We all have women in our lives who inspire us to be our best selves. On March 8, you can celebrate those women with International Women’s Day. Here at VeloCityOKC, we took some time to look at the inspirational women in the Oklahoma City area. Read below to see some of the women from our community who have left their mark here and beyond.
Catherine Ann Barnard, Political figure and Social Justice Leader (1875-1930)
Catherine “Kate” Barnard was the first woman to be elected as a state official in Oklahoma, as well as the second woman to be elected to a statewide public office in the United States. She began her career as a schoolteacher in one-room schools within commuting distance of Oklahoma City. She then enrolled and completed secretarial courses and became employed by the territorial government. She became involved in charity work helping to address homelessness and decided in 1906 to run for political office. She convinced delegates to approve two laws – a prohibition on child labor and establishing the office of commissioner of charities and corrections. Kate won the commissioner seat making her the first woman to hold a major Oklahoma office. In her role, she was able to require education, regulate child labor and establish a juvenile justice system.
Zelia Breaux, American Music Instructor and Musician (1880–1956)
Zelia Breaux was an American music instructor and musician who played the trumpet, violin and piano. She organized the first music department at Langston and the school’s first orchestra. After leaving Langston University, she moved on to Douglass High School where she organized several successful bands, including a 26-piece band in 1923, which became one of the most outstanding bands in the U.S. The 1923 band appeared all over the nation, influencing musicians on a local and national level. In 1933, Breaux took the Douglass band to the Chicago World’s Fair musical festivities, where they performed for the national radio broadcast.
Opaline Deveraux Wadkins, Nurse (1912–2000)
A registered nurse and community leader, Opaline Deveraux Wadkins organized the first school to train black nurses in Oklahoma City in 1949 and fought for desegregation of the College of Nursing at OU. She also founded the School of Nursing at Langston University, and in 1993, she was inducted into the Oklahoma Women’s Hall of Fame.
Clara Luper, Civil Rights Pioneer & Leader (1923-2011)
After receiving her bachelor’s degree from Langston University in 1944, Clara Luper earned her master’s degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1951 and became the first Black graduate student in the OU History program. Luper led a group of youth who staged a “sit-in” at Oklahoma City’s Katz drugstore in 1958, launching a national sit-in movement to demonstrate against segregation. She continued her nonviolent activism, participating in marches and demonstrations. She was jailed numerous times for her civil rights work and left a legacy in Oklahoma City and beyond.
Jerrie Cobb, American Aviator (1931-2019)
Jerrie Cobb was an American aviator who was born in Norman, Okla. In her 20s, she set three aviation records including the 1959 world record for nonstop long-distance flight, the 1959 world light-plane speed record, and a 1960 world altitude record for lightweight aircraft. She was also the first female astronaut candidate in America.
Dr. Shannon Lucid, Biochemist & Astronaut (1943–present)
A Bethany High School graduate, Dr. Shannon Lucid became a NASA astronaut in August 1979, where she participated in several space flights. One flight was a record-breaking 14-day mission that was recognized as the most successful and efficient Spacelab flight flown by NASA. Dr. Lucid was the first woman to hold an international record for the most flight hours in orbit by any non-Russian, and, at one point, held the record for the most flight hours in orbit by any woman in the world.
Vicki Miles-LaGrange, Oklahoma’s First Female U.S. Attorney (1953–present)
Vicki Miles-LaGrange, a native of Oklahoma City, achieved many historic firsts including becoming Oklahoma’s first female U.S. attorney in 1993. A year later in 1994, she became the first Black federal judge in the six-state Tenth Circuit. And, when Miles-LaGrange and Maxine Horner were elected to the Oklahoma Senate in 1986, they became the first Black women to serve in that role.
Pam Olson, News Anchor (1949–present)
Pam Olson, a Midwest City native, was the first woman to anchor a prime-time television newscast in Oklahoma City, anchoring the KWTV evening newscast starting in 1976. As a TV reporter, she wrote and produced “Gift of Life,” a documentary leading to the Oklahoma organ donor law.
