Emma J. Harvat

Mary attended the Iowa City Academy and Williams Commercial College, studying business, an unusual field for the time for women.

At the age of 43 Emma was financially secure and she returned to Iowa City to retire.

In 1922 the then-mayor, Ingalls Swisher, resigned and Emma Harvat was elected mayor pro tem by the council.

As the first female leader of a city with a population of more than 10,000 in the United States, her election was covered in national and international newspapers.

During her tenure a zoning commission was established, and city services were improved and extended.