By Stephanie Andrews, Library Assistant

Every March, we as a country celebrate women and their role in our nation’s history with Women’s History Month. According to the United States Statutes, Public Law 100-9, the first celebrated Women’s History Month was in March 1987.

Visit the Law Library of Congress’ Women’s History Month webpage for more information about the federal government’s role in this yearly event. In addition to the annual proclamation, the National Women’s History Alliance suggests a theme for each year’s celebration. This year’s theme is, “Visionary Women: Champions of Peace & Nonviolence.”
As the Texas Legislature is currently in session, the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) would like to share some of our resources about women in the Texas Legislature. These women embody this year’s theme by the way they have brought about change in peaceful and nonviolent ways. Whether they were serving unfinished terms for their husbands, lobbying for a woman’s right to vote, or becoming the first of many to serve in the Texas Legislature, Texas women have had a vibrant and important role in the history of Texas politics.

Some of the more notable women in Texas politics include: Edith Wilmans, the first woman to be elected to the Texas Legislature; Miriam “Ma” Ferguson, the first woman to be elected as Texas Governor; Barbara Jordan, the first African-American woman to be elected to the Texas Legislature; and, Irma Rangel, the first Mexican-American woman to be elected to the Texas Legislature. Read more about Texas’ female Legislators in Nancy Baker Jones’ book, Capitol Women: Texas Female Legislators, 1923-1999.
Below you will find a reading list of publications that cover people or topics related to Texas women in politics. The list is not intended to be comprehensive, but can be a starting place for learning more about Texas women legislators.
“The majority of the American people still believe that every single individual in this country is entitled to just as much respect just as much dignity,
as every other individual.”
Barbara Jordan, Texas State Senator 1967-1973
Publications and Electronic Materials |
|||
Title |
Call Number |
Format |
Collection |
A Texas Suffragist: Diaries and Writings of Jane Y. McCallum |
322.44 M124H |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
923.2764 J761B |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
305.48 W725B |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
305.48 W725BS |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
305.48 W725 |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
PE 1.12:W 84/2 |
Electronic File |
U.S. Documents |
|
976.4063 T578c |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
Z UA380.8 M348de |
|
Texas Documents |
|
Finder’s Guide to the Texas Women: A Celebration of History Exhibit Archives |
305.40976 F492 |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
Joint Resolution to Designate the Month of March, 1987, as “Women’s History Month.” |
AE 2.111:101/PT.1 |
|
U.S. Documents |
Latina Legislator: Leticia Van De Putte and the Road to Leadership |
Z TA475.8 N228La |
|
Texas Documents |
Z UA380.8 W725ov |
|
Texas Documents |
|
Z UA380.8 B151pi |
|
Texas Documents |
|
923.2764 P943 2004 |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
305.4 Q57 |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
L1803.1 SE55 83 |
|
Texas Documents |
|
Z UA380.8 M118TE |
|
Texas Documents |
|
329.009764 W413T |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
976.4042 T312 |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
305.4 W725T |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
305.409764 L334T |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
976.4092 M814t |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
976.4092 SE64 |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
305.4 T312B |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
328.764092 C172 |
|
TSLAC-MAIN |
|
Y 1.1/3:113-8 |
|
U.S. Documents |
|
PE 1.12:W 84 |
Electronic File |
U.S. Documents |
|
976.4042 C856W 1992 |
|
ARC-REF |
Archival Materials |
Title |
Collection |
||
Archives |
|||
Archives |
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|
Archives |
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Archives |
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Archives |
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Representative Patricia Gray records, 1991-1993, 1995-2002, undated, bulk 1995-2001 |
Archives |
||
Representative Harryette Ehrhardt records, 1991, 1994-2001, undated bulk 1995-2001 |
Archives |
||
Records of Representative Ernestine Glossbrenner, 1977-1990 (bulk 1987-1990) |
Archives |
||
Records of Senator Cyndi Taylor Krier, 1974-1992 (bulk 1985-1992) |
Archives |
To search for these collections, books and more, check out our catalog at www.tsl.texas.gov/catalog. To learn more about our archives collections visit our Descriptive Guides webpage.
Contact the Reference Desk with any inquiries regarding these or other materials at TSLAC at ref@tsl.texas.gov, call us at 512-463-5455 or visit in person at 1201 Brazos Street, Austin, TX 78701 room 109.
Quotes above were referenced from Susie Kelly Flatau and Lou Halsell Rodenberger’s “Quotable Texas Women” (State House Press, 2005).