Mary Elisabeth Dreier

(1875–1963) Mary Elisabeth was a labor union activist and women’s suffrage supporter. From 1906 to 1914, she was president of the New York Women's Trade Union League (NYWTUL), an organization dedicated to improving factory working conditions for women, raising funds for striking workers, and lobbying for labor reform legislation. She was arrested for participating in the “Uprising of 20,000,” a 1909 shirtwaist factory strike.

From 1915 to 1918, Mary devoted her energies to women’s suffrage and chaired the Industrial Section of New York City's Woman Suffrage Party. She remained on the NYWTUL board until it disbanded in 1950. Throughout her life, she was a highly respected labor leader, serving on several commissions including: the New York State Factory Investigating Commission, the New York State Committee on Women in Industry, the New York Council for Limitation of Armaments, the Committee for the Outlawry of War of the WTUL, and various other boards and advisory committees.