Frances Hooper

Frances Milliken Hooper (September 18, 1892, in Chicago, Illinois – April 30, 1986, in Kenilworth, Illinois) was a journalist, one of the first female advertising executives in the United States, founder and president of the Frances Hooper Advertising Agency.

Early years and education Hooper was born in 1892 in Chicago. Her parents were James Hooper and Mary (Milliken) Hooper. She attended the University of Chicago and Smith College in Massachusetts, where she obtained her degree in 1914. In the 1920s, she founded the Frances Hooper Advertising Agency, serving as its president until 1961. Her office, with its modern art collection and contemporary furniture specifically designed for her office, were featured in newspapers of the period. Hooper was an art collector and had an extensive collection of books as well. while her Carl Linnaeus materials went to the Chicago Horticulture Society, and the main part of her collection of Virginia Woolf materials was donated to Smith College. Hooper had written two books: Collecting Kate Greenaway, and Me (1980) and A Collector in Being (1973) — about collecting arts and books. Hooper is also author of other books including Penny Candy (Chihuahua Press, 1970), The Bonnet (Chihuahua Press, 1972), and A Pilgrimage to Gosta Berling's Varmland (Chihuahua Press, 1976).