ANNA BELL LAWTHER
September 6, 1872 – October 21, 1957
Information and biographies abound online for Anna Bell Lawther.
The Biographical Dictionary of Iowa describes her as a “suffragist, Democratic activist, civic volunteer and the first woman to serve on the State Board of Education (later the Board of Regents)."
But Ms. Lawther, an active civic volunteer throughout her life, played a vital role in the development of what today is Hillcrest Family Services.
Once again quoting from the Biographical Dictionary, “She became a charter member of the Hillcrest Baby Fold in 1914 and served until 1954 as a trustee.” With those 40 years, Lawther remains the longest serving trustee in Hillcrest’s history.
In the summer of 2011, when Hillcrest broke ground for a chapel, and an education and recreation building, its board of trustees voted to name its residential education and school the Anna B. Lawther Academy.
By its vote, the board of trustees provides a permanent place for Lawther’s name on the Hillcrest campus, recognizing Lawther’s unique commitment to education and public service.
Graduated from the Dubuque public school system, Lawther pursued higher education in Pennsylvania and was graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 1897. She served in a variety of positions at the college and returned to Dubuque in 1912 where she became active in local affairs.
Lawther served as president of the Iowa Equal Suffrage Association from 1916 through 1919. The Iowa Suffrage Memorial Commission honored Lawther in 1931 by inscribing her name, along with other leaders in the suffrage movement, on a bronze tablet located on the west wall of the State Historical Building in Des Moines.
The first woman delegate from Iowa to the Democratic National Conventions in 1920 and 1924, she also became the first woman member of the Iowa State Board of Education in 1921 and served in that capacity until 1941.
Lawther led the Association of Governing Boards of State Universities and Allied Institutions in 1929. In 1927 Morningside College of Sioux City, Iowa, granted an honorary doctorate to Lawther and the University of Dubuque honored her with the same distinction in 1936.
In 1940 Lawther became the first woman to deliver a convocation address at the State University of Iowa, now known as the University of Iowa. A women's residence hall at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls is named in her memory.
She was a member of the Iowa League of Women voters and supported efforts to enact child labor laws.
She was an active member of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Dubuque and the American Association of University Women.
Lawther died in 1957 and was inducted into the Iowa Women’s Hall of Fame in 1985.
NOTE: Multiple sources were used to compile the information included here. Additional information about Anna Bell Lawther can be found at …
Biographical Dictionary of Iowa, University of Iowa Digital Editions
IAGenWeb Project, Iowa Official Registers, 1927-1928, Biographies, Iowa State Board of Education
IAGenWeb Project, Boards, Dubuque
