Doris Lindsey Holland Rhodes (December 12, 1909 – May 30, 1997) was the first woman ever to serve as a member of the

Louisiana State Legislature The Louisiana State Legislature (french: Législature d'État de Louisiane) is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is a bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 represen ...

Background

Doris N. Lindsey was born in Greensburg, the

seat of government The seat of government is (as defined by ''Brewer's Politics'') "the building, complex of buildings or the city from which a government exercises its authority". In most countries, the nation’s capital is also seat of its government, thus that ...

of St. Helena Parish, one of the

Florida Parishes The Florida Parishes ( es, Parroquias de Florida, french: Paroisses de Floride), on the east side of the Mississippi River—an area also known as the Northshore or Northlake region—are eight parishes in the southeastern portion of the U.S. stat ...

of southeastern

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. The daughter of Hollis Womack Lindsey and the former Minerva Thompson, she lived nearly all of her life in Greensburg, located south of the border with

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

and some fifty miles northeast of the state capital of

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-sma ...

. Her first husband, Thomas Myers Holland (1900-1936), a member of the

Louisiana State Senate The Louisiana State Senate (french: Sénat de Louisiane) is the upper house of the state legislature of Louisiana. All senators serve four-year terms and are assigned to multiple committees. Composition The Louisiana State Senate is compose ...

from St. Helena and neighboring

Tangipahoa Parish Tangipahoa Parish (; French: ''Paroisse de Tangipahoa'') is a parish located in the southeast corner of the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2010 census, the population was 121,097. The parish seat is Amite City, while the largest city is ...

, died in March 1936, leaving her as a 27-year-old widow with two children, Philip and Dorothy Jane.

Political life

In May 1936, the

governor of Louisiana A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

appointed Mrs. Holland to replace her husband as a state senator. She won a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-larges ...

to complete his term, which extended until 1940. She did not seek a second term in the Senate but instead ran for and was elected and served two terms in the

Louisiana House of Representatives The Louisiana House of Representatives (french: link=no, Chambre des Représentants de Louisiane) is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. This chamber is composed of 105 repr ...

from St. Helena Parish. A woman did not again serve in the state Senate until 1976, when

Virginia Shehee Virginia Ruth Kilpatrick Shehee (1923-2015) was an American businesswoman and politician from Louisiana. A member of the Democratic Party, she was the first woman elected to the Louisiana State Senate. Personal life Shehee was born on July 12, ...

Shreveport Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population o ...

began a single term of service in the body. Shehee, also an insurance businesswoman, was the first Louisiana state senator who did not succeed a husband in the position. Upon leaving politics in 1948, Holland edited and published the family-owned newspaper, the ''St. Helena Echo'', and worked as an insurance agent. She retired in 1968, when she married bank president and

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...

owner James Harrell Rhodes of

Zachary Zachary is a male given name, a variant of Zechariah – the name of several Biblical characters. People *Pope Zachary (679–752), Pope of the Catholic Church from 741 to 752 * Zachary of Vienne (died 106), bishop of Vienne (France), martyr a ...

East Baton Rouge Parish East Baton Rouge Parish (french: Paroisse de Bâton Rouge Est) is the most populous List of parishes in Louisiana, parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. At the 2010 United States Census, 2010 U.S. census, its population was 440,171, and 456,781 ...

. Apparently the two were married for only a short time, as Rhodes died on June 12, 1968. After Rhodes' death, she remained active in civic matters and the

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelical ...

. Holland was a member of the

Daughters of the American Revolution The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' efforts towards independence. A non-profit group, they promote ...

. Her Senate and House colleagues subsequently named her to the alumni board of the legislature; Governor Edwin W. Edwards honored her at the 1992 Governor's Conference on Women. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, she was inducted in 1994 as a charter member of the

Louisiana Center for Women and Government Hall of Fame The Louisiana Center for Women in Government and Business Hall of Fame recognizes women natives or residents of the U.S. state of Louisiana for their significant achievements or statewide contributions. Among the inductees are men whose contributi ...

Nicholls State University Nicholls State University is a public university in Thibodaux, Louisiana. Founded in 1948, Nicholls is part of the University of Louisiana System. Originally named Francis T. Nicholls Junior College, the university is named for Francis T. Nicholl ...

Thibodaux Thibodaux ( ) is a city in, and the parish seat of, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, United States, along the banks of Bayou Lafourche in the northwestern part of the parish. The population was 15,948 at the 2020 census. Thibodaux is a principal city ...

. In 2004, she was

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ''Posthumous'' (E ...

inducted into the

Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame The Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame is a museum and hall of fame located in Winnfield, Louisiana. Created by a 1987 act of the Louisiana State Legislature, it honors the best-known politicians and political journalists in the state. H ...

Winnfield Winnfield is a small city in, and the parish seat of, Winn Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,749 at the 2000 census, and 4,840 in 2010. Three governors of the state of Louisiana were from Winnfield.

. Inducted along with Holland Rhodes was later female state Senator Virginia Shehee. Holland died in the spring of 1997 at the age of eighty-seven. Along with her first husband and her parents, she is interred at Greensburg Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhodes, Doris Lindsey Holland 1909 births 1997 deaths Journalists from Louisiana American businesspeople in insurance Democratic Party Louisiana state senators Democratic Party members of the Louisiana House of Representatives Women state legislators in Louisiana 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American legislators People from Greensburg, Louisiana American United Methodists 20th-century Methodists 20th-century American women politicians 20th-century American journalists 20th-century Louisiana politicians