From collection Candidates
In 1896 Grace Espy Patton was elected Colorado State Superintendent of Public Instruction and ex-offico State Librarian. At this time in Colorado the state superintendent was a member of the State Land Board, the State Board of Examiners, and the State Board of Education. While holding this position Patton was expected to visit the fifty-six counties of the state, speak at normal school functions, open new school buildings, and participate in commencement exercises. Journalists called her "the little professor" because she had held a position at the Agricultural College. She was said to have been paid $3000 a year and to be a "new woman." ("Women in Politics," NY Daily Tribune, November 28, 1898, page 3.) While in office, Patton married Warren Cowles. An argument was made that the voters of Colorado had elected Grace Patton, not Mrs. Warren Cowles. The state attorney general was asked for a legal opinion. He responded that there was no precedent but that Mrs. Cowles must be known, while in office, as Grace Patton. ("Women in Politics," New York Tribune, November 28, 1898.)
