This is part of a series. It was submitted by Nancy Bertrand.
The Wakefield Historical Society’s third Women’s History Month profile features someone many of us knew quite well, Gertrude Spaulding.
She was born Gertrude Mowry, daughter of an Iowa state senator who served as US Attorney under Calvin Coolidge, she attended the University of Iowa and got her master’s at Simmons College.
After moving to Wakefield with her husband Bill (also an immensely important person in the Wakefield community), she had two children and embarked on an incredibly impressive list of accomplishments.
1. School Committee for 7 years (one year as chair)
2. Charter member of the Eastern Middlesex Human Services
3. Appointed by Governor Sargent to be a member of the MA Board of Higher Education
4. Member of the Wakefield Fair Housing Partnership
5. Member of the Wakefield Historical Society, the YMCA Auxiliary, the Women’s City Club of Boston and the First Parish Congregational Church
She was also a powerhouse member of the League of Women’s Voters here in Wakefield.
But of course it was in the field of environmentalism that she really made her mark. She was a driving force behind the establishment of the Conservation Commission in 1983 and member from 1984-1990, who also served on the Saugus River Watershed Council. And in 1991, she was the founding member of The Friends of Lake Quannapowitt that she would continue to champion throughout the rest of her life.
She and her husband Bill were the Grand Marshalls of the Wakefield Independence Day Parade in 1994, an honor that they richly deserved.
Gertrude died just before Christmas in 2000, at the age of 87. Two years later the 40,900 square foot park at the head of the lake was named in her honor the Gertrude Spaulding Park. The FOLQ continues to honor members with a “Gertrude Spaulding Award.”
Gertrude Mowry Spaulding, a 50-year resident of the town of Wakefield and an inspiration to us all!
“Women in Wakefield” is presented by the Wakefield Historical Society throughout the month of March in celebration of the women who helped to shape the town. Additional features will be shared on our blog at www.wakefieldhistory.org.