In Galileo Hall, there’s a portrait of Harvey Seeley Mudd juggling items that symbolize his many activities: a miner’s pick, a violin, an ax, a gavel and an academic cap. Mildred Esterbrook Mudd, his wife, is pictured in Kingston Hall peering demurely at passersby from her portrait. Those who knew her might surmise that Mildred is simply resting between her many activities, including the establishment of Harvey Mudd College, in which she played a pivotal role.

When Harvey died in April 1955, the Executive Committee of the Board of Fellows of Claremont College was in the midst of plans to add a new college to the Claremont group. Funds were donated for “a college which teaches engineering and science in a humanistic setting,” and Mildred Mudd agreed to match the gift and pledged the support of other Mudd family members should the college be named after her husband, Harvey S. Mudd.

With funds provided and the college name decided, Mildred joined the founding trustees of the new college and was elected board chair. Having shared her husband’s enthusiasm for The Claremont Colleges, she efficiently settled into this role. She had already proven herself an effective leader as a founding member of Las Madrinas (1933), the oldest Affiliate Group of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, by her leadership on the American Red Cross board of directors, and as national president (1939–1941) of the Girl Scouts of America. Her community activities in Los Angeles earned her the Gold Key Award, the highest honor conferred by the Community Chest. She was also mother of two children, Henry T. Mudd (who would later become board chair) and Caryll Mudd Sprague, who became an active participant with her husband Norman F. Sprague Jr., in planning the college.

Joseph Platt observed, “When we first met, [Mildred] seemed reserved, almost shy, but I soon learned that she was a determined lady who made herself thoroughly informed, and that she had a warm and sympathetic interest in our students, our faculty and all of us at the college.”

Jean Platt recalls first meeting Mildred at the California Club in Los Angeles shortly after Joe was appointed president of HMC. Mildred graciously showed her around the Los Angeles area and welcomed the Platts as guests in their Beverly Hills estate, complete with a spectacular display of tulips and a guest house called “the caboose,” where the Mudds hosted annual strawberry festivals.

“Mildred came out for the first Christmas party the students had in East Dorm,” said Jean. East Dorm (now named Mildred E. Mudd Hall) was the college’s first building. “She kept in touch with us when she travelled and brought back things for the children (Ann and Beth). She was very thoughtful of the fact that we had a young family.”

Granddaughter Victoria “Tory” Mudd, an Oscar-winning documentary film producer and daughter of Henry Mudd, recalled that her grandmother “had an incredible depth of intellect and a huge civic heart.”

Caryll “Tally” Mingst, daughter of Caryll Esterbrook Mudd and Norman F. Sprague Jr. and wife of current HMC Trustee William Mingst, lived for a time with grandparents Harvey and Mildred, with whom she was very close. Caryll said she has wonderful memories of their huge vegetable garden and playing canasta with Mildred.

“She was a gracious lady, a lovely woman,” said Mingst. “She was one of those people who really wanted to give back. She and my grandfather felt that they had been very fortunate; it was a joy and obligation to make communities better for other generations.”

Quite young during Mildred’s last years, Virginia “Gibi” Mudd, Tory’s sister, said she wishes she had known her grandmother better. “I do remember she was a great lady: interesting, funny, warm and she really cared about the things she was involved in.”

Though she served as board chair for only three short years before her resignation and subsequent death in 1958, Mildred left a lasting impression upon the college community. HMC Board minutes from Sept. 17, 1958 describe her as “beautiful and inspiring in her presence, [she] presided with the natural modesty, humor, and sense of direction admired by men and women alike.”

Mildred is distinguished for having given the college a strong start: an excellent faculty and student body, a campus that was beginning to evolve, and crucial nationwide recognition and support.

Of her grandmother Mildred Mudd, Caryll “Tally” Mingst said, ”I think she would be extremely excited and pleased that there are so many women attending the college now.”

In the beginning, however there were few women on campus. Janet Cook ’60 is one pioneer who helped pave the way for other women to follow.

Though not one of the members of the first four-year class of HMC, Janet Cook is officially the college’s first female graduate, receiving a degree in mathematics in 1960. She was actually accepted after the members of the Class of 1961, when the college was informed it must have “all four classes in operation” in order to apply for accreditation. This meant finding some juniors and some seniors who would transfer from other colleges and universities, preferably mathematics students as the other department laboratories were not yet set up.

Cook transferred to Mudd from the University of Chicago because her parents wanted to retire in California. Emery Walker, then dean of admission, made the new HMC sound so exciting, he convinced her parents and the National Merit Scholarship administrators that, even though the college was just beginning, Cook would receive an outstanding education. “He was a fantastic salesman,” she said. His pitch turned out to be true for Cook, who lived at Scripps during her two years here. “My experience at Mudd was much more satisfying than my education before.”

Cook recalls very small classes—no more than seven students—and an atmosphere that felt more like tutoring than regular classes. “I was now exploring instead of absorbing. I found it fascinating.”

Cook, a third generation school teacher, went on to teach community college in Fullerton, Calif., then spent 30 years as an assistant professor of mathematics at Illinois State. She is now retired and lives in Hudson, Ill.