Anna P. Buckley (1924–2003) was an American politician who served as a member of the

Massachusetts Senate The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the ...

from 1973 to 1989.

Early life

Buckley was born Anna Hernan on March 21, 1924, in

Brockton, Massachusetts Brockton is a city in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States; the population is 105,643 as of the 2020 United States Census. Along with Plymouth, Massachusetts, Plymouth, it is one of the two county seats of ...

. She was orphaned at the age of 7 and went to live with her mother's cousin. After attending St. Patrick's High School and the Williams School of Business, Buckley joined the

Women's Army Corps The Women's Army Corps (WAC) was the women's branch of the United States Army. It was created as an Auxiliaries, auxiliary unit, the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) on 15 May 1942 and converted to an active duty status in the Army of the U ...

, where she served as a stenographer until the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After the war she returned to Brockton, where she married Daniel Buckley and worked at an insurance agency.

Political career

Buckley's first political involvement came as a volunteer for Joseph H. Downey mayoral campaign in Brockton. During the 1960s she served as an administrative assistant to

Francis X. Bellotti Francis Xavier Bellotti (born May 3, 1923) is an American lawyer and politician. In his first campaign he was the Democratic nominee for District Attorney of Norfolk County in 1958, but was defeated in the general election. In 1962 Bellotti was ...

and

Thaddeus Buczko Thaddeus M. Buczko (February 23, 1926 – March 7, 2021) was an American politician who served as a Salem, Massachusetts city councillor, a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and as Massachusetts Auditor. Additionally, from 19 ...

. In 1971, Buckley was elected to the Brockton city council. She was the first woman elected to the city council. The following year she was a candidate for state senate. She defeated state representative Robert Creedon in the Democratic primary by 84 votes. During her tenure in the Senate, Buckley was a supporter of subsidized day care and veterans' issues and worked to secure funding for

Massasoit Community College Massasoit Community College is a public community college in Brockton, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1966 and named for Massasoit, the Great Sachem of the Wampanoag. Massasoit Community College is accredited by the New England Commission of H ...

. The college named its performing arts center after Buckley. She served as vice-chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee and from 1985 to 1989 was the second assistant majority floor leader.

Personal life and death

Anna and Daniel Buckley had three sons and two daughters. Daniel Buckley died in 1989. Anna Buckley died on May 3, 2003, from complications of cancer and pneumonia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buckley, Anna 1924 births 2003 deaths 20th-century American politicians United States Army personnel of World War II Democratic Party Massachusetts state senators Politicians from Brockton, Massachusetts 20th-century American women politicians Women state legislators in Massachusetts 21st-century American women