Pearl Carter Pace (January 25, 1896 – January 1970) was elected

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

in the Commonwealth of

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

, 1938–1941.

Early years

Pearl Carter was born into a family devoted to public service in Tompkinsville in

Monroe County Monroe County may refer to seventeen counties in the United States, all named for James Monroe: * Monroe County, Alabama *Monroe County, Arkansas * Monroe County, Florida * Monroe County, Georgia *Monroe County, Illinois *Monroe County, Indian ...

, Kentucky. Her father, James C. Carter, Sr., had served for forty years as a circuit judge in south central Kentucky. James C. Carter, Jr., the brother of Pearl Carter Pace and U.S. Representative, Dr.

Tim Lee Carter Tim Lee Carter (September 2, 1910 – March 27, 1987) was an American politician serving as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives for the Commonwealth of Kentucky from 1965 until 1981. Background Congressman Car ...

, also served in political office for many years. Pearl Carter married Stanley Dan Pace, the owner of a profitable roadbuilding company and relocated to his neighboring

Cumberland County Cumberland County may refer to: Australia * Cumberland County, New South Wales * the former name of Cumberland Land District, Tasmania, Australia Canada *Cumberland County, Nova Scotia United Kingdom * Cumberland, historic county *Cumberla ...

Political career

Originally a schoolteacher and a businesswoman, Pace had a great

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of life: "Anybody can do anything he wants if he just wants enough to make the effort." This thinking took her into areas of life largely uncharted for rural southern women. She was the sheriff of Cumberland County from 1937 to 1941. During her four-year term as sheriff, she came to be known as "Pistol-Packin' Pearl." Pace's husband, Stanley Dan Pace, had been "drafted" in 1933 to run for Cumberland County sheriff by county citizens determined to control

rum-running Rum-running or bootlegging is the illegal business of smuggling alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law. Smuggling usually takes place to circumvent taxation or prohibition laws within a particular jurisdiction. The ter ...

and

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

during

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...

. He was elected as the first

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to hold that office since the 19th century. When his term ended, he was unable to succeed himself; so Pearl was drafted to run and was elected. Stanley Pace died in a car accident, leaving Pearl Carter Pace to raise their children and to pursue her career in local, state, and national politics. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, her son, Stanley Carter Pace, a

fighter pilot A fighter pilot is a military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, air-to-ground combat and sometimes electronic warfare while in the cockpit of a fighter aircraft. Fighter pilots undergo specialized training in aerial warfare and ...

and

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a s ...

, was taken as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

by the

German Reich German ''Reich'' (lit. German Realm, German Empire, from german: Deutsches Reich, ) was the constitutional name for the German nation state that existed from 1871 to 1945. The ''Reich'' became understood as deriving its authority and sovereignty ...

. Upon returning from the war, Stanley C. Pace put his

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degree to work and rose to the chairmanship of TRW. After being pulled from retirement in the 1980s, he assumed the position of restoring the giant defense contractor,

General Dynamics General Dynamics Corporation (GD) is an American publicly traded, aerospace and defense corporation headquartered in Reston, Virginia. As of 2020, it was the fifth-largest defense contractor in the world by arms sales, and 5th largest in the Uni ...

, to credibility after grievous ethical lapses brought the company to near dissolution. Through Pearl Carter Pace's activism in the Republican Party, she became a tireless supporter and friend of

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

. In 1953, she brought national attention to Kentucky when President Eisenhower appointed her to the War Claims Commission (later the

Foreign Claims Settlement Commission The Foreign Claims Settlement Commission of the United States (FCSC) is a quasi-judicial, independent agency within the U.S. Department of Justice which adjudicates claims of U.S. nationals against foreign governments, either under specific jurisdi ...

). Near the end of his administration, Eisenhower elevated her to the commission chairmanship, making Pearl Carter Pace the third highest ranking woman in his administration, next only to the

Treasurer of the United States The treasurer of the United States is an officer in the United States Department of the Treasury who serves as custodian and trustee of the federal government's collateral assets and the supervisor of the department's currency and coinage produc ...

and the new position of

United States Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The secretary is ...

, and the first Kentucky woman appointed by a president to a national post. Pace was active in the GOP for many years, including a stint from 1948 to 1957 as her state's Republican national committeewoman.

Death

Pace died in 1970 at the home of her daughter, Patty-Nell Pace Keen, in Burkesville, the seat of Cumberland County. Pace is interred beside her husband at the former Pace-Allen Cemetery, now Grider Memorial Cemetery, in Waterview in Cumberland County at a site overlooking Pace Farms.

Early years

Political career

Death

References

Further reading