Kathryn E. Granahan

Kathryn Elizabeth Granahan (December 7, 1894 – July 10, 1979) was an American politician. She served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania and as the Treasurer of the United States, having been appointed by President John F. Kennedy.

Kathryn Elizabeth Granahan
Granahan, c. 1947
32nd Treasurer of the United States
In office January 9, 1963 – November 22, 1966
President	John F. Kennedy Lyndon Johnson
Preceded by	Elizabeth Rudel Smith
Succeeded by	Dorothy Andrews Elston Kabis
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 2nd district
In office November 6, 1956 – January 3, 1963
Preceded by	William T. Granahan
Succeeded by	Robert N. C. Nix Sr.
Personal details
Born	Kathryn Elizabeth O'Hay December 7, 1894 Easton, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	July 10, 1979(1979-07-10) (aged 84) Norristown, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Resting place	Gethsemane Cemetery, Easton, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	William T. Granahan
Alma mater	Mount St. Joseph Collegiate Institute
Signature

Granahan was a member of the Democratic Party and was the first woman to be elected to the United States Congress from Philadelphia.

Early life and education

Born Kathryn Elizabeth O'Hay in Easton, Pennsylvania, all four of her grandparents were Irish immigrants. She graduated from Easton Area High School and then Mount St. Joseph Collegiate Institute in Philadelphia, which was later renamed Chestnut Hill College.

Career

She was supervisor of public assistance in the State Auditor General's Department, and liaison officer between that department and Pennsylvania Department of Public Assistance, from 1940 to 1943.

She was a member of national board, Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania and a delegate to the 1960 Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles.

Congress

Her husband, Rep. William T. Granahan served in Congress from 1945 to 1947 and from 1949 until his death in 1956. His death came shortly after the 1956 primary election and the Democratic Party in Philadelphia selected Kathryn to succeed her husband in both the special election and general election. She was simultaneously elected to serve out her husband's term in the 84th United States Congress and a term in the 85th United States Congress in her own right.

She served as chair of the House Subcommittee on Postal Operations, and worked with Postmaster General Arthur Summerfield to pass the Granahan bill "to seize and detain the mail of anyone suspected of trafficking in obscenity."

Treasurer of the United States

After the 1960 census, Pennsylvania was expected to lose three seats in redistricting. The Democratic Party leadership chose Granahan's seat as one of those to be eliminated. Rep. Bill Green secured her assurance not to run in the 1962 elections. In return, Green convinced then U.S. president John F. Kennedy to appoint her Treasurer of the United States, which Kennedy did.

Granahan began her term as Treasurer on January 9, 1963 after her term in Congress ended. In 1965, Granahan suffered a blood clot after a fall, and worked a reduced schedule following the incident. In 1966, an effort to declare her incompetent failed; however, she resigned four months later.

Television appearances

Granahan made guest appearances on What's My Line? on March 3, 1963, and To Tell the Truth in November 1963.

Death

Granahan died in Norristown, Pennsylvania on July 10, 1979. She is interred at Gethsemane Cemetery in Easton, Pennsylvania.

See also

• Women in the United States House of Representatives

Sources

• United States Congress. "Kathryn E. Granahan (id: G000368)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Remarks by Joseph M. Hoeffel of Pennsylvania
• Kathryn E. Granahan at The Political Graveyard