Amelia Elizabeth Simison McColgin (January 7, 1875 – July 9, 1972), known as Bessie McColgin, was an American businesswoman and politician. A native of Kansas, she moved to western Oklahoma Territory in 1901. In 1920, she was the first woman elected to the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
Bessie McColgin | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives | |
| In office 1920–1923 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Amelia Elizabeth Simison January 7, 1875 Minneapolis, Kansas, U.S. |
| Died | July 9, 1972 (aged 97) Sayre, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Spouse | Grant McColgin (m. 1895) |
| Children | 10, including Sterling S. McColgin (son) |
Early life and family
editAmelia Elizabeth Simison was born in Minneapolis, Kansas, on January 7, 1875, to Edward Harding Simison and his wife, Jane Eliza Moody.[1] Orphaned when she was three years old, she was raised by relatives in Earlville, Illinois[2] and educated at the Teachers Normal College and Illinois Wesleyan University.[3] She married Grant McColgin (1870-1955) in 1895, and they moved to Oklahoma Territory in 1901.[4] The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture states that her husband bought a relinquishment in Roger Mills County, Oklahoma, in 1903.[a] Bessie McColgin became a school teacher and the postmistress of the Ridgeton Post Office.[5] A few years later, the family moved to Rankin, where she and her husband established the Rankin Telephone Company in their home.[3] She organized a Women's Christian Temperance Union chapter,[6] and was a school teacher in Rankin's first public school.[4] One of her sons, Sterling S. McColgin, also served in the Oklahoma Legislature.[7]
Career
editWhile pregnant with her 10th child, McColgin became the first woman elected to the Oklahoma House of Representatives. She served in the legislature in 1921 and 1922.[2][8][9] According to legend, men in her family entered her name in the election as a Republican without her knowledge.[6] She was seen as a "superior orator."[10]
While in office, McColgin was heavily involved in health and safety legislation, and introduced a bill to create a Bureau of Child Hygiene.[citation needed] She attempted to pass legislation from Senator Lamar Looney, but few bills succeeded. She was also involved in a soldiers' relief program and helped establish a Tuberculosis Sanatorium in Oklahoma.[citation needed]
Although she was not re-elected for a second term, three new woman members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives were elected in 1923.[3] On the last day of her term, McColgin was presented with a wristwatch from her male colleagues to commemorate her service, which they jokingly stated was because "women legislators need to be watched".[1] Nearly 40 years after her term ended, McColgin's son, Sterling, was elected to the same seat she had filled.[6]
Death
editMcColgin died at the age of 97 in Sayre, Oklahoma, on July 9, 1972.[1] She was posthumously inducted into the Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame in 2005.[2]
Notes
edit- ^ Presumably this meant that he acquired land that had been claimed, then abandoned by a previous settler. Roger Mills County, Oklahoma was created from the short-lived Day County, Oklahoma Territory, after Oklahoma became a state in 1907.
References
edit- ^ a b c "McCOLGIN, AMELIA ELIZABETH SIMISON (1875–1972)". okhistory.org. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
- ^ a b c "2005 Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame". ok.gov. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
- ^ a b c Wimmer, Mike. "Rep. Bessie S. McColgin". arts.ok.gov. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
- ^ a b Weatherford, Doris (January 20, 2012). Women in American Politics: History and Milestones. SAGE. p. 87. ISBN 9781608710072. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
- ^ "Ridgeton Post Office (historical)". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ a b c Defrange, Ann (March 30, 2005). "State's first female legislator opened political frontier to others". The Oklahoman. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
- ^ State's first female legislator opened door to others, oklahoman.com. Accessed March 14, 2024.
- ^ "Many Woman Elected to Political Jobs". Greenville Evening Banner. Texas. December 27, 1920. p. 4.
- ^ Oklahoma Legislature-House of Representatives-Historic Members. Accessed March 14, 2024.
- ^ Schrems, Suzzane H. (2004). Who's Rocking the Cradle?: Women Pioneers of Oklahoma Politics from Socialism to the KKK, 1900-1930. Horse Creek Publications. p. 55. ISBN 9780972221726. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
