ME HP1464

Maine's 132nd Legislature formally recognizes the life and accomplishments of Senator Margaret Chase Smith, who served in the U.S. House of Representatives beginning in 1940 and became the first woman elected to both houses of Congress when sworn into the Senate on January 3, 1949

Smith delivered her Declaration of Conscience speech on June 1, 1950, publicly opposing McCarthyism and defending rights to criticize, hold unpopular beliefs, protest, and think independently

In 1947, Smith helped pass the Nurse Corps Bill, granting women permanent status in the U.S. military for the first time

Smith became the first woman nominated for president by a major political party in 1964, losing the nomination to Barry Goldwater

Smith opened a library housing her papers in 1982, and upon her death in 1995, her Skowhegan home was converted into a public museum