Mary Frances Gunner (November 9, 1894 – May 13, 1953) was an

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

playwright and community leader based in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. She was also known as Francis Gunner Van Dunk.

Early life and education

Mary Frances Gunner was born in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

and raised in

Hillburn, New York Hillburn, originally called "Woodburn" and incorporated in 1893, is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village in the town of Ramapo, New York, Ramapo, Rockland County, New York, Rockland County, New York (state), New York, United St ...

, the daughter of Rev. Byron Gunner and Cicely Savery Gunner. Her parents, both born in Alabama, were active in public life; her father was one of the 29 founders of the

Niagara Movement The Niagara Movement (NM) was a black civil rights organization founded in 1905 by a group of activists—many of whom were among the vanguard of African-American lawyers in the United States—led by W. E. B. Du Bois and William Monroe Trotter. ...

and president of the

National Equal Rights League The National Equal Rights League (NERL) is the oldest nationwide human rights organization in the United States. It was founded in Syracuse, New York in 1864 dedicated to the liberation of black people in the United States. Its origins can be tr ...

, and her mother, a teacher, was president of the

Empire State Federation of Women's Clubs An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

. Her grandfather William Savery, born a slave, was a founder of

Talladega College Talladega College is a private historically black college in Talladega, Alabama. It is Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, ...

. She finished at

Suffern High School Suffern High School is a State school, public High school (North America), high school in the Suffern Central School District (formerly known as the Ramapo Central School District) located in Suffern, New York. The school's mascot is a mountain ...

as the only black girl in her class, and as valedictorian. She attended

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all ...

. She also attended

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

, and was an officer in that school's chapter of the

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. ...

. In 1913, she was initiated into

Delta Sigma Theta Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. () is a historically African American sorority. The organization was founded by college-educated women dedicated to public service with an emphasis on programs that assist the African American community. Delta ...

sorority. She served as President of Alpha Chapter from 1914-1915. In her capacity as President, she requested that

Mary Church Terrell Mary Church Terrell (born Mary Eliza Church; September 23, 1863 – July 24, 1954) was one of the first African-American women to earn a college degree, and became known as a national activist for civil rights and suffrage. She taught in the Lati ...

write the Sorority's Oath. In 1923, she completed a master's degree in the Political Science department at

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 ...

, with a thesis titled "Employment Problems Among Negro Women in Brooklyn."

Career

Mary Frances Gunner worked at the

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swi ...

Montclair, New Jersey Montclair () is a township in Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated on the cliffs of the Watchung Mountains, Montclair is a wealthy and diverse commuter town and suburb of New York City within the New York metropolitan area. As ...

, and after 1921 at the Ashland Place YWCA in Brooklyn. She also taught school in New York. Gunner was a branch manager for the New York State Employment Service from 1938 to 1950. She was active in the National Association of College Women. Her pageant play, ''Light of the Women'' (1924), presents the stories of such African-American heroines as

Sojourner Truth Sojourner Truth (; born Isabella Baumfree; November 26, 1883) was an American abolitionist of New York Dutch heritage and a women's rights activist. Truth was born into slavery in Swartekill, New York, but escaped with her infant daughter to f ...

Harriet Tubman Harriet Tubman (born Araminta Ross, March 10, 1913) was an American abolitionist and social activist. Born into slavery, Tubman escaped and subsequently made some 13 missions to rescue approximately 70 slaves, including family and friends, us ...

Fanny Jackson Coppin Fanny Jackson Coppin (October 15, 1837 – January 21, 1913) was an American educator, missionary and lifelong advocate for female higher education. One of the first Black alumnae of Oberlin College, she served as principal of the Institute for C ...

, and

Phillis Wheatley Phillis Wheatley Peters, also spelled Phyllis and Wheatly ( – December 5, 1784) was an American author who is considered the first African-American author of a published book of poetry. Gates, Henry Louis, ''Trials of Phillis Wheatley: Ameri ...

. It was intended for performance by community groups and schools, to teach and celebrate the achievements of African-American women. It was performed in 1927 at the YWCA in

Orange, New Jersey The City of Orange is a township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 30,134, reflecting a decline of 2,734 (−8.3%) from the 32,868 counted in 2000. Orange was original ...

Personal life

Mary Frances Gunner married Jerry van Dunk, also from Hillburn, in 1946. She died in Brooklyn in 1953.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunner, Mary Frances 1894 births 1953 deaths American dramatists and playwrights Howard University alumni American women dramatists and playwrights Writers from Lexington, Kentucky Writers from Kentucky 20th-century American women