Lola Van Wagenen: The Untold Story Behind Robert Redford’s First Love and Her Own Remarkable Legacy

When people search for Lola Van Wagenen, most start out curious about one thing: her marriage to Robert Redford. That connection is real, and it’s an important part of her story. But the more you look into her life, the clearer it becomes that she built something far bigger than a footnote in someone else’s biography. Lola Van Wagenen is a historian, an early environmental activist, and a documentary producer who spent decades shaping how people learn about the past.

This article walks through her full story, from her early years in Utah to her academic achievements, her family life, her activism, and where she stands today. Whether you’re here because of the Redford connection or because you’re genuinely interested in her work as a historian, you’ll find everything laid out clearly below.

Quick Facts Table

Quick Timeline (step-by-step, where relevant)

1. 1938 – Born in Provo, Utah.
2. 1957 – Meets Robert Redford in Los Angeles.
3. 1958 – Marries Redford in Provo, Utah.
4. 1970 – Co-founds Consumer Action Now.
5. 1982–1994 – Completes BA, MA, and PhD.
6. 1985 – Divorces Redford after 27 years of marriage.
7. 1995 – Co-founds Clio Visualizing History, Inc.
8. 2002 – Marries George Burrill.
9. 2003 – Publishes Sister Wives and Suffragists.

Who Is Lola Van Wagenen?

At her core, Lola Van Wagenen is a historian who has spent her career making American history more accessible to everyday people. She holds a Ph.D. in American History from New York University, and she has used that academic background in ways that go well beyond the classroom. She co-founded two organizations that shaped how history and consumer awareness reached the public: Consumer Action Now and Clio Visualizing History, Inc.

What makes her stand out is the range of her work. She’s not just an academic who published a dissertation and moved on. She’s also produced documentary films, pushed for environmental awareness before it was mainstream, and written about topics like women’s suffrage that still matter today. Yes, she was married to one of Hollywood’s most respected actors and directors, but her own résumé holds up entirely on its own.

Early Life and Background

Lola Van Wagenen was born on December 19, 1938, in Provo, Utah. She grew up in a Mormon household, which shaped much of her early worldview, though as an adult she explored other philosophical and religious perspectives as well.

Not a lot of detail about her childhood has been widely documented, which isn’t unusual for someone who built her public profile later in life through academic and activist work rather than early fame. What is clear is that her Utah upbringing gave her a grounded start before she eventually moved toward the world of history, activism, and film.

Lola Van Wagenen in Her Younger Years

Before she became known for her academic and activist work, Lola Van Wagenen was a young woman navigating a very different chapter of her life. She met a young actor named Robert Redford in Los Angeles in 1957. At the time, neither of them had reached the level of recognition they’d later be known for.

Their relationship moved quickly. The two married the following year, and this period marked a major turning point in her young adulthood. Instead of following one fixed path, she found herself balancing family life with the growing demands of her husband’s rising acting career, all while her own interests in history and social issues were quietly taking shape in the background.

Education and Academic Journey

One of the most impressive parts of Lola Van Wagenen’s story is how she pursued higher education later in life, at a stage when many people are already deep into a settled career. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Vermont College in 1982. Rather than stopping there, she continued straight into graduate work, completing a master’s degree in public history at New York University in 1984.

She didn’t stop at a master’s degree either. Ten years after starting her graduate studies, she completed her Ph.D. in American History at NYU in 1994. This academic path shows a clear pattern in her life: a steady, patient commitment to learning and expertise, even while raising a family and managing other responsibilities. Her doctoral work would go on to form the foundation of her published research on women’s history and suffrage.

Marriage to Robert Redford

Lola Van Wagenen’s marriage to Robert Redford is one of the most searched aspects of her life, and understandably so, given his stature in film. The couple married on September 12, 1958, in Provo, Utah, following a smaller private ceremony that had taken place in Las Vegas a few months earlier.

Their marriage lasted 27 years, spanning a period during which Redford transitioned from a rising actor into one of the most influential names in American cinema. Van Wagenen was present through much of that transformation, raising their children and building her own interests alongside the demands that came with being married to a increasingly famous public figure. The couple eventually divorced in 1985, closing a long chapter that had shaped both of their adult lives.

Her Children with Robert Redford

Lola Van Wagenen and Robert Redford had four children together. Their first child, a son named Scott, tragically passed away in infancy due to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), a loss that undoubtedly left a lasting mark on the family.

The couple went on to have three more children: Shauna, Jamie, and Amy. Each of them grew into adulthood with varying degrees of public visibility, with some following creative or advocacy-related paths of their own. While Van Wagenen has largely kept her children’s lives private in the years since, the early loss of Scott remains one of the more emotionally significant parts of her family history, one that she and Redford both carried through the following decades.

Divorce and Life After Redford

The 1985 divorce marked a turning point that allowed Lola Van Wagenen to step more fully into her own identity, separate from her role as a Hollywood spouse. Rather than staying tied to the public image that came with her marriage, she redirected her energy toward the academic and activist pursuits she had already begun building years earlier.

This period of her life shows a clear shift in focus. Where she had once balanced family duties with a supporting role in her husband’s career, she now had the space to pursue her Ph.D., deepen her activism, and eventually build the organizations that would define her professional legacy. In many ways, the years after her divorce are where her own story truly takes center stage.

George Burrill: Her Husband Today

Lola Van Wagenen remarried in the years following her divorce from Redford. On July 17, 2002, she married George Carleton Burrill, the founder of ARD. Unlike her first marriage, which unfolded largely in the public eye, her relationship with Burrill has remained comparatively private.

Not much detailed public information exists about how the two met, which fits with the more low-key nature of her personal life since the 1990s. What is documented is that the marriage has continued for over two decades, marking a stable and lasting chapter in her personal life well after her time with Redford had ended.

Her Career as a Historian and Author

Lola Van Wagenen’s academic contributions go far beyond earning degrees. Her research has specifically focused on women’s history, and one of her most notable achievements is her published work, “Sister Wives and Suffragists: Polygamy and the Politics of Woman Suffrage 1870 to 1896,” released in 2003.

This study examines the surprising and often overlooked relationship between polygamous communities in the American West and the fight for women’s voting rights during that era. It’s a topic that requires careful historical research and a willingness to explore complicated, sometimes uncomfortable, intersections of history. Her work in this area established her as a serious contributor to the field of American women’s history, not simply someone with an academic credential to her name.

Environmental Activism and Consumer Action Now

Long before environmental awareness became a mainstream topic, Lola Van Wagenen was already working on it. In 1970, she co-founded Consumer Action Now, an organization built around educating everyday consumers about how their purchasing decisions affected the environment.

At the time, this kind of consumer-focused environmental education was still a relatively new idea. Van Wagenen served in a leadership role within the organization for roughly a decade, helping shape programs that connected ordinary buying habits to larger ecological consequences. This early activism reflects a forward-thinking mindset, one that anticipated conversations about sustainability that wouldn’t become widespread public concerns until years later.

Clio Visualizing History and Documentary Work

In 1995, Lola Van Wagenen co-founded Clio Visualizing History, Inc., an organization built to bring American history to a broader public audience through educational media. The group later restructured as a not-for-profit organization, expanding its focus to include documentary films and online historical resources.

Through Clio, Van Wagenen took on a producer role for several projects, including the documentary “Miss America: A Documentary Film.” This work reflects her broader mission: making history feel accessible and relevant, rather than something confined to textbooks and lecture halls. Her involvement in documentary filmmaking allowed her to combine her academic training with a genuine passion for public education.

Lola Van Wagenen Today

Lola Van Wagenen has largely stepped back from the public spotlight in recent years, choosing to keep a fairly low profile compared to her earlier decades of activism and academic work. She continues to be recognized primarily for her historical contributions and her role in founding Clio Visualizing History, an organization whose educational mission has outlasted her most active involvement in day-to-day operations.

There isn’t a large amount of recent public information about her current activities, which is consistent with someone who has intentionally moved away from public attention after building a substantial professional legacy. What remains clear is that her earlier work in activism and history continues to be referenced and appreciated by those researching both women’s history and the broader story of Robert Redford’s personal life.

Net Worth and Public Recognition

Because Lola Van Wagenen has never sought fame in the way many public figures do, there is no verified or officially disclosed figure for her net worth. Various unofficial sources have offered rough estimates over the years, but none of these numbers come from confirmed financial records or statements from Van Wagenen herself, so they should be treated as speculation rather than fact.

What can be said with more confidence is that her financial standing likely reflects a combination of her academic career, her work with nonprofit organizations, any settlement connected to her marriage to Redford, and her later marriage to George Burrill, founder of ARD. Rather than focusing on a specific dollar figure, it’s more accurate to view her financial life as tied to a long, stable career across education, activism, and nonprofit leadership.

Photos and Public Appearances

Because Lola Van Wagenen has kept a relatively private life since her divorce from Robert Redford, photographs of her are not widely circulated compared to typical celebrity figures. Most publicly available images come from a handful of sources: documentary appearances connected to her work with Clio Visualizing History, occasional interviews discussing her academic research, and older archival photos from her years married to Redford.

Fans and researchers looking for visuals of her are more likely to find historical images from the 1950s through the 1980s than recent photographs, given her preference for staying out of the public eye in more recent years. This pattern fits with her overall approach to fame: she has consistently prioritized her work over personal visibility.

Conclusion

Lola Van Wagenen’s story is a reminder that public recognition and personal achievement don’t always align neatly. While many people first encounter her name because of her marriage to Robert Redford, her life tells a much fuller story: a woman who earned her doctorate later in life, built two meaningful organizations from the ground up, published serious historical research, and quietly contributed to how millions of people understand American history through documentary film.

She has navigated public attention, personal loss, and a long career with a consistency that speaks for itself. In the end, Lola Van Wagenen stands as someone worth knowing not because of who she was married to, but because of what she built on her own.

FAQs

Who is Lola Van Wagenen?

Lola Van Wagenen is an American historian and environmental activist, known for co-founding Consumer Action Now and Clio Visualizing History, and for being actor Robert Redford’s first wife.

When was Lola Van Wagenen born?

Lola Van Wagenen was born on December 19, 1938, in Provo, Utah. She grew up in a Mormon household before later pursuing academic and activist work.

How many children does Lola Van Wagenen have?

She had four children with Robert Redford: Scott, who died in infancy from SIDS, and Shauna, Jamie, and Amy, who all reached adulthood.

Who is Lola Van Wagenen married to now?

She has been married to George Carleton Burrill, founder of ARD, since July 17, 2002, following her earlier marriage to Robert Redford.

What is Lola Van Wagenen known for professionally?

She’s known for her doctoral research on suffrage and polygamy, her environmental activism through Consumer Action Now, and her documentary work via Clio Visualizing History.

Disclaimer: This article is intended for general informational purposes only. Details have been compiled from publicly available sources and are believed to be accurate at the time of publishing; however, some information — particularly figures such as net worth — is unverified or estimated and should not be treated as official or financial fact. This content is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by Lola Van Wagenen or her representatives. Readers seeking verified or updated information are encouraged to consult primary or official sources.