Mary Baird Bryan

Mary Elizabeth Baird Bryan (June 17, 1861 – January 30, 1930) was an American attorney, writer, and suffragist. She was married to William Jennings Bryan.

Life and work

Mary Elizabeth Baird was born on June 17, 1861, in Perry, Illinois, the daughter of John and Lovina Baird. Her father owned a general store. Bryan and Mary Elizabeth married on October 1, 1884. While William studied law at Union (now Northwestern School of Law), Mary read law as well on her own, and eventually sat the bar exam in Nebraska; she was admitted to practice in Nebraska in 1888. Mary Elizabeth would emerge as an important part of Bryan's career, managing his correspondence and helping him prepare speeches and articles. Mary passed the bar exam and learned German in order to help his career. William and Mary Bryan returned to Lincoln, Nebraska on November 1, two days before the election, though he continued campaigning. After the election, which her husband lost, Mary wrote a biographical sketch of her husband in "The First Battle: A Story of the Campaign of 1896", which became a best-seller. He would run for president in 1900 and 1908 and lost those campaigns as well. The family embarked on a world tour in 1905, visiting 18 countries in Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. A newspaper wrote that Mary "has probably traveled over more countries and met more kinds of people than any other woman in the United States." Due to Mary's arthritis, in 1912 the Bryans began building a new home in Miami, Florida, known as Villa Serena. The Bryans made Villa Serena their permanent home, while Charles Bryan continued to oversee The Commoner from Lincoln. The Bryans were active citizens in Miami, leading a fundraising drive for the YMCA and frequently hosting the public at their home. William was named secretary of state by President Woodrow Wilson in 1913 but resigned in 1915 after Wilson's strong response to the sinking of the RMS Lusitania. Afterwards returning from the funeral in Washington, she wrote more than half of the nearly 600-page memoirs of William Jennings Bryan that were published later that year. William and Mary had three children: Ruth, William Jr. and Grace. Ruth won election to Congress in 1928 and later served as the ambassador to Denmark during the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt.