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Pearl Anderson Wanamaker

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Pearl Anderson Wanamaker
A white woman with coiffed dark hair
Pearl Anderson Wanamaker, from a 1944 newspaper
Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction
In office
1941–1956
GovernorArthur B. Langlie
Monrad Wallgren
Arthur B. Langlie
Preceded byStanley F. Atwood
Succeeded byLloyd J. Andrews
Member of the Washington Senate
from the 38th district
In office
January 9, 1937 (appointed) –
December 7, 1940 (resigned)
Preceded byL.E. Tewksbury
Succeeded byHoward S. Bargreen
Member of the Washington House of Representatives
from the 38th district
In office
January 9, 1933 – January 9, 1937
Serving with J. F. Koehler (1933 – 1935)
C. E. McIntosh (1933, resigned Dec. 7)
D. N. Judson (1933 Ex. S.)
Richard W. Bowden (1935 – 1937)
Clemens M. Boyle(1935 – 1937)
Preceded byFred A. Johnson
John Henry Ryan
Succeeded byErnest A. Dore, Jr.
Dan L. Guisinger
Chart Pitt
Member of the Washington Senate
from the 50th district
In office
January 14, 1929 – January 12, 1931
Preceded byP. P. Custer
Succeeded byAlbert Hoffman
Personal details
Born
Pearl Anderson

January 18, 1899
Mabana, Washington, U.S.
DiedDecember 4, 1984(1984-12-04) (aged 85)
Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
OccupationTeacher

Pearl Anderson Wanamaker (January 18, 1899 – December 4, 1984) was an American educator and politician. She served in the Washington State Legislature from 1928 to 1940. She was also Washington's Superintendent of Public Instruction from 1941 to 1957. She was president of the National Education Association.

Early life and education

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Pearl Anderson was born on Camano Island, at Mabana, Washington, the daughter of Nils Anderson and Johanna Wellman Anderson. The town of Mabana was named for her older sister, Mabel.[1] Her parents were both immigrants, from Sweden and Finland; her father was a timber broker who also served a term in the state legislature. She attended the University of Washington, completing a bachelor's degree in 1922, after some years teaching; she also attended summer teacher training courses at Bellingham Normal School.[2]

Career

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Wanamaker was a rural school teacher as a young woman, when World War I created an emergency demand for teachers. She was elected superintendent of schools for Island County in 1923. She served in the Washington state legislature for three non-consecutive terms, beginning in 1928.[3] In 1935, she cut the ribbon to open the Deception Pass Bridge, a project she championed in the legislature. She ran unsuccessfully for a Congressional seat in 1936.[2]

Wanamaker was appointed to a seat in the state senate in 1937, then won the seat in a 1938 election, but resigned in 1940 to become State Superintendent of Public Instruction.[4][5] She held that office for sixteen years, through World War II and the post-war boom.[6][7] Her tenure as state superintendent saw district consolidations in Washington, support for public school nurses, more public kindergartens, more school bus services, and the establishment of special education programs in the public schools.[8] She opposed the use of state and federal funds for students enrolled in private and parochial schools.[9] During the same period, 1941 to 1957, she was chair of the Washington State Library Commission. From 1946 to 1950, she served on the U.S. Education Mission to Japan, appointed by Douglas MacArthur. She testified at a Congressional hearing on federal aid for school construction in 1950.[10] In 1956 she participated in the White House Conference on Education.[11]

In 1956, Wanamaker defended the rights of a school counselor, Margaret Jean Schuddakopf, who was fired for invoking her Fifth Amendment rights in an inquiry about her Communist affiliations. A nationally syndicated radio commentator confused Wanamaker with Schuddakopf, and told his audience that Wanamaker had a brother who was a Communist. He admitted the mistake, and she won an apology and cash damages, but her career was ended by the scandal and ensuing lawsuits and countersuits.[12] She lost her bid for re-election in 1956.[2][13]

Wanamaker was president of the National Education Foundation from 1946 to 1947.[14] She chaired the Washington State Council for UNESCO in 1950.[15] In her later years, she served on the Washington State Arts Commission.[2] Tacoma Community College opened the Pearl A. Wanamaker Library in 1966.[16][11] She said at the opening, "I think this day sort of puts the top on a very interesting life."[17] The Library was named for her because of the stand she had made in defence of Schuddakopf and for her support for founding the college.[16] Other honors came from the American Association of School Administrators,[18] Altrusa International,[19] the Zonta Club of Seattle, Michigan State University, and Seattle B'nai B'rith.

Wanamaker wrote a textbook, Short Stories of Famous Women (1949).[20]

Personal life

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Pearl Anderson married Canadian-born civil engineer Lemuel Avard Wanamaker in 1927. They had three children, Robert,[21] James, and Joanna, born in 1932, 1933, and 1934, respectively; she remained in public office through her pregnancies, crediting "good posture...and a good girdle" for concealing her condition.[2] She was widowed in 1964,[22] had a stroke in 1974,[23] and she died in 1984, in Seattle, aged 85 years.[24] Her papers are held in the University of Washington Libraries.[25]

References

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  1. ^ Meany, Edmond S. (1923). Origin of Washington geographic names. Seattle: University of Washington Press. p. 156 – via Hathi Trust.
  2. ^ a b c d e Hood, Michael (September 26, 2009). "Wanamaker, Pearl Anderson (1899-1984)". HistoryLink. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  3. ^ "Pearl A. Wanamaker". Spokane Chronicle. June 29, 1944. p. 3. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Pearl A. Wanamaker". Washington State Government: Celebrating 100 Years of Women in the Legislature. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  5. ^ "State of Washington: Members of the Legislature 1889-2019" (PDF). Washington Legislative Information Center. Brad Hendrickson, Secretary of the Senate; Bernard C. Dean, Chief Clerk House of Representatives. February 2019. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  6. ^ "Facts Given on Candidates for School Superintendent". The Spokesman-Review. October 31, 1952. p. 3. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Asserts Budget May Cheat Pupil; Mrs. Wanamaker Attacks Appropriation of $6,500,000". The Spokesman-Review. April 6, 1949. p. 6. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Wanamaker, Andrews Air Positions at 'Town Meeting'". The Spokesman-Review. September 8, 1956. p. 38. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Wanamaker Told Blind Students Can't Be Deprived Reading Aids -- in Any School". The Catholic Northwest Progress. October 26, 1951. p. 1. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Washington Digital Newspapers.
  10. ^ United States Congress House Education and Labor (1950). Federal Aid to School Construction. Hearings...on H.R. 1551. pp. 126–138.
  11. ^ a b Crooks, Jennifer (January 18, 2022). "People in Public Service: Washington's 'Fighting Lady' Pearl A. Wanamaker, Superintendent of Public Instruction". ThurstonTalk. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  12. ^ "Radio Stations Sued for Libel". Mirror News. January 2, 1957. p. 18. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Voelpel, Dan (December 8, 1984). "Superintendent stood against passions of times". The News Tribune. p. 13. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Cincinnati: A Notable Meeting". NEA Journal. 36: 431. September 1947 – via Internet Archive.
  15. ^ "Washington State Council". UNESCO News. 4: 11. 1950.
  16. ^ a b Nicholson, Nicole, and Jason Kaye. "What's in a Name: Pearl A. Wanamaker Library" Tacoma Community College.
  17. ^ Coleman, Dale (January 22, 2015). The Open Door: A History of Tacoma Community College. Tacoma Community College. ISBN 978-0-692-36424-6.
  18. ^ American Association of School Administrators (1949). Official report; including a record of the national convention. George A. Smathers Libraries University of Florida. Washington D.C. American Association of School Administrators. pp. 34–36 – via Internet Archive.
  19. ^ "Altrusa to Homor Mrs. Wanamaker". The News Tribune. September 11, 1947. p. 12. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ Wanamaker, Pearl A. (1949). Short Stories of Famous Women. Literary Licensing, LLC. ISBN 978-1-258-91473-8.
  21. ^ Beers, Carole (January 3, 1998). "Robert Wanamaker 'Knew The History Of The Area And Could Tell You Everything'". The Seattle Times. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  22. ^ "Lemuel Wanamaker Dies in Seattle". The Bellingham Herald. May 17, 1964. p. 4. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ^ Whitney, Marci (August 29, 1976). "Spirited Fighter Battle for Kids". The News Tribune. p. 40. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ^ Pyle, Jack (December 8, 1984). "Teacher of Courage: Wanamaker's Life a Lesson". The News Tribune. p. 13. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ Pearl A. Wanamaker Papers, University of Washington Libraries.
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