reducing accidents and injuries on the state’s high-ways enabled her to convince the legislature to pass a bill in 1935 establishing the Iowa State Highway Patrol and authorizing a training camp for recruits.
Many had thought Miller’s election to state office was a fluke, but she was easily reelected in 1934, and in 1936 Eunice Miller received more votes than any previous candidate in Iowa history. Meanwhile, polls showed that the State High-way Patrol was second only to God in Iowa’s public esteem. She never stopped working for highway safety. Late in 1935, Eunice Miller began a campaign against drunk drivers. Even after she became ill early in her third term of office, she continued to give safety speeches. When she was hospitalized, she asked that her "boys not send flowers," but they did so in great quantities "the first time," she commented, "they’ve ever been guilty of insubordination."
After Eunice Miller died on January 24, 1937, more than 3,000 people viewed her body, and all 55 Highway Patrol officers attended her funeral in the Methodist church in Washington to serve as pallbearers. Governor Nelson Kraschel called Miller’s passing "a distinct loss to the state of Iowa - As a public official she possessed the exceptional ability and in her official position she endeared herself in the hearts of more people in a shorter time than any official in the history of Iowa.” Coworkers attributed her success as an administrator to "her man-like ability to pick department heads she believed capable, demand results, but refrain from interfering with the petty details of administration herself."
Eunice Miller was active in the Methodist church.
Eunice Miller was active in the 19th Century Club, and the Daughters of the American Revolution, and was a local, state, and national president of the PEO.
In 1895 Eunice Miller married Alex Miller, editor of the Washington Democrat, a local weekly newspaper. Although both Eunice and Alex came from Republican families, Alex was active in Democratic politics at the local and state levels, including an unsuccessful campaign for governor in 1926.
After his death in 1927, Eunice Miller became active in politics, traveling the state on behalf of the Iowa Democratic Party and social reform causes and encouraging women to take advantage of the 19th Amendment and exercise their voting rights.
