Name: Mary McDowell
Birth Date: November 30, 1854
Birth Place: Cincinnati Ohio, USA
Death Date: October 14, 1936
Death Location: Chicago Illinois, USA
Burial Place: Rosehill Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois
Summary
Mary McDowell (1854-1936) was born to Malcolm and Jane McDowell in Cincinnati, Ohio, the first of six children. She would go on to follow in her father’s footsteps as a strong leader first within the Methodist church and later in many prominent social reform organizations, including the WCTU, the NAACP, Chicago Urban League, Hull-House Women’s Club, Christian Union, University of Chicago Settlements, Women’s Trade Union League, and the Women’s City Club. Her career as a social reformer led her to work as a settlement house director, a public welfare commissioner, and a school teacher.
Father: Malcolm McDowell
Mother: Jane Gordon
Education: Chicago Kindergarten Training School, 1889-90
Years in Evanston: early 1880's-1894
Sources: "Women Building Chicago: 1790-1990", pg. 563-565