Carolyn (Campbell) Pendray (December 9, 1881 - November 23, 1958) born in

Mount Pleasant, Iowa Mount Pleasant is a city in and the county seat of Henry County, Iowa. The population was 9,274 in the 2020 census, an increase from 8,668 in the 2010 census. It was founded in 1835 by pioneer Presley Saunders. History The first permanent s ...

, United States, was an educator and politician. Pendray was the first woman elected to the

Iowa General Assembly The Iowa General Assembly is the legislative branch of the state government of Iowa. Like the federal United States Congress, the General Assembly is a bicameral body, composed of the upper house Iowa Senate and the lower Iowa House of ...

, representing Jackson County in both the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

and the

Iowa Senate The Iowa Senate is the upper house of the Iowa General Assembly, United States. There are 50 seats in the Iowa Senate, representing 50 single-member districts across the state of Iowa with populations of approximately 60,927 per constituency, . ...

Early life

Pendray was born in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, in 1881. She attended schools in Mount Pleasant. After passing the state teachers’ exam, Pendray taught in rural schools, and in Des Moines. In 1912, she became County Superintendent of Schools for Henry County, and continued in that position for seven years. Pendray also taught summer classes at

Iowa Wesleyan University Iowa Wesleyan University is a private university in Mount Pleasant, Iowa. It is Iowa's first co-educational institution of higher learning and the oldest of its type west of the Mississippi River. The institution is affiliated with the United Me ...

. She married William Pendray, a merchant in Maquoketa, in 1920, and settled first in Ottumwa, and later in Maquoketa.

Political career

Pendray was elected as a Democrat to the Iowa House of Representatives in 1928, where she served two terms. She was then elected to the Iowa Senate in 1932, where she again served two terms. She did not seek re-election in 1936. Pendray supported bills which promoted the equality of women, particularly those regarding education, inheritance law, and property reform. She was considered "a strong, resolute woman who rarely gave up a fight".

Later life

Pendray retired to Mount Pleasant in 1950, where she was a staunch supporter of the Democratic Party. Pendray was an active member of the Philanthropic Educational Organization in Maquoketa, the Federated Church in Mt. Pleasant, the Daughters of the American Revolution, the P.E.O. Sisterhood, and the Congregational church. Pendray died at age 76. She was buried at Mount Pleasant, Iowa. In 1978, Pendray was inducted into the

Iowa Women's Hall of Fame The Iowa Women's Hall of Fame was created to acknowledge the accomplishments of female role models associated with the U.S. state of Iowa, and is an endeavor of the Iowa Commission on the Status of Women (ICSW). History In 1972, the state of Iow ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pendray, Carolyn 1881 births 1958 deaths Republican Party Iowa state senators Republican Party members of the Iowa House of Representatives People from Mount Pleasant, Iowa Women state legislators in Iowa 20th-century American legislators 20th-century American women politicians 20th-century American educators Educators from Iowa 20th-century American women educators Iowa Wesleyan University faculty American women academics