Bessie Aleda Hardaway Thomas was born and raised in Cameron, Texas. She graduated from Prairie View A & M in 1923. Following her graduation she taught homemaking at Cameron Colored School. Bessie Thomas and her husband Oscar John Thomas brought young women of color to Cameron and graciously housed them; permitting the women to complete high school and attend Prarie View A & M for college. In her later years Bessie Thomas worked as Principal for Prairie View Elementary School. Her community advocacy included organizing Cameron's Federated Women's Club, the Prairie View First Methodist Church (1972) and the local Girl Scouts troop.
From the guide to the O. J. and Bessie Thomas Collection MSS 16., 1894 to 1977, 1960 to 1969, (Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library)
