According to the 1903 University of Washington Tyee (the university's yearbook), page 45, Hansee received an A.M. from Pacific University in 1890 and an A.B. from Indiana University, 1900. She was Professor of Greek and Latin at the Territorial University (later University of Washington) 1881-1884; Professor of Ancient Languages and Dean of Women, Willamette University, 1888-1895; Instructor in History, Latin, and Greek, University of Washington 1895-1899; Assistant Professor of Greek and Dean of Women, University of Washington, 1889-1900; Professor of Greek Language and Literature, University of Washington, from 1900 until that publication in 1903.

The present-day curators of University of Washington Special Collections think that the dates of the degrees as given in the Tyee must be wrong, and that she must have received both of her degrees before she began teaching at the Territorial University in 1881.

According to a relative Gloria Thompson writing at https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/77239044/martha-lois-hansee, from 1907 to 1921 she was head of the English Conversation Department at Keio Gijuku University in Tokyo. She then retired, and resided in Seattle until her death in 1939.

Also according to Gloria Thompson, Hansee was born July 4, 1859 in Claraville, (now called Claryville), New York, listed as one year old on 1860 Census of the Town of Neversink, NY Census (Claryville, now part of the Town of Denning, was a located in Town of Neversink at that time). Her grave gives the erroneous date 1854.