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	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).