Articles

As a public official, suffragist, and educator, Annie Webb Blanton devoted her life to women's rights. She said, "Everything that helps to wear away age-old prejudices contributes towards the advancement of women and of humanity."

In 1918, Blanton was elected State Superintendent for Public Instruction, becoming the first woman in Texas to hold a statewide elected office. She pursued a vigorous agenda of increasing teacher pay, improving rural schools, and standardizing instruction. After two terms, Blanton became a professor at The University of Texas, where she spent the rest of her professional life.

Blanton died in 1945, but her legacy lives on in the equal opportunities enjoyed by Texas women and the model she set for those who followed her into public service. More»

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