Adella M. Parker
Adella M. Parker (variously spelled as Adele Parker, Adele Parker-Bennett, or Adela Parker)[2] (1870 – April 8, 1956) was an American suffragist, politician, lawyer, journalist, and teacher who lived in Seattle, Washington. She was a state representative for District 37 in Washington from 1935 to 1937. In 1909, she was the president of the Washington College League.[3]
Adella M. Parker | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Washington House of Representatives from the District 37 district | |
| In office 1935–1937 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 1, 1870 Whitehall, Michigan |
| Died | April 8, 1956 (aged 86) Seattle, Washington |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Charles Enoch Allen Bennett
(m. 1921; died 1929) |
| Alma mater | University of Washington School of Law |
Early life and education
Parker was born in Whitehall, Michigan[1] in 1870. She moved with her parents to Seattle.[1] Parker went to law school at the University of Washington, from which she graduated in 1903 as the only woman in the class.[1] She completed graduate work at the West Virginia University and the University of Wisconsin.[1]
Career
In addition to practicing law, Parker taught political economics and government at Broadway High School.[1][4] She was the executive secretary of the Seattle High School Teachers' League from 1931 to 1934.[1]
Parker was an advocate for municipal good government and for women's suffrage.[5] She was a member of the Women's Good Government League in Seattle[4] and president of the Women's Suffrage League.[1] She drafted a recall law and led a campaign for it to be adopted by Seattle city council as a charter amendment, eventually leading to the recall of Mayor Hiram Gill, who was accused of condoning gambling.[5][6] It was noted by the media that Parker drafted the law and had it adopted before women acquired the right to vote.[5]
Parker married Charles Enoch Allen Bennett in 1921; the couple honeymooned in Siberia. From 1922 to 1923, Parker served as a Moscow correspondent for the International News Service.[1] Bennett died in 1929.[1]
From 1935 to 1937, Parker represented District 37, comprising King County, in the Washington State House of Representatives.[2] She was a member of the Democratic Party.[2]
Death
Parker died on April 8, 1956, after a short illness.[1]
References
- "Miss Adele Parker, Writer, Dies". Seattle Daily Times. April 9, 1956. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
- "Women in the Legislature | Adela Parker" (PDF). Washington State Legislature. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
- Becker, Paula (April 25, 2008). "Suffrage proponents speak at second evening meeting of National American Woman Suffrage Association convention at Plymouth Congregational Church in Seattle on July 2, 1909". History Link. Archived from the original on March 30, 2019. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
Seattle attorney and journalist Adella M. Parker, who was the president of the Washington College League, addressed the topic of The Law and Women.
- "Adella Parker to Speak Here". The Tacoma Times. February 5, 1916. p. 8. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
- Baily, C.H. (1911). "How Washington Women Regained the Ballot" (PDF). Pacific Monthly. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 30, 2019. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
- "Studying suffrage results in Oregon". The Oregon Daily Journal. August 17, 1913. p. 25. Retrieved March 29, 2020.