After graduation from Ohio State University in 1937, she became a reporter in Paris for the “Trans-Radio Press.” At the outbreak of World War II, she began reporting for United Press International in New York City.

She married journalist William Boyd Dickinson in 1948, moving to Philadelphia to join the staff of the Ladies Home Journal. Among her noted article was "Mental Illness Begins at Home". Her books included:

• The Stork and You (1952)
• The Book of Diamonds: Their History and Romance from Ancient India to Modern Times with an introduction by Harry Winston (1965)
• The Book of Pearls: Their History and Romance from Antiquity to Modern Times (1968)
• The Role of the Immigrant Women in the U.S. Labor Force, 1890-1910 (1975)
• Girl Reporter, Wartime New York: A Personal Memoir (1999)