Frances Glessner Lee: The Mother of Forensic Science

Frances Glessner Lee discovered her true calling later in life. An heiress without formal schooling, she was in her fifties when she transformed her fascination with true crime and medicine into the foundation of a new field: forensic science. In the late 1920s, she drew inspiration from a family friend, a medical examiner involved in notorious cases— including the infamous Sacco and Vanzetti trial. For Glessner Lee, the puzzle of untangling the truth about violent deaths proved irresistible. She recognized that solving crimes demanded both rigorous methods and professional training. She funded and helped found the Department of Legal Medicine at Harvard University. Her most unusual teaching tool: intricately crafted dollhouse dioramas depicting grisly crime scenes. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices