In 1887, she migrated to the Alaska Territory with her parents, who worked as a troupe of actors to entertain the miners.[1] As her father joined the Klondike Gold Rush, they moved to Circle City where her father built an opera house.[2] After he found gold, they moved to Seattle, but they lost their money and returned to Alaska.[2]
She moved back to Juneau in 1914.[1] She was married in 1916 and had three children.[2] Her husband died in 1938.[3] The next year, she published a volume of historical poetry.[2] Meanwhile, she worked in church choirs, taught, and ran a flower shop.[2] In 1934, she ran as a Democrat for the Alaska Territorial House of Representatives.[1][2] She lost four races, and was elected in 1940, and reelected in 1942.[1][2][3]