Mary Travers, who as one-third of the popular 1960s folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary helped popularise such tunes as Puff (The Magic Dragon) and If I Had a Hammer, has died from leukaemia aged 72.
The band's publicist, Heather Lylis, says Travers died at Danbury Hospital in Connecticut.
Bandmate Peter Yarrow said that in her final months Travers handled her declining health with bravery and generosity, showing her love to friends and family "with great dignity and without restraint".
"It was, as Mary always was, honest and completely authentic," he said. "That's the way she sang, too; honestly and with complete authenticity."
Noel "Paul" Stookey, the trio's other member, praised Travers for her inspiring activism, "especially in her defence of the defenceless". He said: "I am deadened and heartsick beyond words to consider a life without Mary Travers and honoured beyond my wildest dreams to have shared her spirit and her career."
Mary Allin Travers was born on November 9, 1936 in Louisville, Kentucky, the daughter of journalists who moved the family to Manhattan's bohemian Greenwich Village.
She quickly became enamoured with folk music, but it wasn't until she met up with Yarrow and Stookey that she would taste success. Their beatnik look -- a tall blonde flanked by a pair of goateed guitarists -- was a part of their initial appeal.
The trio mingled their music with liberal politics, both on-stage and off. Their version of If I Had a Hammer became an anthem for racial equality. Other hits included Lemon Tree, Leaving on a Jet Plane and Puff (The Magic Dragon.)
They were early champions of Bob Dylan and performed his Blowin' in the Wind at the August 1963 March on Washington. And they were vehement in their opposition to the Vietnam War, managing to stay true to their liberal beliefs while creating music that resonated in the American mainstream.
They disbanded in 1971, launching solo careers -- Travers released five albums -- that never achieved the heights of their collaborations.
