Lillian Moller Gilbreth was born May 24, 1878, in Oakland, California and died January 2, 1972, in Phoenix, Arizona. She was known for seminal contributions to human factors engineering and ergonomics that came to be known as Therblig. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Therblig) Lillian married Frank Gilbreth and they began a business together and eventually had twelve children. Following Frank’s untimely death, Lillian Gilbreth was the sole supporter of the family. She continued the work she had started years earlier which was trying to find ways to save time and energy for homemakers so they would have more time to enjoy their family life. Gilbreth created the foot pedal trash can; and developed shelves for the inside of refrigerator doors. Two of her children coauthored two books, Cheaper by the Dozen and Belles on Their Toes, which were about life in the Gilbreth home. Lillian Gilbreth received many awards and in 1921 became the first female member of the Society of Industrial Engineers.
Lots more information on this remarkable woman can be found at the following websites:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lillian_Moller_Gilbreth
http://gilbrethnetwork.tripod.com/bio.html
http://faculty.webster.edu/woolflm/gilbreth2.html
