Georgia Neese Clark Gray

A Kansas Portrait

Kansas women can claim a number of firsts and Georgia Neese Clark Gray is no exception. Born in 1898 in Richland, Kansas, Gray attended school in Topeka and graduated from Washburn College in 1921. During college, she developed an interest in acting and after graduation attended the Franklin Sargent School of Dramatic Art and eventually acted with various stock companies. She returned to Kansas after the advent of the depression caused acting jobs to be scarce.

Gray started working at her father's Richland State Bank as an assistant cashier in 1935 and became president in 1937 following his death. She became active in the state Democratic Party and was elected National Committee Woman in Kansas in 1936, a position she held until 1964. She was an articulate and well-liked representative of the party and an early supporter of Harry Truman. It was this support that brought about her nomination as the first woman to be Treasurer of the United States.

Reminiscing about her conversation with President Truman, Gray said Truman pointed out the disadvantages of the job including low pay and asked her if she could afford to take the job. She replied, "Can I afford not to?" This is indicative of the zest and style with which she represented her position as first woman treasurer and her state. Gray died in 1995.