Women’s History Month, 2019: Women in the Texas Legislature

By Stephanie Andrews, Library Assistant

Display of titles on Texas women from the collections of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

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.

A selection from the TSLAC collections highlighting the contributions of Texas women.

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

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Barbara Jordan: A Self-Portrait

923.2764 J761B

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Black Texas Women

305.48 W725B

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Black Texas Women: A Sourcebook

305.48 W725BS

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Brave Black Women

305.48 W725

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Celebrate the World

PE 1.12:W 84/2

Electronic File

U.S. Documents

Claytie and the Lady

976.4063 T578c

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Democratizing Texas Politics

Z UA380.8 M348de

Print

Texas Documents

Finder’s Guide to the Texas Women: A Celebration of History Exhibit Archives

305.40976 F492

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Joint Resolution to Designate the Month of March, 1987, as “Women’s History Month.”

AE 2.111:101/PT.1

Print

U.S. Documents

Latina Legislator: Leticia Van De Putte and the Road to Leadership

Z TA475.8 N228La

Print

Texas Documents

Oveta Culp Hobby: Colonel, Cabinet Member, Philanthropist

Z UA380.8 W725ov

Print

Texas Documents

Picturing Texas Politics

Z UA380.8 B151pi

Print

Texas Documents

Profiles in Power: Twentieth Century Texans in Washington

923.2764 P943 2004

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Quotable Texas Women

305.4 Q57

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Texas Senators 83rd Legislature

L1803.1 SE55 83

Print

Texas Documents

Texas Through Women’s Eyes

Z UA380.8 M118TE

Print

Texas Documents

Texas Women in Politics

329.009764 W413T

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Texas Women: A Celebration of History

976.4042 T312

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Texas Women: A Pictorial History

305.4 W725T

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Texas Women: Interviews and Images

305.409764 L334T

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Texas Women’s Hall of Fame

976.4092 M814t

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Texas Women’s Hall of Fame: A Sesquicentennial Celebration

976.4092 SE64

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Texas Women’s History Project Bibliography

305.4 T312B

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

The Capital Book

328.764092 C172

Print

TSLAC-MAIN

Tributes Delivered in Congress: Kay Bailey Hutchison

Y 1.1/3:113-8

Print

U.S. Documents

Women in Decision-Making

PE 1.12:W 84

Electronic File

U.S. Documents

Women in Texas

976.4042 C856W 1992

Print

ARC-REF

Archival Materials

Title

 

Collection

Records of Representative Anita Hill, 1979-1992

 

Archives

Representative Patricia Harless records, 2007-2015

 

Archives

Representative Debbie Riddle records, 2003-2015

 

Archives

Representative Molly White records, 2007-2016

 

Archives

Representative Myra Crownover records, 2003-2015

 

Archives

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).