The Empire of the East

Helen Barrett Montgomery

Helen Barrett Montgomery was an American social reformer, educator and writer. In 1921, she was elected as the first woman president of the Northern Baptist Convention. She had long been a delegate to the Convention and a policymaker. In 1893, she helped found a chapter of the Women's Educational and Industrial Union in Rochester, New York, and served as president until 1911, nearly two decades. In 1899, Montgomery was the first woman elected to the Rochester School Board and any public office in the city, 20 years before women could vote.