Willa McCord Blake Eslick

Willa McCord Blake Eslick (née McCord Blake; September 8, 1878 – February 18, 1961) was a U.S. Representative from Tennessee, a member of the Democratic Party, the wife of Representative Edward Everett Eslick, and the first woman to represent Tennessee in the United States Congress. She served one term in the House of Representatives during a significant period in American history, contributing to the legislative process and representing the interests of her constituents during the early years of the Great Depression.

Eslick was born on September 8, 1878, in Fayetteville, Lincoln County, Tennessee, the daughter of George Washington Blake and Eliza McCord Blake. Raised in a region of middle Tennessee with a strong agricultural and small-town commercial base, she grew up in an environment that would later inform her understanding of the needs and concerns of rural constituents. Her early life in Fayetteville provided the foundation for her later involvement in civic and political affairs at both the state and national levels.

Eslick received an extensive and varied education for a woman of her era. She attended private schools, including Dick White College and Milton College in Fayetteville, Tennessee. Seeking further training, she studied at Winthrop Model School and at Peabody College in Nashville, Tennessee, institutions known for their emphasis on teacher education and progressive pedagogy. She also pursued musical studies at the Metropolitan College of Music and the Synthetic School of Music in New York City. This broad educational background, encompassing both academic and musical training, reflected her interest in culture, learning, and public life and helped prepare her for the demands of political and organizational leadership.

On June 6, 1906, Willa McCord Blake married Edward Everett Eslick, an attorney and Democratic politician who would later be elected to Congress from Tennessee. Through her marriage, she became increasingly involved in political and community activities, supporting her husband’s career and developing her own profile in Democratic Party circles. She served as a member of the Tennessee state Democratic committee, a role that placed her among the more prominent women in the state’s party organization during a period when women were only beginning to gain formal political influence following the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment.

Willa McCord Blake Eslick’s congressional service arose directly from her husband’s death in office. Edward Everett Eslick, who represented Tennessee in the U.S. House of Representatives, died while serving in the Seventy-second Congress. To fill the vacancy caused by his death, Willa Eslick was elected as a Democrat to the Seventy-second Congress. She took her seat as a Representative from Tennessee on August 14, 1932, and served until March 3, 1933. Her tenure coincided with the final months of the Hoover administration and the deepening of the Great Depression, a time of intense legislative debate over economic relief and federal policy. As a member of the House of Representatives, she participated in the democratic process, contributed to the legislative work of the chamber, and represented the interests of her Tennessee constituents during this critical period. Although she completed the unexpired term, she was not eligible for reelection to the Seventy-third Congress because she had not qualified for nomination as required by Tennessee state law.

Following her brief but historically significant service in Congress, Eslick remained a figure of note in Tennessee and in women’s civic organizations. She was active in a range of national and heritage groups, reflecting her continued engagement with education, history, and public service. She belonged to the American Association of University Women, underscoring her commitment to higher education and the advancement of women. She was also a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the United Daughters of the Confederacy, organizations that emphasized genealogy, patriotism, and the commemoration of American and Southern history. In addition, she was affiliated with the Order of the Eastern Star, a Masonic-related fraternal organization open to both men and women, which further demonstrated her involvement in community and fraternal life.

Willa McCord Blake Eslick died on February 18, 1961, in Pulaski, Giles County, Tennessee, at the age of 82 years and 163 days. She was interred at Maplewood Cemetery in Pulaski. Her life and career, highlighted by her service from 1931 to 1933 as a Representative from Tennessee and her distinction as the first woman to represent Tennessee in the United States Congress, secured her a place in both state and national political history.