Marion Langan Munley (August 19, 1905 – September 14, 1983) was among the first women elected to the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

. She established multiple precedents for women in Pennsylvania public life and was a prominent leader in her community.

Life

Marion L. Munley was born in Buffalo,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, on August 19, 1905, to Martin and Julia Walsh Langan. A graduate of St. John's High School, Munley attended Marywood College (now

Marywood University Marywood University is a private Catholic university in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Established in 1915 by the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Marywood currently enrolls more than 2,800 students in a variety of undergraduate, gradu ...

) and the Powell School of Business in Scranton,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. In the 1920s, she served as secretary for U.S. Rep.

Patrick J. Boland Patrick Joseph Boland (January 6, 1880 – May 18, 1942) was a United States representative for Pennsylvania 11th District. Biography Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to Irish immigrants, he attended St. Thomas College (now the University of Sc ...

and the "Hoban for Judge" campaigns. She became an active member of the Democratic Party, spearheading many Democratic functions in Lackawanna County. She married Democratic Pennsylvania Rep.

Robert W. Munley Robert W. Munley (April 16, 1906 – January 25, 1947) was an American politician. Munley was born in Archbald, Pennsylvania and graduated from Archbald High School. He attended St. Thomas College, now the University of Scranton and worked for ...

, whose father, William J. Munley, also served in the Pennsylvania General Assembly from 1939 to 1947. The couple had two sons, Robert W. Munley Jr., a prominent truck accident attorney, and the Honorable James M. Munley, a federal district court judge.

Political career

Following her husband's death on January 25, 1947, Munley became the first woman to represent Lackawanna County in the state house after winning a special election on September 9, 1947. She was reelected eight times after. Munley was the co-author of House Bill 66 (1959), also known as the Equal Pay for Women Act, which prohibited “the discrimination in rate of pay of sex conferring powers and imposing duties on the Department of Labor and Industry.” Pennsylvania Governor David L. Lawrence signed the act into law on December 17, 1959. Munley served on the Commission on Interstate Cooperation from 1961-1962. She was instrumental in the development of industry in Lackawanna County and in the process of developing the Archbald Glacial Pothole area into a state park. She was also a determined proponent of labor legislation and equal pay for women in Pennsylvania. In 1963-1964, she was elected as the Minority Caucus Secretary, the first woman to be elected to a leadership position in the Democratic caucus. From 1965-1966, she became Secretary of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, the first and only woman to hold that position.

Other political activities

Munley was a member of the Young Democrats of Lackawanna County, the Blakely Democratic Club, the Jermyn Democratic Club, and the Women's Democratic Club of Mayfield. She founded the 20th Ward Women’s Democratic Association. Munley was instrumental in the development of industry in Lackawanna County, and in the process of developing the Archbald Glacial Pothole area into a state park. She was also a determined proponent of labor legislation and equal pay for women in Pennsylvania.

Death

Munley died on September 15, 1983, in her home of 50 years in Archbald, Pennsylvania.

Legacy

In 1987, Munley became the first woman to have her portrait hung in the Pennsylvania State Capitol. The oil portrait was a gift of her sons to Pennsylvania House of Representatives Speaker K. Leroy Irvis. It is the only portrait of a female Member of the state General Assembly owned by the House of Representatives. The portrait is currently hanging in the Member's Lounge. The Honorable Marion L. Munley Endowed Scholarship, established at

by Munley's family in her honor, is presented to a student interested in law and/or public service. Munley was included in the Distinguished Citizens Memorial in Scranton, PA, in October 2021, joining Robert Casey Sr., William Scranton, Joseph M. McDade, and Michael Eagen. Her monument is on display at the Lackawanna County Courthouse. She is the first and only woman who has received the honor. On July 1, 2024, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives adopted a resolution recognizing Munley as the first woman to be elected state representative from northeastern Pennsylvania. House Resolution 339 designated Aug. 19, 2024, as "Marion Munley Day" in Pennsylvania. �
First NEPA woman elected to state House honored by Probst resolution
" pahouse.com, July 2, 2024

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Munley, Marion L. Women state legislators in Pennsylvania Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives 1905 births 1983 deaths Politicians from Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania Politicians from Buffalo, New York Marywood University alumni 20th-century American legislators 20th-century American women politicians 20th-century Pennsylvania politicians