Mary T. Washington

Mary T. Washington (April 21, 1906 – July 2, 2005) was the first African-American woman to be a certified public accountant in the United States.

Early life and education Mary Thelma Morrison was born in Vicksburg, Mississippi, to Daisy and William Morrison. Following her mother’s death, Washington was raised by her grandparents in Chicago. She excelled as a math student at Wendell Phillips High School. and was the only woman in her graduating class to earn a business degree. Through her time at the firm, she trained a generation of younger black CPAs. She retired from the accounting firm in 1985.

Personal life and legacy Her marriage to Seymour Washington ended in divorce. She later married Donald Melvin Wylie. She had a daughter named Barbara with Seymour, and a son named Donald Wylie Jr with Donald. In 1978, she won the Fred Hampton Scholarship Fund Image Award.

The City of Chicago officially declared September 30, 2018 Mary T. Washington Wylie Day throughout the city. The official proclamation, signed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, coincided with the display of light post banners in Chicago’s Loop (LaSalle St. from Jackson to Adams and on Jackson Blvd. from Wells to Clark) provided by the Illinois CPA Society, to mark the occasion and honor a true pioneer in the accounting profession.