Eda Blankart Funston with her second daughter, Elizabeth. Kansas State Historical Society
Quick Facts
Significance:
1906 Earthquake, Presidio
Place of Birth:
Ohio
Date of Birth:
1877
Place of Death:
San Francisco, CA
Date of Death:
1932
Place of Burial:
San Francisco, CA
Cemetery Name:
San Francisco National Cemetery
Born in Ohio, Eda Blankart Funston moved to California with her family as a child. Her German-born parents, Otto and Teresa Blankart, were both musicians and music teachers; the Blankart home in San Francisco was a center for musical affairs. Otto Blankart organized the city’s first string quartet and Eda followed in his footsteps to pursue a career in music. She was described as "a woman of marked beauty, great strength of character and a high degree of culture as a musician."
In 1898, soldiers from throughout the United States marshaled at the Presidio in preparation for overseas deployment to fight the Spanish-American War. Among them was Colonel Frederick Funston, leader of the Kansas 20th Infantry Regiment, who met twenty-one-year-old Eda Blankart at a patriotic gathering in the fall of 1898. Following a whirlwind romance, the two were married in Oakland on October 25, 1898. According to Funston, marrying Ms. Blankart was "by all odds the smartest thing I ever did in my life." Just two weeks after the wedding, however, Funston and the Kansas 20th set sail for the Philippines. By this time, the Spanish-American War was over and the mission was expected to be little more than police work. Two weeks after Funston’s arrival in Manila, Eda followed her husband to the Philippines.
Contrary to expectations, however, the Philippines were soon embroiled in a violent guerilla insurgency that challenged the occupying American forces. Late on the evening of February 4, 1899, Funston and Eda found themselves amidst the fighting when the base outposts came under enemy fire. Eda was instructed to go to the barracks; as she later recalled,
"I calmly packed my tooth-brush, towels and other necessities; the other ladies marveled that I should think of such things at such a time, but I had learned a lesson from my husband." Despite the danger, Eda stayed in Manila and remained close to the telegraph operator—always the first to receive news of the Kansas 20th—"while their bullets riddled the very walls of our home."
Frederick and Eda Funston entertaining friends in their parlor. Eda is seated on the far right. Kansas State Historical Society
Under Funston's leadership, the Kansas 20th fought in nineteen battles in less than one year and was heralded as a model regiment. Funston was awarded the Medal of Honor and promoted to Brigadier General of all volunteers, and in June 1899 he and Eda returned to San Francisco to great acclaim. They settled with their young children at the Presidio, where General Funston was second in command to General Adolphus Washington Greely, the commander of the Department of the Pacific.
General Greely was away in the early hours of April 18, 1906, when the Funstons awoke to feel their home shaking on its foundation. When the extent of the damage of the infamous San Francisco earthquake became obvious, General Funston immediately ordered troop mobilization and took personal command of local law enforcement and relief efforts. Though acting without explicit state or national authority, Funston worked quickly to establish communications, sanitation, medical facilities, basic accommodations, and general order in the ravaged city.
As her husband organized relief efforts, Eda worked tirelessly to assist the victims of the earthquake. While fires spread throughout San Francisco, Eda assisted Dora Thompson, the Head Nurse at Letterman Hospital, in caring for the injured. She also directed a nurses' corps at the Presidio. In the aftermath of San Francisco’s greatest natural disaster, no family was more influential than the Funstons in the salvation of the city.
Eda Blankart Funston with sons Frederick II and Arthur Kansas State Historical Society
Eda and the children followed Frederick Funston as his military career led him to bases across the country. In 1917, while stationed at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas, he died of a heart attack at the age of fifty-one. After her husband’s death, Eda remained loyal to the Funston legacy. She remained in San Francisco for the rest of her life and for several years lived with her daughters in the Sea View area near the Presidio. Eda Funston remained active in military, social, and political circles and was especially committed to providing for disabled World War I veterans.
On June 7, 1932, at the age of fifty-five, Eda Blankart Funston suffered a fatal heart attack and died at Letterman Hospital. She was survived by three of her four children—all residents of San Francisco—who lived to see the family name honored throughout the city in such places as Funston Avenue, Funston playground, and Fort Funston.
Resources
"At 5 Foot 4 - the Tallest Man in San Francisco." The Fort Point Salvo, May 1976. Bain, David Haward. Sitting in Darkness: Americans in the Philippines. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1984. Boger, George Dudley. "The Man Who Saved San Francisco." Sunset Magazine,May 1928. Millard, Bailey with Able Assistants. History of the San Francisco Bay Region. Chicago: The American Historical Society, Inc., 1924. Young, Lt. Dave. "Mg. Frederick Funston." Museum of the Kansas National Guard, http://skyways.lib.ks.us/museum/kng/mohfunston.html. "Mrs. Funston, Widow of S.F. General, Dead," San Francisco Chronicle 8 June 1932, page 2. "S.F. Mourns at Mrs. Funston Passing." San Francisco Call, 8 June 1932, page 6. "The Home Life of Our California Girl, Mrs. Fred Funston, Wife of 'Fighting Fred'." San Francisco Call, 22 October 1899. Photos Courtesy of Kansas Historical Society. Copy And Reuse Restrictions Apply.
