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| Photo courtesy of Sigma Kappa |
To help celebrate Women’s History Month, the NPC blog is spotlighting
Panhellenic women who have been influential historical figures. The second
featured woman is Margaret Chase Smith a member of Sigma Kappa. Smith was an
accomplished politician and a proud Panhellenic woman. She was born and raised in Skowhegan, Maine.
She graduated from Skowhegan High School in 1916 and married Clyde Smith, a politician,
in 1930. Smith became involved in local politics during the 1930s when she was
elected to the Maine Republican State Committee. After her husband unexpectedly
passed away in 1940, she ran for and won his spot in the U.S. House of
Representatives.
Smith was the first woman to serve in both houses of
Congress and was the first woman from Maine to serve in both the House and the
Senate. Smith’s political career began in 1940 and lasted until 1972; during
that time she was the first woman to lead the Senate Republican Conference. In
the 1964 presidential election, Smith tossed her hat into the ring and was the
first woman to receive a nomination at a major party convention. Despite losing
every primary election, she stuck with it until she placed second to the other
Republican candidate, Barry Goldwater. Smith was honored for her
accomplishments in politics with the Presidential Medal of Freedom awarded by
George H.W. Bush in 1989.
Although Smith never attended college, she was awarded an
honorary degree from Colby College in 1943. In 1949, the Sigma Kappa Alpha Chapter
at Colby College extended Smith an offer of honorary membership. On Feb. 18,
1949, Smith was initiated into the Sigma Kappa sisterhood.
Margaret Chase Smith exemplifies the definition of a
Panhellenic woman. She was a fearless leader who opened doors for women in politics.
During her lifetime she received 95 honorary degrees and more than 270 honors
and awards. Smith will forever be
remembered for her contributions as a member of Congress and as a trailblazing
Panhellenic woman.