Yoakum County, TX Histories: Two Female Commissioners
Yoakum County has had two female County Commissioners. Mrs. Minta Turner was appointed Commissioner of Precinct 4 May 17, 1941, to fill her deceased husband’s term (Ed S. Turner). W. R. McInturff was the County Judge and the other commissioners were Warner Hayhurst (#1), O.V. Mayben (# 2), and T.J. Bedford (#3). In 1942, Mrs. Minta Turner served with a different judge, G. P. Beane, Commissioners Warner Hayhurst (#1), O.V. Mayben (#2), T.J. Bedford (#3).
Mrs. Pearl Loe served as Yoakum County’s second lady Commissioner. Again, due to her husband’s death (Commissioner Paul Loe) in May of 1961, Pearl was appointed Yoakum County Commissioner. Pearl Murphey Loe was born in Melrose, NM and came to Yoakum County in 1948. She had a daughter, Nina Williams Robinson and a son Bob Loe. After filling Paul’s term, she ran for the office on her own and was elected in 1962. Her son Bob relates, “She enjoyed the work and gave of herself unstintingly in the performance of her duties”. Her grandson Travis mentioned some time ago that he remembered riding with her as she inspected the roads of the precinct. He was about 5 or 6 at the time. Pearl would pack a picnic lunch and would find a shade tree (no easy task in this county) and they would eat their lunch and then go on checking the roads and ditches. As Bob, her son, remembers.
She did have the respect of the other commissioners, the judge, the road hands, and various vendors to the county (equipment and machinery salesmen etc). The tax reps were especially courteous. I do not remember her ever mentioning having any problems, with any of the above mentioned, because of being a woman. She respected them, and was respected in return. Gene Payne and Doc Cotton were especially helpful. She did not attend many of the conventions of the court, but that was just mother. She would rather be at home, and on the job, than in a crowd in a large city. Travis Jones' mother and my mother were very close (living just across the street from each other).
During Commissioner Pearl Loe’s terms in office, the Yoakum County Park and Golf Course was built after the Gene Bennett family donated the land for the project. Also, addition was made to the hospital, numerous roads were upgraded, and some were paved for the first time. Pearl served as Deputy County Clerk for several years, beginning in 1967 until her retirement in 1976 at the age of 72. Pearl Loe died in 1981.