Dewson, Molly (1874–1962)
Dewson, Molly (1874–1962)
American politician, economist, and first prominent organizer of women voters for the Democratic Party. Name variations: Mary Williams Dewson. Born Mary Williams Dewson in Quincy, Massachusetts, on February 18, 1874; died in Castine, Maine, on October 22, 1962; attended Miss Ireland's School; graduated from Wellesley College, 1897; lived with Mary G. Porter .
After serving six years, from 1925 to 1931, as president of the Consumers' League of New York, Molly Dewson was urged by Eleanor Roosevelt to organize the women in the Democratic Party as a viable force. Dewson had taken part in Franklin Roosevelt's New York gubernatorial campaign in 1930. By 1936, Dewson was vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee, actively lobbying President Roosevelt to appoint more women to Cabinet posts. One result was the appointment of Frances Perkins as secretary of labor. Dewson also served on the President's Advisory Committee on Economic Security, involved in planning the Social Security system. She was the first woman to serve on the Social Security Board.