Hattie Caraway (U. S. Senator) Burial Site

Hattie Wyatt Caraway (1878-1950) was the first woman in the country to be elected to the U. S. Senate.  She also was the first to chair a Senate committee or preside over the Senate.  Formerly a school teacher, she was thrust into national politics when her husband, Senator Thaddeus Caraway, died suddenly in November 1931, a few years into his second term in the U.S. Senate.  His wife was appointed to fill his seat until a special election could be held on Jan. 12, 1932.  She not only won the election, but went on to win two full six-year terms in the Senate, serving from December 1931 to January 1945.

Known as “Silent Hattie,” Senator Caraway rarely spoke on the Senate floor, believing in speaking briefly with a few well-chosen words.  She was known as an honest politician, supporting prohibition and anti-lynching legislation, as well as most of President Roosevelt’s economic recovery legislation.  She chaired the Senate Committee on Enrolled Bills and served on the Agriculture Committee.  Senator Caraway also was successful in bringing numerous facilities and programs to Arkansas.  Her gravesite is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

On February 1, 2001, Hattie Caraway made history once again by becoming the first Arkansan to appear on a postal stamp. The 76-cent Hattie Caraway stamp is among the “Distinguished Americans” stamp series issued by the United States Postal Service.