Irene Thresher (July 6, 1900-August 25, 1981) was a member of the Great and General Court of Massachusetts.
Irene Thresher (July 6, 1900-August 25, 1981) was a member of the Great and General Court of Massachusetts.
Irene Kattwinkell was born in Cologne, Germany and studied at Vassar College. [1] [2] She was awarded an honorary doctorate from Emerson College. [1] After college, she lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts and then Newton, Massachusetts. After leaving the legislature, she moved to Cocoa Beach, Florida and then Winter Park, Florida. [1] She was married to B. Alden Thresher, with whom she had a son, Colby, and two daughters, Sonia and Rosemary. [1] Before entering the General Court, she was a housewife. [2]
From 1941 to 1950, Thresher was a member of the Newton School Committee. [2]
Thresher served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives as a Republican from 1951 to 1961. [1] In addition to serving on the education and public welfare committees, she was also the first woman to serve on the ways and means committee. [1] After her initial election in 1950, she was elected president of the freshman class, the first woman to hold that position. [1] Her priorities as a legislator included education and the elderly. [1]
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