Mary Lucy Kyle Hartson
Mary Lucy Kyle Hartson was a teacher and postmistress who served two terms as the first female Mayor of Kyle, Texas.
Early life
Mary Lucy Kyle was born on December 6, 1865, in Hays County, Texas the daughter of former Confederate captain and future Texas Legislator Fergus Kyle and his wife Anna Elizabeth née Moore. Mary was one of nine children, including Texas A&M administrator, Edwin Jackson Kyle.
She attended Sam Houston Normal Institute in Huntsville, Texas, and began teaching in Taylor, Texas. In 1891 she married George Dorr Hartson. Hartson was killed in an industrial accident in Mexico in 1901, leaving Mary a widow to raise three children. Later that year, through the influence of her cousin, Albert S. Burleson, Hartson was appointed postmistress of Kyle, a position she held until 1925.
Politics
She was first elected Mayor of Kyle in 1937 as a 72-year-old great grandmother and resigned in 1941. She was known for hoeing weeds herself around City Hall. In 1943, she ran again and served an additional two years, for a total of six years as mayor. She was an early booster and supporter of Lyndon B. Johnson, who represented her district. During the election of 1940 she stated, "Lyndon is the best man we've ever had in Congress, Cousin Albert notwithstanding." For part of the 1940s, the city council was majority female.
Later years
Mrs. Hartson suffered a stroke in December 1945 and went to live with her daughter in Wichita Falls, Texas. She died at age 90 on March 20, 1956, in Wichita Falls, and is buried in the Kyle cemetery.
Legacy
Kyle honored her in an International Women's Day proclamation and also named one of its more significant city parks, Mary Kyle Hartson Park, in her honor.