Harriett Elma Ohlen Shepard

Harriett Elma Ohlen was born in Ft. Hunter, New York, on January 16, 1853. She was the youngest child. Her family had nine children. Her family moved to New York City. Harriett went to Vassar College. She liked science. She took more science classes. She wanted to be a science teacher.
In 1878, she became a teacher at Drury College. She wanted the women students to like books. She wanted them to read science books. She started the first book club for women in Springfield.
On June 28, 1881, she married Edward M. Shepard. He was a teacher at Drury College. They both liked science. They went through the Ozarks to study rocks, plants, and animals. Their family liked to camp out. It was fun. They liked southwest Missouri.
Their two children, Isabel Violet Shepard and Edward M. Shepard, Jr., went to Drury College.
Harriett Shepard continued to be very active in women’s clubs. She was president of the Missouri Federation of Women's clubs. She got scholarships started to help young women go to college.
She also was a big supporter of The Springfield Public Library.
She and her husband did a lot for the city of Springfield.

Source: Jonathan Fairbanks and Clyde Edwin Tuck, Past and Present of Greene County, Missouri, 1915