Ella Florence Fondren

Ella Florence Fondren (née Cochrum; June 1, 1880 – May 3, 1982) was a philanthropist to hospitals and institutions of higher learning.

Ella Florence Fondren was born on June 1, 1880, to Allen Cathy and Mary (Pogue) Cochrum in Hazel, Kentucky.

After the death of her father in 1895, she left school to care for the family and work in their boardinghouse.

Ella assumed some of Walter's directorships, continuing a long relationship with Southern Methodist University by taking a seat on its board of trustees and governors, a position that she held for three decades.

Her family granted $1 million for the Walter W. Fondren Library at Rice University in 1946.