Beyond the Icons: Hidden "Herstories" & Travel Stories of Women Who Shaped Texas
Women’s history in Texas isn’t just found in textbooks. It’s etched into ranchlands, town squares, Capitol grounds, and the everyday places travelers still experience today. This Women’s History Month, we’re spotlighting women whose vision, grit, and leadership helped shape the physical and cultural landscapes of Texas, and the places where their stories live on.
What is "Herstory"?
For generations, much of what we’ve called “history” has centered on the loudest voices and the most visible leaders. And too often, that has meant women’s contributions were minimized, overlooked, or treated as side notes. Yet across Texas, women were shaping communities, protecting public institutions, stewarding the land, building businesses, and influencing civic life in ways that still ripple outward today. When we tell these stories through the places where they unfolded — a ranch house on the plains, a statue on Congress Avenue, a wildflower-lined highway — history becomes something more than words on a page. It becomes tangible. Walkable. Personal. We invite you not just to learn these stories, but to stand where they stood and experience how their legacy continues to shape Texas.
Leadership and Civic Influence
Miriam "Ma" Ferguson
Miriam Ferguson, born in Bell County, made history as the first woman to serve as governor of Texas, holding office from 1925 to 1927 and again from 1933 to 1935. Known to voters as “Ma,” she entered politics after her husband, Governor James E. “Jim” Ferguson, was impeached and barred from holding office—prompting her to run in his place.
Campaigning under the slogan “Two Governors for the Price of One,” Ferguson openly acknowledged her partnership with her husband while forging her own political path. Her platform emphasized opposition to the Ku Klux Klan and a focus on restoring sound state finances, positions that resonated with Texas voters in the mid-1920s.
Elected in 1924, Ferguson’s inauguration marked a milestone in Texas history and opened the door for future generations of women in public office. Her legacy reflects both the complexities and the breakthroughs of early women’s political leadership in Texas. Learn more about Ma Ferguson at the Bell County Museum in Belton.
Ann Richards
Ann Richards, a native of Lacy Lakeview, left a lasting mark on Texas politics as the state’s 45th governor from 1991 to 1995. A prominent Democrat, she rose to national attention for her sharp wit, outspoken feminism, and memorable keynote address at the 1988 Democratic National Convention. She was the second woman to serve as governor of Texas.
After graduating from Baylor University, Richards taught school before entering public service. She began her political career on the Travis County Commissioners’ Court and later served as Texas State Treasurer, building a reputation as a skilled and effective leader.
Elected governor in 1990, Richards championed education, ethics reform, and opportunities for women and minorities. Though she lost her reelection bid in 1994, she remained an influential public voice until her death in 2006. Explore her gubernatorial portrait at the Texas State Capitol in Austin.
Juanita Craft
Juanita J. Craft was a tireless civil rights leader whose work helped transform Texas during the mid-twentieth century. A longtime organizer with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), she helped establish 185 local branches and dozens of youth councils across the state, building a grassroots network that empowered generations of activists.
Craft played a key role in major desegregation efforts, including campaigns targeting the University of Texas School of Law, North Texas State University (now the University of North Texas), and the State Fair of Texas. Her activism extended beyond protest and organizing, as she also served on the Dallas City Council, becoming one of the first Black women to hold elected office in the city.
Her former home in South Dallas is now the Juanita J. Craft Civil Rights House, where visitors can learn more about her enduring legacy and her lifelong commitment to equality, education, and civic engagement.
Barbara Jordan
Barbara Jordan, a native of Houston, was a trailblazing lawyer, educator, and politician whose career reshaped American public life. Serving in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1973 to 1979, she became the first African American congresswoman from the South, earning national respect for her commanding voice and constitutional insight.
Jordan’s political career began in Texas, where she overcame early electoral defeats to make history in 1966 as the first African American woman elected to the Texas Senate since Reconstruction. Known for her mastery of legislative process, she focused on civil rights, environmental protection, and urban policy—work that drew national attention and an invitation to the White House from President Lyndon B. Johnson.
Elected to Congress in 1972, Jordan continued advocating for minorities, the poor, and disenfranchised communities. After her death in 1996, she was laid to rest in the Texas State Cemetery, becoming the first African American honored there—a fitting tribute to a life of principled leadership and lasting impact.
Ladybird Johnson
Lady Bird Johnson, born Claudia Alta Taylor in Karnack, Texas, left a lasting imprint on American public life as First Lady of the United States from 1963 to 1969. As the wife of President Lyndon B. Johnson, she transformed the role into a platform for environmental stewardship, historic preservation, and civic beauty, earning admiration for her quiet determination and political insight.
A graduate of the University of Texas, Lady Bird Johnson was also a successful businesswoman, helping turn a struggling radio station into a profitable venture. As First Lady, she championed the Highway Beautification Act, promoting the protection of natural landscapes and reducing visual clutter along America’s roadways—bringing national attention to conservation at a pivotal moment.
After leaving Washington, she continued her public service through the founding of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and ongoing environmental advocacy. Her legacy reflects the power of thoughtful leadership and a lifelong commitment to caring for the places people call home. Explore her story at the LBJ Presidential Library and the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin.
Breaking Barriers: Sports, Culture, & Industry
Babe Didrikson Zaharias
Babe Didrikson Zaharias, born Mildred Ella Didrikson in Port Arthur and raised in Beaumont, is widely regarded as one of the greatest athletes in American history. In 1950, the Associated Press named her the “Woman Athlete of the Half-Century,” recognizing her extraordinary impact across multiple sports.
At the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, she won two gold medals (80-meter hurdles and javelin) and a silver medal (high jump), setting records and demonstrating rare versatility on the world stage. After her Olympic success, she turned to golf, helping found the LPGA in 1949 and winning 10 major championships during her career.
Bold, competitive, and unapologetically ambitious, Zaharias expanded opportunities for women in athletics and redefined expectations of female athletes. Learn about her incredible story in her hometown of Beaumont at the Babe Didrikson Zaharias Museum and Visitor Center.
Janis Joplin
Born and raised in Port Arthur, Janis Joplin was a pioneering figure in the 1960s music scene. She was renowned for her soulful voice, raw emotion, and uninhibited stage presence. As a key figure in the counterculture movement, she challenged societal expectations with her bold, unapologetic persona. Joplin's distinctive vocal style blended blues, rock, and soul influencing generations of musicians to come.
Her performances left an indelible mark on the music landscape, paving the way for women in rock and cementing her legacy as one of the greatest voices in rock history. Joplin's tragic death at the age of 27 immortalized her as a symbol of the turbulent era, but her music continues to resonate with audiences worldwide.
To learn more about her fascinating life and career, visit the music wing at the Museum of the Gulf Coast in Beaumont to see their Janis Joplin exhibits.
Bessie Coleman
Bessie Coleman, born in Atlanta, Texas, and raised in Waxahachie, was a pioneering aviator who shattered both racial and gender barriers in the early days of flight. In 1921, she became the first African American woman — and the first woman of Native American descent — to earn an international pilot’s license, overcoming the fact that no U.S. flight school would train her because of her race and sex.
The following year, on September 3, 1922, Coleman staged the first public flight by an African American woman in the United States, thrilling crowds with daring aerobatic maneuvers, including loops and figure-eights, during barnstorming exhibitions across the country. She was known to audiences as “Queen Bess” and “Brave Bessie” and used her platform to challenge Jim Crow practices, famously refusing to perform at segregated events.
Coleman dreamed of opening a flight school to train Black aviators, but her life was cut short in 1926 during a rehearsal for an aerial show. Today, her trailblazing achievements continue to inspire pilots and aviation enthusiasts alike. Learn more about her remarkable story - including artifacts and a scale model of her plane - at the Atlanta Historical Museum (reopening in 2026 as the Atlanta Visitor Center & Museum).
Florence Butt
Florence Butt helped lay the foundation for one of Texas’s most beloved companies. In 1905, she opened a small grocery store in Kerrville, extending credit and delivering goods to customers at a time when personal service defined community life. Her practical business sense and commitment to quality built strong local trust and steady growth.
With the help of her son, Howard E. Butt, the family business expanded beyond Kerrville and evolved into H-E-B, now one of the largest independently-owned grocery chains in the United States. Florence Butt’s early emphasis on service, integrity, and community investment shaped the company’s culture for generations.
Her legacy lives on not only in Texas neighborhoods statewide, but also in the continued philanthropic efforts of the Butt family. What began as a single Hill Country storefront became a Texas institution rooted in the values of hard work, service, and community care. A state historical marker in Kerrville commemorates the original C.C. Butt Grocery Store, acknowledging Florence Butt’s role in the founding of the H-E-B enterprise.
Stewards of the Land and Everyday Heroines
Mary Ann Goodnight
Mary Ann Goodnight was a pioneering rancher, educator, and preservationist whose influence shaped the Texas Panhandle in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Alongside her husband, cattleman Charles Goodnight, she helped establish the JA Ranch, one of the most important ranching operations in Texas history.
More than a rancher’s wife, Mary Ann Goodnight played a vital role in sustaining frontier life. She was deeply committed to education, establishing one of the first schools in the region, and was instrumental in preserving the Southern Plains bison, helping prevent the animal’s extinction by caring for a small herd on the ranch. Her work also supported early efforts in agricultural experimentation and community building.
In her later years, Goodnight became a passionate advocate for Texas history and memory, donating land that became Goodnight College and later Palo Duro Canyon State Park. Her legacy reflects a life devoted not only to survival on the frontier, but to stewardship, education, and the preservation of Texas’s natural and cultural heritage. Discover more about Mary Ann Goodnight at the Charles and Mary Ann Goodnight Ranch State Historic Site in Clarendon.
Emma Tenayuca
Emma Tenayuca was a fearless labor organizer and civil rights advocate who became a powerful voice for working-class communities in San Antonio during the Great Depression. On March 8, 1937, as a leader in the Workers Alliance, she helped organize a march of nearly 2,000 protesters to the steps of City Hall, demanding expanded Works Progress Administration jobs for unemployed residents.
Tenayuca is best known for her role in organizing the 1938 Pecan Shellers’ Strike, when more than 12,000 workers—primarily Mexican American women—walked off the job to protest wage cuts and harsh working conditions. Though controversial at the time, the strike brought national attention to labor inequities in Texas and led to wage increases for shellers.
Her activism came at great personal cost, but her leadership left a lasting mark on labor and civil rights movements in Texas. Visitors can stand where history unfolded at San Antonio City Hall, the site of those pivotal protests.
Angelina Eberly
Angelina Eberly played a pivotal role in one of Texas’s most dramatic political showdowns. A boardinghouse owner in Austin, she became a central figure in the 1842 “Archive War,” when President Sam Houston ordered the Republic of Texas archives moved from Austin to Houston in an attempt to strip the city of its capital status.
Determined to keep the capital in place, Eberly famously fired a cannon toward the wagon carrying the government records, alerting local residents and helping prevent the removal of the archives. Though no one was killed, her bold action galvanized public resistance and ultimately helped secure Austin’s future as the permanent capital of Texas.
Today, a statue of Eberly stands along Congress Avenue near Sixth Street in downtown Austin, commemorating her decisive stand in defense of the city. Her story reflects the fierce civic pride and independent spirit that helped shape early Texas history.
More Sites That Tell Women’s Stories
Here's a curated roundup of some additional places you should add to your travel plans for your Women's History Month trip:
- Elisabet Ney Museum (Austin)
- National W.A.S.P. WWII Museum (Sweetwater)
- La Mujer Obrera/Café Mayapan (El Paso)
- The "Woman's Collection" of campus art (Denton, Texas Woman's University)
Texas women didn’t just witness history - they shaped the land, the laws, and the lived experience of the state. This Women’s History Month, explore the places where their stories unfolded, and let the journey deepen your understanding of Texas itself.