In The Charge of A Woman
In 1869, at a moment when women were largely barred from public life and professional opportunities, Harriet Tenney stepped into Michigan’s State Capitol and made history. As the first woman to hold a full-time position in the State of Michigan’s government, she spent the next twenty-two years reshaping not only Michigan’s libraries, but the nation’s understanding of what women could achieve in public service.
Appointed and reappointed by seven governors from both political parties, Tenney built one of the country’s most respected state libraries. She dramatically expanded its collections, established professional standards that became models for libraries across the country, and mentored a generation of women librarians who followed in her path. She also founded Michigan’s first state museum, ensuring that historical artifacts, portraits, and documents would be preserved for future generations; today, tens of thousands of people each year visit and study the objects she collected and curated.
Tenney’s impact radiated far beyond the Capitol. Under her leadership, the state librarianship itself became recognized as a “woman’s position”—a remarkable shift in an era when women's work remained largely invisible. In Lansing, she founded the Woman’s Club as well as the Lansing Library and Literary Association, which evolved into the Capital Area District Library system.
In the Charge of a Woman not only tells the story of Tenney’s achievements in expanding the role of women in the workforce; it also illuminates domestic and political life in nineteenth-century Michigan, revealing how one woman navigated, and transformed, a world built to exclude her.
“It is hard to overstate the impact Harriet Augusta Edgerton Tenney had on state government and the State Library in Michigan. In 1869 Tenney became Michigan’s first female state officer and one of America’s earliest prominent female government officials. Through determination and intellect, she overcame a challenging childhood to spend twenty-two years transforming the State Library into a world-class institution. In the Charge of a Woman is a well-researched, sweeping biography of a visionary Victorian trailblazer who forever opened the doors of civil service to women.”
“Valerie Marvin’s exploration of the remarkable life and good work of Harriet Edgerton Tenney is a treasure. However, this is far more than a fascinating biography. The author’s impeccable research into mid-late 19th century Michigan politics, culture, and society provides a rich context for what women like Harriet-intelligent and formidable-had to contend with in order to build this great state.”
“Valerie Marvin’s In the Charge of a Woman is a thoughtful exploration of a groundbreaking Michigan leader Harriet Tenney. As State Librarian, she reinvented the preservation of Michigan’s history as she opened the door for women to state government positions. Tenney is also the reason there is still an Historical Society of Michigan today!”