Back home in Marion County, Ohio, are three of Mary Ellen Withrow's four daughters, most of her seven grandchildren, and the roots of a small-town girl who made good.

"You never get over home," she said. "It's in you."

But Mary Ellen and Norman, her husband for 60 years, have moved on. Their daughters, including the one in California, like coming to Washington to see the sights, soak up the culture and shop, and even one daughter's invitation to move into a farmhouse in Waldo was not enough to coax a move back.

"I said, 'What are we going to do, go back to Waldo and watch the grass grow?'  " Norman said.

Following a 32-year trek upward through public office -- from Elgin School Board member to 40th treasurer of the United States -- Mary Ellen, now 78, said she and her husband are avowed political junkies comfortably at home in the political capital of the world.

"We like it here so well because there's so much to do -- the museums and the theaters and the shopping and, of course, the politics."

During an interview in the charming suburban home she and Norman bought shortly after President Clinton appointed her U.S. treasurer in 1994, Withrow reflected on a unique career as treasurer at the county, state and federal levels.

Raised on a farm, the Democrat continually defied expectations, beginning in 1976 when she was elected treasurer of reliably Republican Marion County. Two years after being re-elected in 1980, Withrow surprised a field of six men in the Democratic primary for state treasurer and beat Franklin County Treasurer Dana "Buck" Rinehart in the general election.

"I defeated 16 men in my career, although I didn't start out to do that. They just got in my way," she said.

Withrow coasted to re-elections as state treasurer in 1986 and 1990 and was heading for a fourth term when Clinton asked her to be U.S. treasurer. She was recommended for the post by Vice President Al Gore after serving as Ohio chairwoman of his unsuccessful presidential campaign in 1988.

"My parents took me to Washington when I was 5 years old, and they took me to the bureau of engraving and printing, and I watched them make money," Withrow recalled. "I didn't make it back there until I was in charge of it."

Over nearly seven years as treasurer, Withrow said, her signature was printed on $80 billion in currency, more than any predecessor. She also was one of the nation's most visible treasurers, frequenting coin and currency shows to autograph "Withrow bills."

Most of the lower-denomination "Withrow bills" have worn out and been discarded in the eight years since President George W. Bush didn't reappoint her, but $50s, $100s and higher bills bearing her signature remain in circulation.

Her post routinely gave her front-row invitations to the White House and venues around the world.

"The higher up you go, the better it gets," she said. "I traveled everywhere. I was invited to everything. I met so many important people -- the king of Norway, the president of Finland, (former British Prime Minister) Margaret Thatcher, Kevin Costner.

"It's a wonderful title, treasurer of the United States. You don't get a better title than that."

Withrow seemed destined to get it. Money always fascinated her, she said, and often she would behold a dollar and wonder who had spent it and how before it reached her wallet. During campaigns for state treasurer, Withrow was known for handing out small bags of shredded money from the Federal Reserve.

"I really enjoyed being around money -- and then I got to produce it."

The invitations to official Washington functions have mostly dried up for Mary Ellen and Norman, a retired farmer and rural mail carrier who spends time restoring antique pocket watches. Throughout her career, Norman was her closest political adviser, she said, calling him "a very common-sense guy who always kept me going."

She works part-time as a consultant for a minority women's investment firm and is happy to be on the sidelines, as politics have "gotten more difficult, more polarized. Nobody gets along. It seems like they used to get along better in Congress than they do now."

As she and Norman enjoy Washington's cultural amenities in retirement, Withrow often reflects on her remarkable political career.

"I did a lot of things that hadn't been done by women. I sat in a lot of boardrooms where I was the only woman, but I don't know that I considered myself a trailblazer. I just went where I thought I was supposed to be.

"I just loved it. I really and truly did. It was a great life."

jhallett@dispatch.com