Mina Jane Mead was the wife of Washington’s fifth Governor Albert E. Mead (1905-1909). She played an active role in Bellingham’s civic and social life for decades.
Mina Mead Moves to Bellingham
Mina was born on December 26, 1860, in Montezuma, Iowa, to Reuben Albertus Hosmer (1827-1896) and Emma Carlton Hosmer (1830-1882). The family soon moved to Manhattan, Kansas. Their farm neighbored the Mead family farm.
Mina attended Kansas State College for two years before working for a newspaper in Clay Center. She married printer William J. Pifer (1864-1894) in 1889. They had no children, and William died of heart disease a few years later.
Mina had kept up correspondence with longtime friend (and former neighbor) Albert Mead, now Whatcom County prosecuting attorney, living in Bellingham. A widower himself, he proposed marriage.
The couple was married on May 5, 1899, in Vancouver, B.C. Mina became stepmother to his four children, aged two to ten years old. She and Albert had one child together, Albert Vincent (1900-1955).
Becoming First Lady
While Albert Mead had ambitious political ambitions, his 1904 nomination as the Republican candidate for governor came as a surprise.
Interviewed by the Bellingham Herald on May 14, 1939, Mina remembered her own reaction, waiting for news at home. “I remember Grandpa [Albert’s father William, who lived with them] read me the headlines while I was getting breakfast. Then the afternoon paper came out with the news that Mr. Mead had been nominated.” His biggest supporter, she admitted that “I was more interested in whether he made a good speech.”
Winning with 51% of the vote, Mead was sworn into office in January 1905.
Living in Olympia
The family relocated to Olympia, renting a home first along Main Street and later the “Percival House” on the Westside. Mina also had servants. She’d done her own housework in Bellingham.
Stepson Damon Mead fondly recalled growing up in that second Olympia house in the 1971 book, “The Light in the Mansion”by Mary Lou Hanify. The (supposedly haunted) three-story house had a barn, sheds, and extensive grounds.
The family kept chickens, Chinese pheasants, and a dairy cow. One day, Damon remembered, his father returned from work to milk “Bossy” before dinner but found her missing. Neighborhood children told him the cow had gotten loose and been picked up by the police. Mead had to go to the city pound to retrieve the cow for a fine.
The children were allowed pets, including dogs, cats, rabbits, white rats, and a billy goat named “Chris.” Mina put her foot down at the garter snakes, however, making the children release them back into the wild.
Mina accompanied her husband on official visits and attended state functions, including the legislative ball. She also helped represent the state on “Olympia Day” at the 1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition in Portland.
At home, Mina entertained both personal and official guests. Many of the Meads’ friends from the Midwest came for a visit, Damon remembered.
A good cook who liked hosting, Damon recalled his stepmother’s disappointment when a guest, noted politician William Jennings Bryan, arrived late because of a snowstorm in January 1907 and asked for bread and milk instead of supper, which she had been preparing for weeks. “Perhaps he had heard of our dairy cows and Mother’s bread,” Damon mused. “In those days, Mother baked every loaf of bread we ate, and with the size of our family, her bakings were plentiful.”
Back to Bellingham
Due to the new primary law he helped pass, Mead lost the Republican nomination to Samuel Cosgrove. In September 1908, Mina moved the children back to Bellingham so they could start the new school term. She returned for the legislative ball and housewarming party at the newly built Governor’s Mansion.
Cosgrove, however, did not attend the party. In failing health when elected, he died two months into office. Lieutenant Governor Marion E. Hay was sworn in as governor.
Albert Mead returned to his legal practice in Bellingham. Mina became active with the Whatcom County Anti-Tuberculosis League and even joined the Women’s Taft Club, speaking at meetings.
Albert died in 1913 from a sudden illness. Mina moved back to Kansas with the children. She returned to Bellingham in the mid-1920s and lived with her stepdaughter, May, a nurse and longtime director of student health at Western Washington University.
Back in town, Mina became active with the Chief Whatcom Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Aftermath Club. She gave talks, hosted meetings, and held office in both groups, including serving as president of the Aftermath Club. A longtime member and women’s group leader at the Garden Street Methodist Church, Mina was also active with the YWCA.
In her spare time, she liked cooking, gardening, knitting, crocheting, and handloom weaving. A firm supporter of education, Mina made sure her kids did well in school.
The former First Lady was popular as a speaker, sharing her memories of “simpler times” when even the governor did not own a car.
Remembering Mina Mead
Mina Mead died May 18, 1941, of heart disease at home and was buried next to her husband at Bayview Cemetery.
“My stepmother,” Damon told Hanify, “was a remarkable woman.” Jean, widow of Mina’s son Albert, agreed. “She was an informed and intelligent person,” she told Hanify, “with a continuing interest in the national, state, and local political scene. Her standards of behavior were high for herself and her family…. I know her family loved and respected her.”
