Royal Zap

My great-great-grandmother, Dr. Mary Latham, was Spokane’s first woman doctor, a tough and brilliant woman whose story pushes me as I work on my science degree in business.

Born in 1844 in Ohio, Mary didn’t follow the usual path. After raising her three boys—Frank, James, and Warren—she went to medical school at 42, graduating from Cincinnati College of Medicine and Surgery in 1886, when women doctors were rare. In 1887, she took her sons to Spokane Falls, hoping the air would help her asthma and the town would need her skills.

She set up shop at First and Stevens, treating women and kids. People loved her—a 1892 paper said no one in the state was better. She delivered babies, cared for pregnant moms, and got orphans into homes through the Spokane Home Finding Society. Poor folks called her a saint for never turning them away. She also helped start the Spokane Public Library, gave books, and pushed for women’s voting rights. The library honors her today, and there’s a bust near Monroe Street for her work as a doctor, writer, and library supporter.

But life hit Mary hard. Her son James died in a train wreck in 1903, and it broke her. She had a stroke, fought depression, and got tangled in an arson charge in 1905. Even after parole, she kept helping Spokane’s poorest until she died of pneumonia in 1917 at 72. Mercy and Madness by Beverly Hodgins tells her story—full of highs, lows, and heart.

Mary’s grit drives me. She smashed through walls to be a doctor, like I’m trying to mix science and business. Her stubborn care for people, even when things were rough, keeps me going. Knowing she delivered 166 babies with just four stillbirths makes me want to hit my goals dead-on.

Her monument at Greenwood Memorial Terrace and her spot at the Spokane Public Library are big parts of our family’s story. Mary was a powerhouse, and her fire keeps me moving forward.