Ruth Cashin Monsell ’68, the most recent biographer of Frances Perkins, was invited by the White House to attend the ceremony at which President Biden, on December 16, signed a proclamation making the Frances Perkins Homestead the newest National Monument. Also invited was her partner of over 10 years, John Longmaid, the first and foremost benefactor of the Frances Perkins Center, which will continue to operate on the 57 acre homestead property in Newcastle, Maine. Frances Perkins, Champion of American Workers was published by Histria Books last April.
Ruth’s tour of the homestead in 2012 ignited the spark that prompted her to write a new biography of this little known American hero, whose work still impacts our everyday lives. The tour was given by Perkins’ only surviving descendant, her grandson, Tomlin Perkins Coggeshall, who was at Biden’s right hand for the signing at the Frances Perkins Department of Labor building in Washington, D.C.
At IWU, Ruth was an English major and a Sigma Kappa, and inducted into three honorary societies, graduating
Magna Cum Laude.
Congratulations Ruth!