![Mary Ingraham](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Mary_Ingraham.jpg)
Mary Shotwell Ingraham (January 5, 1887 – April 16, 1981) was an American social reformer and the founder of the
United Service Organizations
The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...
(USO). She was the first woman to receive the
Medal for Merit
The Medal for Merit was, during the period it was awarded, the highest civilian decoration of the United States. It was awarded by the President of the United States to civilians who "distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious conduct i ...
award.
Early life
Ingraham was born 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 ...
, on January 5, 1887. She was daughter of Henry Titus Shotwell and Alice Wyman (Gardner) Shotwell.
Mid life and education
Ingraham attended and graduated from
Vassar College
Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely follo ...
in 1908 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. She received the honorary degree of
Doctor of Humane Letters
The degree of Doctor of Humane Letters (; DHumLitt; DHL; or LHD) is an honorary degree awarded to those who have distinguished themselves through humanitarian and philanthropic contributions to society.
The criteria for awarding the degree differ ...
from
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut. Founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the auspices of the Methodist Epis ...
in 1958 and also 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 ...
in 1961.
[
]
Awards
Ingraham was the president of the Brooklyn Young Women's Christian Association
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 ...
(YWCA) from 1922 to 1939. She was president of the National Board of the YWCA from 1940 to 1946 and involved with the YWCA's war work and interracial efforts. Ingraham was founder in 1941 of the United Service Organizations
The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...
, more often referred to as the USO. She inspired and promoted USO shows and entertainment for service people during World War II. She was given the United States Medal for Merit
The Medal for Merit was, during the period it was awarded, the highest civilian decoration of the United States. It was awarded by the President of the United States to civilians who "distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious conduct i ...
in 1946 by President Harry Truman
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...
for her work, the first woman to receive this award. During the time the medal was awarded, it was the highest Presidential award given to civilians for outstanding service related to the military.
Family
Ingraham married Henry Andrews Ingraham, a lawyer, on October 28, 1908. They lived 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 ...
. One of their children was Mary Alice Ingraham Bunting-Smith (1910–1998), also known as "Polly", the first woman to be appointed to serve on the United States Atomic Energy Commission
The United States Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) was an agency of the United States government established after World War II by U.S. Congress to foster and control the peacetime development of atomic science and technology. President H ...
. The other children were Henry Gardner Ingraham, Winifred Andrews Ingraham and David Ingraham.
Religion
Ingraham was a Quaker
Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...
from an ancestral line of Quakers.
Death
Ingraham died in Huntington, Long Island, New York, on April 16, 1981.[
]
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ingraham, Mary Shotwell
1887 births
1981 deaths
People from Brooklyn
Vassar College alumni
United Service Organizations
American social activists
American Quakers
Medal for Merit recipients
Activists from New York (state)