Pfost, Gracie Bowers, 1906-1965

U.S. Representative from Idaho, 1953-1963.

From the description of Gracie Pfost papers, 1936-1973. (Boise State University). WorldCat record id: 612307079

Gracie Bowers Pfost, the first woman elected to Congress from Idaho, was born in Arkansas in 1906 and moved with her family to a farm in the Boise Valley in 1911. She attended Idaho public schools and graduated from Links Business College in Boise. In 1923 she married John (Jack) Pfost. They pronounced their last name Post, with the "f" silent. After working as a chemist for a few years, she served as deputy clerk, auditor, and recorder for Canyon County, Idaho. Later, she opened her own real estate office. Pfost participated in numerous civic organizations, including the Business and Professional Women's Club and the Soroptimist Club. She was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1944, and to every succeeding national convention through 1960.

In 1940 Pfost was elected treasurer of Canyon County, Idaho. She held that position for 10 years. In 1950 she sought the seat for Idaho's First Congressional District. She lost in a close race to her opponent, Dr. John T. Wood. Not one to accept defeat, she ran again for the same seat in 1952. This time she defeated Wood. She was reelected in 1954 and again 1956, 1958, and 1960.

While in Congress, Pfost served on the Public Works and the Interior and Insular Affairs committees. She was chairman of the Subcommittee on Public Lands. She was the chief sponsor of a bill to authorize federal construction of a high dam at Idaho's Hells Canyon, which earned her the nickname "Hell's Belle." She also worked to improve retirement benefits for civil service employees, protect the lead and zinc mining industries, and protect the agricultural sector.

In 1962, Pfost ran for the U.S. Senate, but lost to Republican Len B. Jordan. In 1963 President Kennedy appointed her as Special Assistant for Elderly Housing in the Federal Housing Administration. She served in that capacity until her death in 1965 from Hodgkin's Disease.

Sources:

Aiken, Katherine G. "Gender and the Congressional Career of Idaho's Gracie Pfost." Journal of the West 42 (2003), 44-51.

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1776-1989 . Washington DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1989.

From the guide to the Gracie Pfost Collection, 1936-1973, (Boise State University Library)

Gracie Pfost (pronounced Post), Democrat, achieved distinction as Idaho's only woman to serve in Congress. Representing the state's first congressional district, she was elected to five consecutive terms in the U. S. House of Representatives, ably serving her constituents from January 3, 1953 to January 3, 1963. Described as a "unique and forceful political personality," Pfost diligently promoted the mining, timber and agricultural interests of the Gem State's northern counties. In 1962, the Congresswoman declined to run for her sixth term in the House and instead entered the Senate race. Nominated by the Democratic State Central Committee, she lost by narrow margin to Republican Len B. Jordan in the general election. But her career as a public servant did not end. In June 1963, President John F. Kennedy appointed Pfost administrator of Public Housing for the Elderly in the Federal Housing Administration, a position she held until her death two years later.

Born March 12, 1906 in Harrison, Arkansas to William Layfette and Lily Elizabeth (Wood) Bowers, Gracie moved with her family to the Boise Valley in 1911. She attended area schools receiving her secondary education at Meridian High School, Meridian, Idaho, and graduating in 1926 from Links Business University. On August 4, 1923 she married John Walter (Jack) Pfost, a man 22 years her senior, who played an important role in his wife's later political career. In fact Gracie credits him as the person who most encouraged and supported her campaign for election to Congress. Once Gracie was elected to the House of Representatives, Jack Pfost acted unofficially as the Congresswoman's political advisor. He worked long hours beside his wife and after his death on July 17, 1961, at the age of 77, it was said of him that his death "cost Idaho an unofficial but effective public servant who was as untiring as he was unassuming."

Gracie Pfost's public career began in 1929 when, at age 23, she was appointed deputy county clerk, auditor and recorder for Canyon County. She served the county in this capacity until 1940 at which time she was elected Treasurer. After five consecutive terms as Treasurer, she ran unsuccessfully against Republican John T. Wood in 1950 for a seat in congress. Defeated by 783 votes in that election, Pfost again announced her candidacy in 1952.

With the slogan "Tie Your Vote to a Solid Post--Gracie Pfost for Congress," she canvased the counties of the first district profiling her campaign issues. She supported stabilization of farm products, improved labor legislation and the production and conservation of domestic minerals and metals. Favoring broader Social Security coverage and reduced taxes, her platform also included support for humanitarian legislation. Of greater significance and one which marked her congressional career, she opposed private interests and championed the federal construction of a high, multi-purpose dam at Hells Canyon on the Idaho-Oregon border. Later, in her first speech before the House of Representatives on April 16, 1953, she introduced the bill to allow the federal government the right to construct a dam on the Snake River. Her vigorous support of the project earned her the sobriquet: "Hell's Belle." Throughout her career in the House, Pfost continued to support legislation protecting mining (lead-zinc) and timber interests as well as bills providing for public works and federal aid to education.

In Congress, Pfost was appointed to the House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs and served on or chaired the subcommittees on Irrigation and Reclamation, Mines and Mining and Public Lands. She was also a member of the House Post Office and Civil Service Committee. She was also named to special subcommittees, one to study water resources and one to investigate Foundations Exempt from Income Tax. In 1960 she was a conference delegate to the Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission.

In addition to her political responsibilities, Pfost was a member of the Idaho Federation of Womens' Clubs, Business and Professional Women's Club, Soroptimist Club, Gem Area Girl Scout Council, Nampa Chamber of Commerce and the Idaho Real Estate Board. Before election to Congress, she was a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions in 1944, 1948 and 1952. For recreation and relaxation she enjoyed hunting, fishing, and painting.

On August 11, 1965, Gracie Pfost died of Hodgkin's Disease at Johns Hopkins Hospital near Baltimore, Maryland. With her death "Idaho [lost its] First Lady of Politics."

From the guide to the Papers, 1950-1962, (University of Idaho Library Special Collections and Archives)