Charlotte Elvira Pengra facts for kids

Charlotte Elvira Pengra was an amazing American mathematician. She was born on May 30, 1875, in Judah, Wisconsin. She passed away on February 7, 1916, in Brodhead, Wisconsin. In 1901, she made history. She became the third person to earn a special advanced degree called a Ph.D. in math. She got this degree from the University of Wisconsin. She was also only the sixth American woman ever to get a doctorate in mathematics.

Charlotte's Early Life

Charlotte was the oldest of five children. Her parents were Winfield Sherman Pengra and Mary Ellen (Preston). Her father was a farmer and landlord in Wisconsin. All five of their children grew up to be very smart. They all earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin. This university was located nearby in Madison.

Becoming a Teacher

Charlotte earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in mathematics in 1897. Back then, most women who graduated with a degree like hers became teachers. So, Charlotte started teaching math. For two years, she taught at high schools in Wisconsin. She taught in towns like Fox Lake and Sparta.

Advanced Studies

In 1899, Charlotte won a special scholarship called a fellowship. This allowed her to go back to the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She wanted to study even more advanced math. She worked very hard and earned her doctorate two years later, in 1901. Her professor, Linnaeus Wayland Dowling, guided her studies.

Her doctoral paper was 23 pages long. It was about complex math topics. The paper was titled On Functions Connected with Special Riemann Surfaces, In Particular Those For Which P Equals 3, 4, and 5.

Life After Her Doctorate

After getting her doctorate, Charlotte moved to Elgin, Illinois. She worked there for three years. She was the supervisor of the high school math department. This meant she was in charge of all the math teachers.

Family Life

On June 21, 1904, Charlotte married Arthur Robert Crathorne. He was also a math student. They had met while studying for their doctorates at Wisconsin. After they got married, the Crathornes traveled to Göttingen, Germany. Arthur earned his Ph.D. in mathematics there in 1907.

Their first child, a daughter, was born in Germany in November 1906. The family then moved back to the U.S. Their other two children were born in 1909 and 1911.

The young family settled in Illinois. Arthur became a professor at the University of Illinois.

Charlotte Pengra Crathorne sadly passed away in 1916. She was 40 years old. She died in Brodhead, Wisconsin due to breast cancer.