FIRST WOMAN U.S. SENATOR APPOINTED BY GEORGIA GOVERNOR
Atlanta, Georgia (JFK+50) On October 3, 1922, the Evening Star reports the first woman to become a member of the United States Senate was appointed yesterday by Georgia Governor Thomas W. Hardwick.
Eighty-seven year old Mrs. W.H. Felton* of Cartersville, Georgia fills the vacancy created by the recent death of Senator Thomas E. Watson.
The Star says that it is unlikely Mrs. Felton will actually serve because "her successor will have been elected when the Senate next meets."
JFK+50 NOTE
Mrs. Felton was sworn in on November 21, 1922 & served as a Senator for 24 hours. Senator Felton was the last former slave owner in Congress.
*Rebecca Ann Latimer Felton (1835-1930) was born in Decatur, Georgia & graduated from Madison Female College, 1852. RALF became the most prominent woman in Georgia during the Progressive Era.
Mrs. Felton was an active member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Colonial Dames of America, & the Atlanta Woman's Club. She was also the author of two biographies.
SOURCE
"Mrs. Felton, 87, First Woman Senator, Watson's Successor," The Evening Star, Washington, D.C., October 3, 1922, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
