Eliza Jane Pratt
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Eliza Jane Pratt (March 5, 1902 – May 13, 1981) was a
United States Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
from
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
, the first woman to represent her state in the U.S. Congress. She was the only woman elected to the House of Representatives from North Carolina until the 1992 election of Eva Clayton.


Early life and education

Pratt was born in Anson County, North Carolina on March 5, 1902. She attended Queens College in Charlotte, North Carolina from 1918 to 1920.


Career

In 1923, Pratt worked as an editor for the ''Montgomerian'' newspaper in
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, North Carolina. In 1924, she was hired as an administrative assistant for Congressman William C. Hammer. Following Hammer's death in 1930, Pratt worked for a succession of North Carolina representatives: Hinton James, J. Walter Lambeth and William O. Burgin. When Burgin died in office in 1946, Pratt was elected as a Democrat to fill the vacancy. She served from May 25, 1946, to January 3, 1947, and was not a candidate in the 1946 general election. During her time in office, Pratt was appointed to three committees: Pensions, Territories, and Flood Control. Pratt went on to a variety of federal government jobs between 1947 and 1956 with the Office of Alien Property, the Agriculture Department, and the
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. She worked as secretary for another member of Congress, Alvin Paul Kitchin, from 1957 through 1962. In 1962, Pratt returned to North Carolina and worked as a public relations executive for the North Carolina Telephone Company.


See also

* Women in the United States House of Representatives


References


External links


Congressional Biography
* * Marion Elliott Deerhake
''Jane Pratt: North Carolina's First Congresswoman''
McFarland and Co., 2024. {{DEFAULTSORT:Pratt, Eliza Jane 1902 births 1981 deaths 20th-century American women politicians Female members of the United States House of Representatives Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from North Carolina Women in North Carolina politics Editors of North Carolina newspapers Queens University of Charlotte alumni People from Wadesboro, North Carolina Secretaries United States congressional aides 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives