Background
Born in Woonsocket, South Dakota, she grew up on her family"s farm. Her mother died when she was only 12, leaving her and her twin sister Ila responsible for the upkeep of the household and the raising of their younger sister.
Born in Woonsocket, South Dakota, she grew up on her family"s farm. Her mother died when she was only 12, leaving her and her twin sister Ila responsible for the upkeep of the household and the raising of their younger sister.
This instilled within her a longstanding sense of compassion for the hardships of others As a teenager, Eleanor was interested in political and social issues and joined debate teams, first at Woonsocket High School and later during her one year at Dakota Wesleyan University. They met again and fell in love while both were at Dakota Wesleyan, and became engaged, but decided not to marry until World World War II was over.
However, then they decided to get married, on October 31, 1943, while on three-day leave in a ceremony at a small Methodist church in Woonsocket with George"s father presiding.
Financial difficulties would force her to withdraw from college, but she soon found work as a legal secretary. Eleanor McGovern followed him to number of training stops, before he was sent into combat overseas as a B-24 bomber pilot stationed in Italy.
McGovern"s flight crew recommended naming their plane the Dakota Queen for Eleanor. During the campaign, The Eleanor McGovern Cookbook: a Collection of South Dakota Family Favorites was published.
George McGovern was defeated by Richard Nixon in 1972.
She published her own memoir, Uphill: A Personal Story, in 1974. After her husband"s defeat for the presidency, and later defeat for a fourth Senate term in 1980, Eleanor remained active, particularly in combating world hunger. Eleanor McGovern died on January 25, 2007, aged 85.
She was buried in Rock Creek Cemetery in Washington, District of Columbia