Gracie Bowers Pfost (March 12, 1906 – August 11, 1965) was the first woman to represent Idaho in the United States Congress, serving five terms as a Democrat in the House of Representatives. Pfost represented the state's 1st district from 1953 to 1963.[1][2]
Gracie Pfost | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Idaho's 1st district | |
| In office January 3, 1953 – January 3, 1963 | |
| Preceded by | John Wood |
| Succeeded by | Compton White Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Gracie Bowers March 12, 1906 Harrison, Arkansas, U.S. |
| Died | August 11, 1965 (aged 59) Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| Resting place | Meridian Cemetery in Meridian, Idaho |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Jack Pfost (1923–1961) |
| Education | Link's Business College |
Early years
editBorn in an Ozark Mountain log cabin in Harrison, Arkansas, Pfost was five when her parents moved to a farm near Boise, Idaho, in 1911. One of five siblings, she quit Meridian High School at 16 in 1922 and worked as a milk analyst at a dairy in Nampa. The next year she married her supervisor, Jack Pfost, who was more than twice her age. She graduated from Link's Business College[3] in Boise in 1929.
Early political career
editPfost entered politics in Canyon County; she held several positions in county government between 1929 and 1951, including deputy county clerk, auditor, recorder of deeds, and county treasurer. She also served as an Idaho delegate to all Democratic National Conventions between 1944 and 1960. The Pfosts ran a real estate business in the 1940s and into the 1950s.[citation needed]
Congress
editIn 1950, Pfost ran for Congress and won the Democratic nomination over Harry Wall of Lewiston, but narrowly lost to Republican John Travers Wood, a physician from Coeur d'Alene. In 1952, she defeated former eight-term Congressman Compton White, Sr. of Clark Fork in the Democratic primary[4] and unseated Wood in another close general election. Pfost was reelected in 1954, 1956, 1958, and 1960. The "Hell's Belle" of Congress, she was a moderately liberal Democrat, who earned her nickname in her first year, fighting for a large federal dam on the Snake River in Hells Canyon. After years of debate,[5] the single high dam was ultimately defeated and built as a three-dam complex (Brownlee, Oxbow, Hells Canyon) by the local private utility, Idaho Power.[2][6][7]
| Year | Democrat | Votes | Pct | Republican | Votes | Pct | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Gracie Pfost | 41,040 | 49.5% | John T. Wood | 41,823 | 50.5% | |||
| 1952 | Gracie Pfost | 54,725 | 50.3% | John T. Wood (inc.) | 54,134 | 49.7% | |||
| 1954 | Gracie Pfost (inc.) | 50,214 | 54.9% | Erwin Schwiebert | 41,293 | 45.1% | |||
| 1956 | Gracie Pfost (inc.) | 60,170 | 55.1% | Louise Shadduck | 48,974 | 44.9% | |||
| 1958 | Gracie Pfost (inc.) | 60,083 | 62.4% | A.B. Curtis | 36,178 | 37.6% | |||
| 1960 | Gracie Pfost (inc.) | 68,863 | 60.4% | Thomas A. Leupp | 45,166 | 39.6% |
Source:[8]
Run for Senate
editThough her House seat was considered secure, the death of Henry Dworshak in July 1962 prompted Pfost to run for his seat in the U.S. Senate.[9] She was the Democratic nominee in the special election,[10] but was narrowly defeated (51%-49%) by the appointed Republican incumbent, former Governor Len Jordan.[11] The election took place shortly after the Cuban Missile Crisis of late October; Jordan was re-elected in 1966 and retired at the end of that term, in early 1973.
Pfost's congressional seat was won by six points by Democrat Compton White, Jr. of Clark Fork, the 41-year-old namesake son of the late eight-term congressman. Idaho's other House seat also went to young Democrat, as 33-year-old Ralph Harding of Blackfoot won a second term. Idaho's other U.S. Senate seat (class 3) was also on the ballot, with 38-year-old Democrat Frank Church of Boise re-elected to the second of four terms.
To date, Dworshak's seat (class 2), earlier held by William Borah for over three decades, has been continuously held by Republicans for over seventy years (since October 1949), and Idaho has yet to elect a woman to the U.S. Senate.
| Year | Democrat | Votes | Pct | Republican | Votes | Pct | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | Gracie Pfost | 126,398 | 49.1% | Len B. Jordan | 131,279 | 50.9% |
- Source:[8]
Death
editAfter leaving the House in 1963, Pfost remained in Washington and worked in the Federal Housing Administration as a special assistant on housing for the elderly. She was hospitalized in Washington with pneumonia in October[12] and a few months later at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.[13] Later diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease, Pfost was admitted to Johns Hopkins Hospital several times in 1965,[14] and died there on August 11 at age 59.[1][15]
Pfost's husband Jack died of a heart attack four years earlier, at her Washington office during her last term in Congress.[16] They did not have children and are buried at Meridian Cemetery in Meridian, Idaho.[17]
See also
editReferences
edit
This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- ^ a b Hewlett, Frank (August 12, 1965). "Ex-legislator Mrs. Pfost dead at 59". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. p. 1.
- ^ a b Hamilton, Ladd (July 3, 1990). "The Hell's Belle of Congress took care of the folks at home". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. (reprinted editorial from 1965). p. 10-centennial.
- ^ "Link's Business College". Gem of the Mountains, University of Idaho yearbook. advertisement. 1929. p. 433.
- ^ Leeright, Bob (August 13, 1952). "Gracie Pfost and John Wood win nominations". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. p. 1.
- ^ "Tax writeoff for Idaho Power stirs protest". Modesto Bee. California. Associated Press. Apr 30, 1957. p. 9.
- ^ Coffey, George (July 23, 1957). "Hells Canyon Dam dead, mourners delaying funeral". The Bulletin. Bend, Oregon. UPI. p. 8.
- ^ "Idaho Power - About Us - Our Company". Retrieved December 2, 2011.
- ^ a b "Office of the Clerk: Election statistics". U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved March 9, 2013.
- ^ "Pfost candidate for vacant seat in Senate". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. August 2, 1962. p. 1.
- ^ Day, Sam (August 19, 1962). "Demos pick Pfost, White for Senate, House races". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1.
- ^ "Gracie Pfost still has ambitions in politics". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. November 10, 1962. p. 6.
- ^ "Ex-Rep. Pfost still improving". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. November 12, 1963. p. 2.
- ^ "Grace Pfost in hospital". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. Associated Press. January 14, 1964. p. 1.
- ^ "Gracie resting". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Washington. Associated Press. March 15, 1965. p. 7.
- ^ "Mrs Gracie Pfost, ex-Idaho solon, dies". Deseret News. Salt Lake City, Utah. August 11, 1965. p. 2A.
- ^ "John W. Pfost dead at Capital". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Idaho. July 7, 1961. p. 1.
- ^ "Rites held for husband of Mrs. Pfost". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. July 11, 1961. p. 6.
External links
edit- United States Congress. "Gracie Pfost (id: P000287)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- U.S. House of Representatives History – Gracie Bowers Pfost (1906–1965)
- University of Idaho Library – Gracie (Bowers) Pfost (1906–1965), papers: 1950–1962
- Gracie Pfost at Find a Grave