Barbara Gray

Barbara E. Gray (née Gantz; October 11, 1926 – March 28, 2014) was an American Democratic politician from Framingham, Massachusetts. Her father, Gerald Gantz, was a Republican stockbroker and her mother, Marcella Gantz (née Beck) was described as a "closet Democrat". She was rebellious in high school until her parents enrolled her in a more rigorous private school.

After graduation, she attended Connecticut College where she met Richard Gray. She received her B.A. in 1948 and, after turning down Richard's first marriage proposal, travelled around Europe with a friend, where she attended the Institute of International Education at the University of Oxford. After she returned to Massachusetts, she agreed to marry Richard and they moved to Framingham.

Political career Gray was first elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1972, serving in the 168th Massachusetts General Court as a Republican representative of the 39th Middlesex district. She was one of only eight women out of a total of 240 legislators. She would serve on the Ways and means committee from 1974 to 1992. She served on the Rules committee in 1992, as Chair of the Counties committee in 1993, as Chair of the Local Affairs committee in 1994, and as Chair of the Natural Resources and Agriculture committee from 1995 to 1996. She also served on the Framingham Planning Board (which she was the first woman elected to),