Jane Y.
McCallum Biographical Sketch signed by Governor Hobby, and Texas women thereby became eligible to
Jane Y. McCallum was born on December 30, 1877 in LaVernia Texas, where
she grew up. She was born in in a state and country where she was not
allowed the right to participate in government only because of her gender.
She attended the University of Texas, unusual for women at that time, but
did not graduate from college. She and her husband, who she married right
after her 19th birthday, had a daughter and four sons.
McCallum was opposed to James E. Ferguson (Ma Ferguson’s husband)
becoming governor because of his opposition to woman suffrage. McCallum
and others led a grassroots campaign and inspired women from across the
state to join them in their fight to earn the vote. Jane McCallum wrote a
weekly article in the Austin American Statesmen, she wrote countless
letters, raised money and gave speeches. Yet she insisted on making time
for her family—she cooked dinner for them each evening, attended school
functions, sewed curtains for the boys’ room, sharing the dilemma of
today’s working mothers who juggle multiple responsibilities. Men were
shocked by her. Here is an interaction she had with a male Texas
congressman:
Senator: You ought to get married.
McCallum: But I am married.
Senator: Then you ought to be having children.
McCallum: I have five. How many do you suggest I have?
Senator: Then you should be home taking care of them.
McCallum: They’re in school, and their grandmother is there.
Senator: Then you should be home darning stockings!
Her speeches and legislative lobbying in 1918 were instrumental in winning
primary suffrage for Texas women. Primary suffrage did not require an
amendment of the state constitution but could be granted by a simple
legislative act. At a called session in March Charles B. Metcalfe of San
Angelo introduced a bill to permit women to vote in primaries. It passed the
House eighty-four to thirty-four and the Senate eighteen to four. It was then
participate in primary elections. She led a massive publicity campaign for full
suffrage in 1919 and lobbied successfully for Texas’ prompt ratification of
the federal woman suffrage amendment. McCallum wasn’t done with
politics, however, or the Fergusons.
By 1926 many Texas women were united in their determination to defeat
Governor Miriam A. (“Ma”) Ferguson in her reelection campaign. For two
years they had watched her attend mainly to her household duties while her
husband, their old enemy, ran the executive branch. Jane McCallum became
head of the Texas Women Citizens’ Committee, Dan Moody for Governor.
When Moody won the election, he named Jane Y. McCallum his secretary of
state. Among her notable achievements in office is her discovery of one of
the original copies of the Texas Declaration of Independence. She consulted
with experts for advice on preserving the document and, together with a
legislative committee, created a shrine in the Capitol for its display.
McCallum wrote two books after leaving politics, Women Pioneers and Not
All Texians Were Males. She lived in Austin, TX, for 54 years and attended a
Presbyterian church. Jane McCallum died on August 14, 1957.
The following resources were used in creating this sketch of Jane McCallum:
A Texas Suffragist: Diaries and Writings of Jane Y. McCallum edited by Janet
G. Humphrey
Texas Historical Association’s Webpage on McCallum:
https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fmc07
Great Texas Women Gallery:
http://texaswomen.housing.utexas.edu/pdfs/mccallum.pdf