Mary Lucy Kyle Hartson (December 6,1865 - March 20,1956) was a teacher and postmistress who served two terms as the first female Mayor of Kyle,Texas.[1]
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.[1][2]
She attended Sam Houston Normal Institute in Huntsville,Texas,and began teaching in Taylor,Texas.[1][2] 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.[1] Later that year,through the influence of her cousin,Albert S. Burleson,[3] Hartson was appointed postmistress of Kyle,a position she held until 1925.[1][2]
Politics
She was first elected Mayor of Kyle in 1937 as a 72-year-old great grandmother[4] and resigned in 1941. She was known for hoeing weeds herself around City Hall.[5] In 1943,she ran again and served an additional two years,for a total of six years as mayor.[6][7][2] She was an early booster and supporter of Lyndon B. Johnson,who represented her district.[8] During the election of 1940 she stated,"Lyndon is the best man we've ever had in Congress,Cousin Albert notwithstanding."[9] For part of the 1940s,the city council was majority female.[10][11]
Later Years
Mrs. Hartson suffered a stroke in December 1945 and went to live with her daughter in Wichita Falls,Texas.[12] She died at age 90 on March 20,1956,in Wichita Falls,[13] and is buried in the Kyle cemetery.[1]
Legacy
Kyle honored her in an International Women's Day proclamation [14] and also named one of its more significant city parks,Mary Kyle Hartson Park,in her honor.[15]
↑ "Only Woman Mayor in Texas, Mrs. Mary Kyle Hartson of Kyle, Resigns After 4 Years". The Austin American. 8 Dec 1941.
↑ "Town is Out of the Red - Petticoat Government in Kyle Ends Voluntarily". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Associated Press. 4 April 1946.
↑ "Texas Election Puts Women In Control of City". El Paso Herald-Post. United Press. 7 April 1943.
↑ "FDR Is Topic When Mayors of Kyle and Austin Meet; 'There isn't Willkie Button in Sight Around There'". Austin American-Statesman. 1 Nov 1940.
↑ "Roosevelt Isn't the Only One The Voters Want to Draft for Re-Election; Woman Mayor of Kyle Urged to Re-Enter". Austin American Statesman. 31 Mar 1940. p.1,4.
↑ "City and School Trustee Elections". The Kyle News. Vol.41, no.52. April 7, 1944.
↑ "Kyle". Historical Marker Database. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
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