Owens, Helen Brewster, 1881-1968

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Helen Brewster Owens (April 2, 1881 – June 6, 1968) was an American suffragist and mathematician.

Helen Brewster Owens was born April 2, 1881 in Pleasanton, Kansas to Clara (née Linton) and Robert Edward Brewster. Her mother, who was a teacher and president of the Lincoln County Women's Suffrage Association, prompted Brewster's interest in the movement from a young age. As a girl, she attended the 1893 County Fair with her mother where she helped distribute flyers of Frances Willard.

Brewster Owens received a B.A. degree in mathematics from the University of Kansas in 1900 and her master's degree one year later from the same institution. Her master's thesis was titled "Collineations of Space which Leave Invariant a Quadric Surface," and it built off of the work of Ruth G. Wood, a groundbreaking woman in mathematics in her own right. She continued her graduate studies at the University of Chicago, but she and her family moved to Ithaca, New York before she could complete a PhD. She finally received her doctorate in mathematics in 1910 at the age of 29 from Cornell University, advised by Virgil Snyder.

Brewster Owens taught math at the University Preparatory School in Ithaca, New York from 1910 to 1912. In 1914, she was hired as an assistant professor of mathematics at Wells College in Aurora, New York. Next, she served as a mathematics instructor at Cornell University from 1917–1920. After several more interruptions to her profession due to moves for her husband's career, she reached the next stepping stone in her career when she was appointed an associate editor of the American Mathematical Monthly. In 1936, Brewster Owens began a major research project on the history of women in mathematics. From 1941–1949, she taught at Penn State University as an assistant professor.

Brewster Owens kept up her suffrage career from that first visit to the 1893 County Fair with her mother throughout her life. In 1910, she was elected to the board of the Resolutions Committee of the New York State Woman Suffrage Association. In 1911, she returned to Kansas for a spell to continue the fight for suffrage there. Soon after, Anna Howard Shaw, president of the National American Woman's Suffrage Association asked Brewster Owens to return to Kansas as her personal representative. Working there throughout 1912, Brewster Owens bore witness to the state's ratification of the suffrage amendment - by 16,000 votes, the greatest majority of any state up until that point. She then returned to New York to fight for suffrage there.

Brewster Owens married her classmate, Frederick William Owens, in 1904. She gave birth to her first daughter, Helen, upon their move to Chicago one year later. She died on June 6, 1968, in Martinsburg, West Virginia.

Archival Resources
Role Title Holding Repository
referencedIn Laidlaw, H. B. (Harriet Burton), b. 1874. Papers: Series I-IV, 1851-1958 (inclusive). Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America‏
referencedIn McCulloch, Catharine Waugh, 1862-1945. Papers in the Mary Earhart Dillon collection, 1869-1945 Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America‏
referencedIn McCulloch, Catharine Waugh, 1862-1945. Papers in the Mary Earhart Dillon Collection, 1869-1945 Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America‏
creatorOf Papers of Helen Brewster Owens, 1867-1948 Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America‏
referencedIn Beard, Mary Ritter, 1876-1958. Papers, 1935-1958 Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America‏
referencedIn Laidlaw, Harriet Burton, 1873-1949. Papers, 1851-1958 Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America‏
creatorOf Papers, 1867, 1895, 1902-1948 Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America‏
Role Title Holding Repository
Relation Name
associatedWith Angell, Pauline Knickerbocker, 1886-1976 person
associatedWith Avery, Rachel (Foster), 1858-1919 person
associatedWith Babcock, Caroline L. (Caroline Lexow), 1882- person
associatedWith Baldwin, Kati M. S. person
associatedWith Barton, Belle person
associatedWith Beard, Mary Ritter, 1876-1958 person
associatedWith Blackwell, Alice Stone, 1857-1950. person
associatedWith Blake, Katherine Devereux, 1858-1950. person
associatedWith Blatch, Harriot Stanton, 1856-1940. person
associatedWith Borden, Marjorie. person
associatedWith Brewster, Anna Louise , active 1888-1890 person
childOf Brewster, Clara Linton, 1850-1933 person
associatedWith Brown, Gertrude Foster, 1867-1956 person
associatedWith Burrows, Roxana. person
associatedWith Cannon, Jennie Curtis, 1851-1929 person
associatedWith Catt, Carrie Chapman, 1859-1947. person
associatedWith Charter, Flora Gapen, 1879-1916 person
associatedWith Congressional Union for Woman Suffrage corporateBody
associatedWith Dankin, Pauline M. person
associatedWith Dean, Addie M. person
associatedWith Decker, Janet person
associatedWith Denison, Lotta Jones person
associatedWith Dennett, Mary Ware, 1872-1947. person
associatedWith Dreier, Katherine Sophie, 1877-1952. person
associatedWith Eacker, Helen N., 1851-1919 person
associatedWith Empire State Campaign Committee (New York, NY) corporateBody
associatedWith Equal Franchise Society. corporateBody
associatedWith Farrar, Frances, 1855-1926 person
associatedWith Farrington, Anna C. person
associatedWith Fisher, Anna W. person
associatedWith Funk, Antoinette, 1873-1942 person
associatedWith Gore, Frances Field person
associatedWith Hamilton, Cora Perry, active 1913 person
associatedWith Hansl, Eva Elise vom Baur, 1889-1978 person
associatedWith Hopewell, Florence person
associatedWith Hopper, Grace Murray, 1906-1992 person
associatedWith Howes, Ethel Puffer, 1872-1950. person
associatedWith Howorth, Lucy Somerville, 1895-1997 person
associatedWith Huffcut, Lillian L. person
associatedWith International Woman Suffrage Alliance. corporateBody
associatedWith Johnston, Lucy Browne, 1846-1937 person
associatedWith Kansas Equal Suffrage Association. corporateBody
associatedWith King, Florence Embrey, 1870-1924 person
associatedWith Laidlaw, Harriet Burton, 1873-1949 person
associatedWith Laidlaw, James Lees, 1868-1932 person
associatedWith Lee, Helen K. person
associatedWith Lemmi, Elizabeth C. person
associatedWith Livermore, Henrietta W. person
associatedWith Livermore, Leila J. person
associatedWith Mansfield, Helen C. person
associatedWith Manus, Maye W. person
associatedWith McCormick, Ruth person
associatedWith McCulloch, Catharine Waugh, 1862-1945 person
associatedWith McEwan, Katherine L. person
associatedWith McKinnon, Mary L. person
associatedWith McNamara, Helen Catherine, active 1906-1924 person
associatedWith Mead, Emily Fogg, 1871- person
associatedWith Men's League for Women corporateBody
correspondedWith Merrill, Winifred Edgerton, 1862-1951 person
associatedWith Mills, Harriet May. person
associatedWith Mott, Isabella, 1886- person
associatedWith Mott, Ruth Woolsey Johnson, 1881-1971 person
associatedWith Nathan, Maud (Nathan), 1862-1946 person
associatedWith National American Woman Suffrage Association. corporateBody
associatedWith National Broadcasting Company corporateBody
associatedWith National College Equal Suffrage League corporateBody
associatedWith Newson, Mary Frances Winston, 1869-1959. person
associatedWith New York State Association Opposed to Woman Suffrage. corporateBody
associatedWith New York State Woman Suffrage Association. corporateBody
associatedWith Norton, Jessie. person
associatedWith Olcott, Jane Louise, active 1909-1937 person
associatedWith Owens, Frederick William, b. 1880 person
associatedWith Paul, Alice, 1885-1977. person
associatedWith Peck, Mary Gray, 1867- person
associatedWith Putnam, George Haven, 1844-1930 person
associatedWith Ryan, Agnes, 1878-1954. person
associatedWith Schlingheyde, Clara M., 1872- person
associatedWith Seabring, Lena S. person
associatedWith Shaw, Anna Howard, 1847-1919 person
associatedWith Shuler, Nettie Rogers, 1862-1939. person
correspondedWith Struik, Ruth R. person
associatedWith Topliff, Margaret Cameron, 1878-1972 person
associatedWith VanDer Cook, Frances person
associatedWith Washington, Booker T., 1856-1915. person
associatedWith Welles, Mary Sayre person
associatedWith Wheeler, Anna Pell, 1883-1966 person
associatedWith Whitehouse, Vira Boarman, 1875-1957. person
associatedWith White, William Allen, 1868-1944 person
associatedWith Winston, Mary, see Newson, Mary Frances (Winston) person
associatedWith Woman's Centennial Congress (1940 : New York, N.Y.) corporateBody
associatedWith Woman's Christian Temperance Union corporateBody
associatedWith Woman's Journal corporateBody
associatedWith Woman Suffrage Party of New York City corporateBody
associatedWith Woman Voter corporateBody
associatedWith Women's Political Union corporateBody
associatedWith Women's Political Union of New Jersey. corporateBody
associatedWith Woodhouse, Chase Going, 1890-1984. person
associatedWith World Center for Women's Archives corporateBody
associatedWith Yeomans, Mabel Ford, 1887-1954 person
Place Name Admin Code Country
Kansas KS US
Ithaca NY US
Martinsburg WV US
Subject
Constitutions Dissertations
Non-governmental organizations
Scientists
Women
Women
Women
Women
Women immigrants
Women in science
Women mathematicians
Women scientists
Women's rights
Occupation
Mathematicians
Scientists
Suffragists
Activity

Person

Birth 1881-04-02

Death 1968-06-06

Female

Americans

English

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