Capitol Women

by Jones, Nancy Baker; Winegarten, Ruthe

• ISBN13: 9780292740631
• ISBN10: 0292740638
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-03-01
• Publisher: Univ of Texas Pr

Summary

Along with bar rooms and bordellos, there has hardly been a more male-focused institution in Texas history than the Texas Legislature. Yet the eighty-six women who have served there have made a mark on the institution through the legislation they have passed, much of which addresses their concerns as citizens who have been inadequately represented by male lawmakers.This first complete record of the women of the Texas Legislature places such well-known figures as Kay Bailey Hutchison, Sissy Farenthold, Barbara Jordan, Irma Rangel, Eddie Bernice Johnson, Susan Combs, and Judith Zaffirini in the context of their times and among the women and men with whom they served. Drawing on years of primary research and interviews, Nancy Baker Jones and Ruthe Winegarten offer concise biographies and profiles of all eighty-six women who have served or currently hold office in the Texas Legislature.The biographies describe the women lawmakers' lives, campaign strategies, and legislative successes and defeats. Four introductory essays provide historical and cultural context for the biographies, which are arranged chronologically to give a sense of the passage of time, of relationships among and between women, and of the issues of their eras.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
THE POLITICAL CONTEXT
Women in Red	3	(6)
Entering the ``Men's Room'': Women inside the Texas Legislature	9	(18)
Texas Women as Politicians: A Historical Overview	27	(42)
How the Texas Legislature Works	69	(8)
BIOGRAPHIES
The 1920s--1930s
Edith Eunice Therrel Wilmans	77	(4)
Mary Elizabeth (Margie) Neal	81	(4)
Laura Burleson Negley	85	(4)
Helen Edmunds Moore	89	(3)
Frances Mitchell Rountree	92	(3)
Cora Gray Strong	95	(1)
Sarah Tilghman Hughes	96	(7)
The 1940s--1950s
Margaret Greer Harris Gordon (Amsler)	103	(5)
Esther Neveille Higgs Colson	108	(4)
Rae Mandette Files (Still)	112	(4)
Florence Fenley	116	(2)
Mary Elizabeth Suiter	118	(1)
Marian Isabel (Maribelle) Hamblen Stewart (Mills Reich)	119	(1)
Persis Jones Henderson	120	(2)
Dorothy Gillis Gurley (Cauthorn)	122	(3)
Virginia Elizabeth Duff	125	(5)
Anita Blair	130	(3)
Maud Isaacks	133	(6)
The 1960s--1970s
Myra Davis Wilkinson Banfield (Dippel)	139	(5)
Sue Blair Hairgrove (Muzzy)	144	(1)
Barbara Charline Jordan	145	(7)
Frances Tarlton (Sissy) Farenthold	152	(6)
Kathryn A. (Kay) Bailey (Hutchison)	158	(4)
Sarah Ragle Weddington	162	(4)
Dorothy J. Chrisman (Chris) Miller	166	(3)
Eddie Bernice Johnson	169	(4)
Elizabeth (Betty) Richards Andujar	173	(3)
Senfronia Paige Thompson	176	(3)
Susan Gurley McBee	179	(3)
Wilhelmina Ruth Fitzgerald Delco	182	(5)
Lou Nelle Callahan Sutton	187	(2)
Mary Jane Goodpasture Bode	189	(2)
Lanell Cofer	191	(2)
Ernestine Viola Glossbrenner	193	(5)
Anita Dorcas Carraway Hill	198	(3)
Betty Denton	201	(3)
Irma Rangel	204	(2)
Mary J. McCracken Polk	206	(5)
The 1980s--1990s
Debra Danburg	211	(4)
Jan McKenna	215	(2)
Patricia Ellen Porcella Hill	217	(2)
Phyllis Robinson	219	(2)
Gwyn Clarkston Shea	221	(2)
Nancy Hanks McDonald	223	(2)
Margaret Anne Becker Cooper	225	(2)
Maria Elena (Lena) Guerrero	227	(3)
Cyndi Taylor Krier	230	(3)
Judith Lee Pappas Zaffirini	233	(2)
Anna Renshaw Mowery	235	(3)
Elizabeth Ann (Libby) Andrews Linebarger	238	(3)
Karyne Jones Conley	241	(3)
Mary Carolyn Bedgood Park	244	(2)
Sue Ann Smith Schechter	246	(2)
Margaret Ann (Peggy) Mulry Rosson	248	(2)
Yolanda Navarro Flores	250	(2)
Susan Combs	252	(2)
Sylvia Romo	254	(2)
Barbara Rusling	256	(5)
SNAPSHOTS
Dianne White Delisi	261	(1)
Sherri Greenberg	261	(1)
Peggy Hamric	261	(1)
Christine Hernandez	261	(1)
Leticia San Miguel Van de Putte	262	(1)
Patricia Gray	262	(1)
Diana Davila	262	(1)
Yvonne Davis	262	(1)
Mary Diane Carver Denny	263	(1)
Helen Giddings	263	(1)
Vilma Luna	263	(1)
Nancy J. Jones Moffat	263	(1)
Jane Gray Nelson	264	(1)
Elvira Reyna	264	(1)
Florence Muriel Donald Shapiro	264	(1)
Dawnna Dukes	264	(1)
Harryette Ehrhardt	265	(1)
Jessica Cristina Farrar	265	(1)
Judy Hawley	265	(1)
Arlene Wohlgemuth	265	(1)
Beverly Woolley	266	(1)
Norma Chavez	266	(1)
Carolyn Galloway	266	(1)
Terri Hodge	266	(1)
Suzanna Gratia Hupp	267	(1)
Ruth Jones McClendon	267	(1)
Dora Olivo	267	(1)
Sue Palmer	267	(30)
APPENDICES
A. The Honorable Women of the Texas Legislature	271	(4)
B. Statistical Summaries	275	(4)
C. Number of Female Members of the Texas Legislature by Legislative Session, January 1923--January 1999	279	(2)
D. Female Members of the Texas Legislature by Legislative Session, January 1923--January 1999	281	(4)
E. Composition of the 76th Legislature (January 1999--January 2001)	285	(2)
F. Time Line	287	(10)
Bibliography	297	(14)
Photo Credits	311	(4)
Index	315