Georgetown in Williamson County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
Jessie Daniel Ames
(1883–1972)
A native of Palestine, Texas, Jessie Daniel came to Georgetown in 1893. She graduated from Southwestern University in 1902. In 1904 she moved to Laredo, where she married Roger Post Ames (d. 1914), an Army surgeon. They were the parents of three children.
Following her husband’s death, Jessie operated the Georgetown Telephone Company with her mother and became active in civic projects, including the Woman’s Club. She joined the Texas Equal Suffrage Association and worked to acquire voting rights for women. She led a large group of women to the Williamson County Courthouse to register to vote for the first time in 1918. The Texas Equal Suffrage Association reorganized as the Texas League of Women Voters in 1919, and she served as its first president until 1924.
A champion of civil rights causes, Ames was active in the Commission on Interracial Cooperation. Opposed to the use of chivalry as a justification for lynching, she moved to Atlanta, Georgia, and formed the Association of Southern Women for the Prevention of Lynching in 1930. She retired in 1944 and moved to Tryon, North Carolina. Ames later returned to central Texas and died in an Austin nursing home in 1972. She is buried in the I.O.O.F. Cemetery in Georgetown.
Erected 1988 by Texas Historical Commission . (Marker Number 13878.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Civil Rights. A significant historical year for this entry is 1893.
Location. 30° 38.081′ N, 97° 40.56′ W. Marker is in Georgetown, Texas, in Williamson County. Marker is on South Church Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1004 S Church St, Georgetown TX 78626, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Founding of Georgetown (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Georgetown Fire House and Old City Hall (about 500 feet away); St. John’s United Methodist Church (about 600 feet away); Old Dimmitt Building (about 700 feet away); C.C. and Mattie Hughes Cody House (about 700 feet away); Lesesne-Stone Building (about 700 feet away); Cooper Sansom House (about 800 feet away); George Irvine House (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Georgetown.
Also see . . . Jessie Daniel Ames. Wikipedia article (Submitted on October 22, 2019, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.)
Credits. This page was last revised on November 29, 2020. It was originally submitted on December 25, 2007, by Keith Peterson of Cedar Park, Texas. This page has been viewed 1,778 times since then and 27 times this year. Last updated on February 4, 2017, by Keith Peterson of Cedar Park, Texas. Photos: 1. submitted on December 25, 2007, by Keith Peterson of Cedar Park, Texas. 2. submitted on July 8, 2018, by Keith Peterson of Cedar Park, Texas. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.