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Texas Governor Ann Richards in 1991
Ann Richards 1933-2006
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Image
Above
Texas Governor Ann
Richards on Inauguration Day, January 15, 1991
Texas State Library
and Archives |
Ann
Richards' Family
Her parents were
Cecil and Ona Willis.
In 1953, Ann Willis married
David Richards (later divorced).
The couple had four children: Cecile,
Dan, Clark, and Ellen.
Brief Biography
Ann Richards was born
Dorothy Ann
Willis, on September 1, 1933, at Lacy Lakeview, Waco, Texas.
1946 - 1950 Waco High School
1950 - 1954 Baylor University, Waco
(bachelor's degree)
1953 married
David Richards
School teacher at Fulmore Junior High
at Austin, Texas (social studies, history)
Moved to Washington D.C.
Moved to Dallas
1969 moved back to Austin
1976 - 1982 Travis County Commissioner
(two terms)
Divorce from David Richards. Treatment
for alcoholism.
In 1982, Ann Richards was elected Texas treasurer. This
made her the first woman to win a state office in 50 years. Back in
the days, in 1932, it was Miriam "Ma"
Ferguson who had her hands full with the Ku Klux Klan and
new liquor legislation.
Miriam Ferguson lived
1875-1961
She was the first woman governor of
Texas
and the second woman governor in U.S. history.
Back to Ann Richards.
1985 - Honored by
Texas Women's Hall of Fame
July 18, 1988 -
Keynote address at the National
Democratic Convention at
Atlanta, Georgia.
Here are her
opening words:
I am delighted to
be here with you this evening, because after
listening to George Bush all these years, I
figured you needed to know what a real Texas
accent sounds like.
Twelve years ago Barbara
Jordan, another Texas woman, Barbara made the
keynote address to this convention, and two
women in 160 years is about par for the course.
And here is
more about
Barbara Jordan.
1991 - 1995 - Governor of Texas
Ann Richards was the forty-fifth Governor of Texas
from January 15, 1991 until January 17, 1995.
Her predecessor was
William P. Clements, ( in office January
20, 1987 - January 15, 1991).
The Texas State Library tells us
more:
The first woman to be elected Texas governor
on her own merits, Governor Richards
appointed more women, blacks, and Hispanics
to office than any previous administration.
She worked with the legislature to achieve
insurance reform, new ethics rules for
lobbyists, better hazardous waste
management, and restructuring of public
school financing.
Other initiatives included job creation,
site-based management for public schools,
increased prison space, and governmental
efficiency.
In 1994, Richards ran for reelection
but lost to
George W. Bush
(in office January 17, 1995 - December 21, 2000).
After retiring from politics, Ann Richards worked as consultant.
In
2003, she wrote the book I'm Not Slowing Down: Winning My Battle With
Osteoporosis.
March 2006 - diagnosed with esophageal
cancer
September 13, 2006 - Death at Austin,
Texas
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