If you’re looking for something to do at the State Fair of Texas that won’t cost you any extra money, the Hall of State has an exhibit celebrating Texas Woman’s University’s 125th anniversary, showcasing everything from historic photographs to archival materials that have never been displayed before.
TWU’s archivist Kimberly Johnson shared some of the university’s history with NTX hosts Miranda Suarez and Ron Corning.
These interview highlights have been edited for length and clarity. To hear the conversation in full, click the ‘play’ button above.
Eleanor Roosevelt
Johnson describes this podium, which Eleanor Roosevelt stood at when she dedicated TWU’s Little Chapel in the Woods in 1939, as a unique and a historic piece for the university.
She said the First Lady visiting TWU was an important part of the university’s history and a big deal to the community.
“She visited with students, she had a meal that had been prepared by students while she was there,” Johnson said. “And this was a public event. There were not just our own students and our own campus faculty and administrators who were there, but also the community came and politicians came.”
TWU’s role in aviation
Also on display at the Hall of State is a bomber jacket that belonged to one of the female Air Force service pilots of World War II. Johnson said, at the time, these volunteers were the only women flying for the military.
“The whole program was to see if women could handle planes and if they could do the same kind of job that men did,” she said. “They didn’t fly combat, they were all stateside. The program lasted from [1942] to ’44, and what we found out was that the plane doesn’t care what gender you are. It still is going to operate the same, whether you’re a man or a woman, and these women showed that it didn’t matter.”
Amelia Earhart was friends with many of the Air Force service pilots and made a trip to TWU in 1936. She toured campus, met with students, and talked to them about how there was a place for women in the cockpit of a plane.
At the time, TWU was providing women the opportunity to explore new careers and roles that hadn’t been discovered.
“[TWU] allowed women that chance to get a degree,” Johnson said. “They were … thinking about what those roles, societal roles were, but this was an opportunity to talk to someone that said, ‘you can think beyond what traditional roles.'”
Miranda Suarez and Ron Corning are the hosts of KERA’s NTX Now. Got a tip? Email Miranda at msuarez@kera.org or Ron at rcorning@kera.org.
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