Growing up a missionary’s daughter in Honolulu, Elizabeth found herself in full charge of her four siblings at age eleven on the death of her mother. It was not until high school that she had her first art class. In spite of this challenging start, Strong ascended to become the first professional woman artist to paint the Monterey coast, completed an envious arts education in Europe, earned an international reputation as “America’s Rosa Bonheur” for her intimate portraits of animals, and had her talents praised by the renowned James McNeill Whistler. In 1919 she purchased a small studio cottage in Carmel and was a founding member of the Carmel Art Association in 1927. In 1934 the Pine Cone named Strong along with Jennie Cannon and Mary DeNeale Morgan as among the “twelve women who have helped immortalize Carmel” by encouraging and supporting the arts.