Born in Poland, she attended the State Normal School of Bavaria.  She believed a person's varied experiences contributed to growth.  Arriving in Toledo in 1887, she became active in the Progressive Movement calling for reform and honesty in government.  

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She organized playground programs in 1903-1904.  She was active in the suffrage movement in Ohio and Wisconsin. Mayor Samuel "Golden Rule" Jones urged her to run for the Toledo school board in 1904. She won and was the first woman elected to public office in Toledo. In 1918-21, she served on the Ohio Board of Charities. Gloria Steinem, the founder of MS. Magazine is her granddaughter.