Title: Mary Louise Finney
Dates: 1880-1906
Collection Number: 00188
Quantity: 29 items
Abstract: Primarily portraits of people in the Bismarck area, the Sakakawea statue and the Sheridan House.
Provenance: The State Historical Society of North Dakota received this collection over a period of years from 1945 to 2006 from Mrs. Burt Finney and Mary Louise Finney.
Property Rights: The State Historical Society of North Dakota owns the property rights to this collection.
Copyrights: Copyrights to materials in this collection remain with the donor, publisher, author, or author's heirs. Researchers should consult the 1976 Copyright Act, Public Law 94-553, Title 17, U.S. Code and an archivist at this repository if clarification of copyright requirements is needed.
Access: This collection is open under the rules and regulations of the State Historical Society of North Dakota.
Citation: Researchers are requested to cite the collection title, collection number, and the State Historical Society of North Dakota in all footnote and bibliographic references.
Biographical Sketch: Mary Louise Finney
Mary Louise Finney was born July 30, 1919, in Bismarck, the daughter of Burt and Mary (Stevens) Finney. She attended Bismarck public schools, graduating from Bismarck High School in 1937, and went on to Dominican College in San Rafael, Calif. Later, she transferred to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and graduated in 1947 with a bachelor's degree.
At the age of ten, Mary Louise joined a Girl Scout troop, which met at the Presbyterian Church. From first learning to tie knots, sing folk songs, go to camp, make new friends and keep the old, Girl Scout leadership and counseling was her greatest joy and became her first professional job in 1942, in Chicago, Ill.
She served in the Seattle, Wash., Council during World War II, where families from around the U.S. moved for new jobs and their children made friends in many new Girl Scout troops. Shortly after the war, the national Girl Scout Organization started to enlarge membership to cover the entire U.S. Mary Louise was selected to help volunteers enlarge councils in northern North Dakota.
From 1949 to 1952, Mary Louise was Health Educator for the North Dakota State Health Department for the program to detect and prevent tuberculosis in every county. In 1953, she went to New York City to join an international organization for European university students anxious to see the U.S., and in 1955, she rejoined the national Girl Scout staff and worked as program advisor for six mid-west states. All of these work assignments required traveling. In 1961, she became Public Relations Director for the Greater Minneapolis Girl Scout Council, where she could finally rent an apartment and enjoy a neighborhood.
Mary Louise enjoyed two vacations especially; in 1961 and in 1963, as a shipboard trainer for foreign students en route to children's camps in the U.S., sponsored by the American Camping Association. She retired to Bismarck after serving on the St. Paul, Minn., staff in 1970 and 1971.
In Bismarck, she became an active volunteer with Girl Scouts, ARC Thrift Shop, the Mayor's Committee for Employment of the Handicapped and special event committees.
Her interests were world-wide travel, music, theatre and writing. She served many years in retirement as a member of the World Foundation for Girl Guides and Girl Scouts Inc. Her Girl Scout work was acknowledged with the National Juliette Low International Medal.
Mary Louise was an active supporter of the Heritage Center, North Dakota Public Broadcasting, Bismarck Public Library and the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit.
She is survived by her cousins, Claire Engelhardt, Minnewaukan, Imogene Christianson, Santa Maria, Calif., and Roberta Jean Rinde, San Jose, Calif.
She was preceded in death by her parents.
Sources:
Bismarck Tribune, July 4, 2006
Ancestry.com U.S. Public Records, U.S. Social Security Index, U.S. Census Records, U.S. Public Records Index.
INVENTORY
00188-00001 Elizabeth Ward (Mrs. Edwin Alfred) Lamb 1897
00188-00002 May Irish about age 4 1899
00188-00003 Birlea and Mae Ann Wallace Ward with group, Bismarck (N.D.) 1900
00188-00004 Unidentified ethnic group, Fargo (D.T.) 1880-1889
00188-00005 Portrait of man, Grand Forks (N.D.) 1890-1899
00188-00006 Al Lucas ca. 1890
00188-00007 Sakakawea statue, Capitol Grounds, Bismarck (N.D.) XX
00188-00008 Emery S. Beardsley ca. 1897
00188-00009 George E. Nichols ca. 1900
00188-00010 John F. Cowan ca. 1895
00188-00011 Christian M. Dahl ca. 1895
00188-00012 John H. Wishek ca. 1895
00188-00013 John Henry Worst ca. 1895
00188-00014 Joseph M. Devine ca. 1898
00188-00015 J. J. Wamberg ca. 1895
00188-00016 Ernest C. Cooper ca. 1905
00188-00017 Ben Corbin ca. 1900
00188-00018 Alanson W. Edwards ca. 1895
00188-00019 James C. Gill ca. 1895
00188-00020 Alexander McKenzie ca. 1890
00188-00021 Sheridan House, Bismarck (D.T.) 1872-1889
00188-00022 Frank A. Briggs ca. 1895
00188-00023 Unidentified man XX
00188-00024 Governor Frederick B. Fancher 1889-1900
00188-00025 Bald eagle perched on an American flag ca. 1900
00188-00026 Bud Reeve ca. 1880
00188-00027 Indian Council XX
00188-00028 Hay stacker and sweep rake ca. 1890
00188-00029 Roger Allin 1895-1896
Address:
612 East Boulevard Ave.
Bismarck, North Dakota 58505
Get Directions
Hours:
State Museum and Store: 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. M-F; Sat. & Sun. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
We are closed New Year's Day, Easter, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. We are closed at noon Christmas Eve if it falls on Mon.-Thurs. and are closed all day if it falls on Fri.-Sun.
State Archives: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. M-F, except state holidays; 2nd Sat. of each month, 10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Appointments are recommended. To schedule an appointment, please contact us at 701.328.2091 or archives@nd.gov.
State Historical Society offices: 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. M-F, except state holidays.
Contact Us:
phone: 701.328.2666
email: history@nd.gov
Social Media:
See all social media accounts
