13 Facts About Esther Peterson

Esther Eggertsen Peterson was an American consumer and women's advocate.

The daughter of Danish immigrants, Esther Eggertsen grew up in a Mormon family in Provo, Utah.

Esther Peterson graduated from Brigham Young University in 1927 with a degree in physical education, and a master's from Teachers College, Columbia University, in 1930.

Esther Peterson held several teaching positions in the 1930s, including one at the innovative Bryn Mawr Summer School for Women Workers in Industry, which brought milliners, telephone operators and garment workers onto the campus.

Esther Peterson moved to New York City where she married Oliver Peterson.

In 1938, Esther Peterson became a paid organizer for the American Federation of Teachers and traveled around New England.

In 1944, Esther Peterson became the first lobbyist for the National Labor Relations Board in Washington, DC In 1948, the State Department offered Esther Peterson's husband a position as a diplomat in Sweden.

Esther Peterson was Assistant Secretary of Labor and Director of the United States Women's Bureau under fellow Bostonian President John F Kennedy.

Esther Peterson was Vice President for Consumer Affairs at Giant Food Corporation, and president of the National Consumers League.

Esther Peterson received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1981.

Esther Peterson was elected to the Common Cause National Governing Board in 1982.

Esther Peterson was named a delegate of the United Nations as a UNESCO representative in 1993.

In that same year, Esther Peterson was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.