Mary Plumb Blade (20 January 1913 – 4 December 1994) was an American engineer, director of the Green Camp from 1955 to 1972, and full-time professor of

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and ...

in the engineering school of

The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art (Cooper Union) is a private college at Cooper Square in New York City. Peter Cooper founded the institution in 1859 after learning about the government-supported École Polytechnique in ...

from 1946 to 1978.

Early life and education

Mary Frances Plumb was born on 20 January 1913 in Salt Lake City to Maude Irene (nee Augustine) and Hylon Theron Plumb, an electrical engineer. She graduated with a B.S. in engineering from the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

, the first woman to do so, and an M.S. in

industrial engineering Industrial engineering is an engineering profession that is concerned with the optimization of complex process (engineering), processes, systems, or organizations by developing, improving and implementing integrated systems of people, money, kno ...

from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

. She was a member of the Delta Delta Delta sorority.

Career

At the time of her appointment as a professor, Blade was "the only woman on the Cooper Union engineering faculty (where she initially taught drawing, mathematics and design) and one of few women on any engineering faculty in the United States". Her obituary stated that she was the first woman professor of mechanical/electrical engineering in New York City. Mary Blade helped organize the May 27–28, 1950 inaugural weekend of the

Society of Women Engineers The Society of Women Engineers (SWE) is an international not-for-profit educational and service organization. Founded in 1950 and headquartered in the United States, the Society of Women Engineers is a major advocate for women in engineering and ...

Cooper Union The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art (Cooper Union) is a private college at Cooper Square in New York City. Peter Cooper founded the institution in 1859 after learning about the government-supported École Polytechnique in ...

's Green Engineering Camp. In 1978, Blade was featured in ''Chair: The current state of the art, with the who, the why, and the what of it'' by Peter Bradford and Barbara Prete with a chapter titled "Physical Forces and Damages, Your Sitting Behavior, ''Move.''" In 1980, the Engineering Design Graphics Division of the American Society for Engineering Education awarded Blade its Distinguished Service Award.

Personal life

Mary Plumb married engineer Ellis Hardin Blade (1908–1986) on 31 December 1934 in Manhattan, New York and was known as Mary Blade or Mary Plumb Blade after this time. They were married for 62 years. Blade was also an avid and accomplished mountain climber. Professor Mary Plumb Blade died in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

General Hospital on 4 December 1994, having suffered from

Alzheimer's Disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...

in her final years. She was survived by three siblings and "22 grand and great-grand nieces and nephews and her feline companion, Miss America of Vancouver"

References

1913 births 1994 deaths Cooper Union faculty American mechanical engineers University of Utah alumni Columbia School of Engineering and Applied Science alumni People from Salt Lake City Engineering educators {{US-mechanical-engineer-stub