[1] Life insurance of US$200,000 along with property in Phoenix and monies from her husband's onyx mine left her financially secure for many years to follow.

Eugene was a Phoenix-based lawyer who served two terms in the Council (upper house) of the Arizona Territorial Legislature before he committed suicide in 1918.

O'Neill set out to establish a nonpartisan club known as the Phoenix Civic League that assisted in this ballot initiative to collects signatures.

[5][7] O'Neill's first government position came with an appointment to the Yavapai County Board of Examiners in charge of teacher certification which she served as a member for from 1895 to 1899.

[7][9] As a member of the legislature she supported a variety of children's and women's issues, including her vote for ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

She remained active in a variety of civic and charitable causes, even winning a commendation from the American Red Cross for her aid to soldiers and their families during the Second World War.