Hedvig Gebhard 1867- 1961

Hedvig Gebhard was a Finnish journalist and politician. She was an elected member of the Parliament of Finland, representing the Finnish Party from 1907 to 1909 and the National Coalition Party from 1919 to 1922 and again from 1924 to 1929. In politics, Gebhard was primarily an advocate for families and for the domestic economy. As an advocate for women, she co-founded the Union, the Women’s Affairs Association in Finland. She was active in the Union for several decades and became acquainted with other activists including Miina Sillanpää, who became her friend and parliamentary colleague.

In 1907, Gebhard (and Sillanpää) were among the first 19 female members elected to the Parliament of Finland.
She had planned to become a journalist but found it impossible to enter the newspaper industry until 1922 when Kotiliesi, a magazine concerning women and homes, made her the chairperson of its editorial staff. Kotiliesi was first published in 1923 and Gebhard continued to be part of the editorial staff for more than forty years, until her death in 1961.