Hazel Abel

Hazel Hempel Abel
United States Senator
from Nebraska
In office
November 8, 1954 – December 31, 1954
Preceded by Eva Bowring
Succeeded by Carl Curtis
Personal details
Born July 10, 1888
Plattsmouth, Nebraska
Died July 30, 1966 (aged 78)
Lincoln, Nebraska
Resting place Wyuka Cemetery, Lincoln, Nebraska
Political party Republican
Spouse(s) George Abel
Children Helen Abel
George Abel
Hazel Abel
Alice Abel
Annette Abel
Parents Charles Hempel
Ella Hempel
Alma mater University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Profession Teacher
Politician

Hazel Hempel Abel (July 10, 1888 – July 30, 1966) was an American teacher and politician in the U.S. state of Nebraska. She served as a member of the United States Senate, and was the first woman from Nebraska elected to serve in the Senate.[1]

Early life

Abel was born in Plattsmouth, Nebraska, the daughter of Charles Hempel and Ella Hempel. She attended the public schools of Omaha, Nebraska and graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1908.[2] She worked as a high school mathematics teacher and principal in Papillion, Nebraska, Ashland, Nebraska, and Crete, Nebraska before working as secretary and treasurer of her husband's construction company.[3]

Political career

Abel was a delegate to the Nebraska State Republican Conventions from 1939-1948 and from 1952-1956.[4] In 1954 Abel was elected to be the Vice Chairman of the State Republican Central Committee. That same year she was elected to complete the unexpired term of U.S. Senator Dwight Griswold who had died in office.[5] She became the first woman elected from Nebraska to serve in the Senate, as well as the first woman to follow another woman in a Senate seat,[6] as Eva Bowring had previously been appointed to the seat to serve until an election was held. She served in the Senate from November 8, 1954 until her resignation on December 31, 1954. While in the Senate, she voted to censure Joseph McCarthy in the Army–McCarthy hearings.[7]

She was a delegate to the White House Conference on Education in 1955, and chairwoman of the Nebraska delegation to the 1956 Republican National Convention.[8] From 1955-1959 she was a member of the Theodore Roosevelt Centennial Commission,[9] and in 1957 she was named "American Mother of the Year".[10] She also served as the President and founder of the Nebraska Federation of Republican Women,[11] and was on the board of trustees at Doane College and Nebraska Wesleyan College.[12] She tried unsuccessfully to win the Republican nomination for Governor of Nebraska in 1960.[13]

Death and legacy

She died in Lincoln, Nebraska on July 30, 1966 and is interred in Wyuka Cemetery in Lincoln.[14] Hazel Abel Park in Lincoln is named in her honor.[15]

Family life

Abel married George Abel in 1916,[16] and they had five children, Helen, George, Hazel, Alice, and Annette.[17]

References

  1. ↑ Membership Changes of the 83rd Congress
  2. ↑ "Donors Honored at Rededication of Hazel Abel Park". City of Lincoln Nebraska. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  3. ↑ Wasniewski, Matthew Andrew. Women in Congress, 1917-2006. Government Printing Office. p. 321. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
  4. ↑ Schultz, Jeffrey D. (1999). Encyclopedia of Women in American Politics. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 3.
  5. ↑ "Hazel ABEL". NebraskaGravestones.org. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  6. ↑ Membership Changes of the 83rd Congress
  7. ↑ "ABEL, Hazel Hempel". History, Art & Archivesnited States House of Representatives. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  8. ↑ Schultz, Jeffrey D. (1999). Encyclopedia of Women in American Politics. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 3. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
  9. ↑ "Biographies". United States Government Printing Office. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Mother's Day at 100: Exploring changing views of motherhood". Twin Citites.com. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  11. ↑ Nebraska Federation of Republican Women
  12. ↑ "Biographies". United States Government Printing Office. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  13. ↑ "ABEL, Hazel Hempel". History, Art & Archivesnited States House of Representatives. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Hazel ABEL". NebraskaGravestones.org. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Donors Honored at Rededication of Hazel Abel Park". City of Lincoln Nebraska. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  16. ↑ Wasniewski, Matthew Andrew. Women in Congress, 1917-2006. Government Printing Office. p. 321. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
  17. ↑ "George P. Abel". Lincoln Community Foundation. Retrieved June 2, 2014.

Further reading

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hazel Abel.


United States Senate
Preceded by
Eva Bowring		 U.S. Senator (Class 2) from Nebraska
1954 		Succeeded by
Carl Curtis