Alma K. Ledig

Alma K. Ledig
Alma K. Ledig, from the 1926 women's yearbook of the University of Pennsylvania
Born	July 26, 1905 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Died	November 21, 1989 (age 84)
Occupation(s)	Businesswoman, records consultant; commander in WAVES during WWII

Alma Katherine Ledig (July 26, 1905 – November 21, 1989) was an American businesswoman and consultant on business records. In 1931, she became the first woman to earn a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from the Wharton School. From 1962 to 1963, she was president of the American Records Management Association.

Early life and education

Ledig was born in Philadelphia, the daughter of Richard Gustav Ledig and Anna K. Mecky Ledig. Her father was a businessman.[1][2] She attended Friends' Central School[3] and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1926. She continued her studies at the Wharton School, where she became the first woman to earn an MBA in 1931. For her research project she studied how salesgirls were hired and trained at department stores.[4]

She was a competitive fencer during and after college.[5][6] She won second place in the Pennsylvania women's foil competition in 1926, and won the women's épée event at the Pennsylvania state championship in 1928.[3] She was state champion again in 1933.[5]

Career

After earning her MBA, Ledig worked for the Philadelphia Board of Education, in a job training and job placement program,[7] and taught at Temple University.[8] During World War II, she was a personnel officer in the United States Navy Reserve, where she held the rank of commander.[8][9] She worked for the Navy Bureau of Ships in Washington, D.C.[10] She also co-wrote a mystery novel, Cobwebs and Clues (1944) with her sister Ernestine.[4][11]

Ledig lived in Chicago in the 1950s and 1960s. She was a records analyst and consultant at the Shaw-Walker Company,[12] and was president of the Chicago chapter of the American Records Management Association (ARMA) from 1956 to 1958.[13][14] In 1962 she was elected national president of ARMA.[15][16][17] She was also a member of the Society of American Archivists.[18][19]

Publications

• Cobwebs and Clues (1944, with Ernestine Malan)[11]
• Making More Money from your Real Estate Business (1955, with Warren G. Hirt and Robert S. Mather)[20]
• "The Growing Importance of Records Management" (1963)[21]

Personal life

Ledig lived at Foulkeways, a Quaker retirement home in Gwynedd, Pennsylvania, in her later years.[22] She died in 1989, at the age of 84.

References

1. "Richard G. Ledig, 69, of Ocean City, Dies". The Morning Post. April 11, 1945. p. 4. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Mrs. Annie K. Ledig". Press of Atlantic City. April 16, 1940. p. 2. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
3. Lurie, Dora (January 22, 1928). "Phila. Girl Triumphs in Extra Title Tilt; Alma Ledig, Former Penn Fencer, Defeats Tessie Domanski to Become 1928 Titleholder". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 46. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
4. Scheffler, Ian (March 10, 2023). "Wharton's First Alumna: A Champion of Inclusive Education". Wharton Magazine. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
5. "Miss Alma Ledig Captures Fencing Crown with Clean Sweep of Eleven Victories". The Philadelphia Inquirer. April 23, 1933. p. 32. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Beware". The Morning News. April 1, 1927. p. 16. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Students in Retail Selling Get Practical Experience". The Philadelphia Inquirer. May 11, 1941. p. 146. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Miss Ledig in WAVES". Press of Atlantic City. November 6, 1942. p. 11. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Miss Ledig Lt.-Commander". Press of Atlantic City. December 22, 1944. p. 8. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Phila. Woman Gets Capital Navy Post". The Philadelphia Inquirer. January 12, 1944. p. 4. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
11. Anderson, Isaac (December 31, 1944). "New Items for the Mystery Addict". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
12. "Records Group Joins V-C Congress". Management and Business Automation. 5 (1): 60. January 1961 – via Internet Archive.
13. "Past Presidents". ARMA Chicago. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
14. "Records Management Specialists Tour Dartmell Offices, Plant". American Business. 27 (11): 40. November 1957 – via Internet Archive.
15. "ARMA Election". Arizona Daily Star. October 7, 1962. p. 10. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
16. "ARMA Past Presidents". ARMA. Retrieved July 7, 2023.
17. "Arma Plans Conference in Chicago Oct. 21-22". Business Automation. 10 (4): 53. October 1963 – via Internet Archive.
18. Society of American Archivists (1970). Directory of Individual and Institutional Members. The Society. p. 46.
19. Fant, H. B.; Renze, Dolores C.; Overman, William D. (1958). "News Notes". The American Archivist. 21 (2): 225. doi:10.17723/aarc.21.4.a1054076741250j2. ISSN 0360-9081. JSTOR 40289700.
20. Office, Library of Congress Copyright (1957). Catalog of Copyright Entries. Third Series: 1956. Copyright Office, Library of Congress. p. 349.
21. Ledig, Alma K. (January 1963). "The Growing Importance of Records Management". The Office. 57 (1): 180, 240 – via Newspapers.com.
22. "Ernestine Malan, Red Cross Volunteer, Dies". Doylestown Intelligencer. October 19, 1981. p. 10. Retrieved July 7, 2023 – via NewspaperArchive.com.