Blanche General Ely was one of Pompano Beach's pre-eminent educators and black leaders. Mrs. Ely was born in Reddick, Florida on December 7, 1904. Blanche Ely earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at Florida A&M University in Tallahassee and received a master’s degree in Educational Administration and Supervision at Columbia University in New York. She also held a bachelor’s degree in “Life Instructions,” from a program jointly sponsored by Florida A&M University and Benedict College.

In 1923 Mrs. Ely was named principal of what was then called the “Pompano Colored School.”  The two-room wooden building was destroyed by the 1926 Miami hurricane. After the school building was destroyed, Mrs. Ely was the catalyst behind raising funds to build a much larger, 6-classroom school which opened in 1928. Many years later when segregation was at its highest, and when Pompano Beach’s population began to grow, Mrs. Ely petitioned for a new public high school. Ely also worked to gain accreditation for the school along with building the curriculum. She also strongly believed in athletics as being a way for the overall betterment of student success.  Ely established basketball teams and later football teams so they could compete with other Black schools in and around Broward, Dade, and Palm Beach Counties. When she organized those teams, they started calling themselves Blanche Ely High. In 1954, after the high school was built in Northwest Pompano Beach, graduates and others fought successfully to have the school renamed Blanche Ely High School in her honor. 

She served as principal from 1951-1970. She retired in 1970 when a federal desegregation order closed Blanche Ely High School. Principal Ely and other community leaders filed suit, and the school re-opened as an integrated school in 1974. As an educator, she emphasized academic programs and inspired young teachers and administrators to continue her work. She was instrumental in securing funding for four new schools, and recommended principals and names for them: Pompano Migrant School, Coleman Elementary School, Markham Elementary School, and Sanders Park Elementary School.

Mrs. Ely along with her husband sponsored the first federally funded lunch program in Broward County. The Blanche Ely House, which is the home to Blanche and Joseph Ely is now a historical home devoted to preserving, sharing, and promoting the rich history, culture, and contributions of Blanche General Ely. The Blanche Ely House is owned by the City of Pompano Beach, in which the city completed renovations to the historic former home and opened the home to the public on March 20, 2019.  Ely's unwavering commitment to social action and education is felt even to this day at Blanche Ely High School in Pompano Beach.

Mrs. Blanche General Ely passed away in December of 1993.