More than Petticoats: Remarkable Georgia Women examines the determination of thirteen resourceful women, all of whom rebelled against the strict social codes of the turn-of-the-twentieth-century American South. These women and their far-reaching influence span the geographical, social, and ethnic diversity of Georgia. Setting their own standards and following their passions, they continue to inspire new generations with their achievements.
Meet Rebecca Latimer Felton, the first woman to sit as a U.S. senator; Juliette Gordon Low, the resilient founder of the Girl Scouts; Sarah Freeman Clarke, a painter who dared to pursue art and literature as a career; Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, the "Mother of the Blues," whose voice transcended race and class; and Margaret Mitchell, author of the enduring tale of survival, Gone with the Wind.
Pursuing her individual interests and desires, each of these women was, above all, true to herself. Discover their exceptional courage in this collection of brief and absorbing biographies.
Suburban Atlanta resident Sara Hines Martin, author of Walking Atlanta, has been writing professionally for 44 years. She has master's degrees in religious education and counseling and her own private counseling practice. She has lived in two Third World countries and traveled extensively.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
According to the Dictionary of American Negro Biography: "In a black theater in 1925, the curtains opened to reveal a huge hand-cranked Victrola. From inside, a gravelly voice sings. Then the doors open, and Ma Rainey steps out." Her gold teeth filling her large mouth sparkle in the blue spotlight. The stage lights give her dark complexion-spread heavily with greasepaint, powder, and rouge to lighten her skin-a golden color.
Although most of the black blues singers were pretty women, Gertrude "Ma" Rainey was a stocky, squat, big, homely woman. "Black performers said she had 'the ugliest face in show business,'" wrote Sandra Lieb in Mother of the Blues. "Thick straightened hair sticking out in all directions, gold caps on her huge teeth, a fan of ostrich plumes in her hand, and a long triple necklace of shiny gold coins reflecting the blue spotlight that danced on her sequined black dress, Ma was a sight to behold."
She dressed in a bright, flashy style, wearing elaborately styled gowns of maroon, blue, or gold beaded satin, sometimes with sequins. She wore glittery jewelry, often donning a famous necklace and earrings made of gold pieces, or diamond-studded tiaras, rings, and bracelets.
