Mary Golda Ross: The Woman Who Helped Take Us to the Stars
“Ad Astra per Astra” Portrait of Mary Golda Ross, by America Meredith, acrylic on canvas, 30" x 40", 2011, from the collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian
As the MONAH Cultural Celebration wanes upon us, Mary Golda Ross is an appropriate figure to highlight in our Luminaries blog. A true pioneer of Indigenuity [1], Mary Ross is recognized as the first (known) indigenous, female engineer. Through her major contributions to science and technology, Mary Ross helped the United States and NASA reach the stars.
Mary was born in 1908 in Park Hill, Oklahoma and was the great-great granddaughter of John Ross, the former Chief of the Cherokee nation. When she was 16 years old, she was sent to live with her grandparents in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, the capital of the Cherokee nation, so she would attend school [2]. After graduating high school, she would begin her academic career at Northeastern State Teachers college and she would later teach science and math in Oklahoma. After discovering her affinity for astronomy, she would go onto the University of Northern Colorado and earn her master’s degree.
A turning point in Mary’s career was in 1942, when she was hired to the Lockheed Corporation where she was one of 40 engineers working in the top secret, Lockheed Skunk Works. This highly classified project was a group of highly qualified scientists and researchers who were responsible for conducting the preliminary research on interplanetary travel and the earliest studies of orbiting satellites [3]. On this team of 40 people, Mary was the only woman and only indigenous person.
Her story and contributions did not end there. She would later go on to research and evaluate ballistic missiles and other defense systems, as well as submarine-launched vehicles, satellite orbits and engineering systems for manned space flight [4]. Her contributions to rocket-science helped pave the way for the satellites, planes, and rockets we have today.
Towards the latter end of her career, Mary became an active member of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and supported the American Indians in Science and Engineering Society (AISES). Through these organizations, Mary encouraged women and indigenous people to join STEM fields and pursue careers in engineering.
Check out Dr. Farina King’s virtual talk on Historic Trailblazers: Mary Golda Ross on MONAH’s youtube channel!
Blog by Kate Hodgson
References:
National Parks Service (n.d.) Mary G. Ross. https://www.nps.gov/people/mary-g-ross.htm
Missions Impossible: The Skunk Works Story. Lockheed Martin. (2018, April 5). https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/news/features/history/skunk-works.html.
Museum of Native American History . (n.d.). Indigenuity. https://www.monah.us/indigenuity.
Purdue University . (n.d.). Mary G. Ross. Minority Engineering Program - Purdue University. https://www.purdue.edu/mep/Who%20We%20Are/Transformational%20Members%20History%20Makers/Ross.html.