Hattie Wyatt Caraway was the first woman elected to serve in the United States Senate. Born in Tennessee, she graduated from college in 1896, where she met her husband. They moved to Arkansas, and her husband was elected to Congress in 1912 and the U.S. Senate in 1920. When he died suddenly in 1931, Hattie was appointed to serve in his place and a special election confirmed the appointment. She began to gain a reputation for supporting President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal, particularly on matters affecting veterans and unions. She was re-elected once, and during her second term she co-sponsored the Equal Rights Amendment. She left the Senate in 1945 and continued her career in public service through appointments by Roosevelt to the U.S. Employees' Compensation Commission and later to the Employees' Compensation Appeals Board.

 

Works Cited:

• Article is excerpted from the NWHM Winter 2007 Newsletter
• PHOTO: Library of Congress Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress
  

 

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