The first company actuary to practice in North America was Jacob Shoemaker of Philadelphia, a key organizer in 1809 of the Pennsylvania Company for Insurances on Lives and Granting Annuities who chose to be that company's actuary rather than its president. Gill and Wright were actuaries of great distinction, the latter's fame coming through his establishment, while he was Massachusetts insurance commissioner, of abiding standards of life company solvency and of fairness to withdrawing policyholders. The earliest consulting actuary was John F. Entz, who practiced in New York City between 1840 and his death in 1872. The growth by 20-year periods of what 60 years later was to become the Society of Actuaries is shown in the table below. These 642 Fellows were the survivors of the 897 Fellows who qualified in the years 1889 to 1948.
Growth rates shown are annual compound rates.
The numbers of members in 1909 and 1929 include members of the Actuarial Society and the American Institute of Actuaries with duplications removed. The corresponding growth rate during the two years 1990 and 1991 was 6.9 percent. The average growth rates in the era of the present Society have been consistently above 6 percent per annum, sharply higher than the experience of preceding periods. This contrast reflects the determination of the leadership starting in the 1950s to achieve growth rates high enough to meet perceived needs for actuaries. Another item of special interest was election of the first woman member of the Actuarial Society, Emma Warren Cushman of Boston, also in 1895.