Hannah Diggs Atkins, right, and singer Nancy Wilson. Courtesy Oklahoma Historical Society.

Renowned librarian and legislator, Hannah Diggs Atkins was a trailblazer for women of color seeking political office in Oklahoma. Born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, she earned B.S. degrees from Saint Augustine's College in 1943 and the University of Chicago in 1949. She moved to Oklahoma City in 1952, working as a branch librarian for Oklahoma City Public Libraries before becoming Chief of the Oklahoma State Library General References Division. 

House Speaker Bill Willis, left, and State Representative Hannah Diggs Atkins, right, meeting with Langston University student Bill Strother. 1978. Courtesy Oklahoma Historical Society.

Atkins entered politics in 1968 when she became the first African American woman in Oklahoma elected to the state's House of Representatives. She served for twelve years, authoring landmark bills for mental health, welfare, education, and civil rights reforms. After her term ended in 1980, President Jimmy Carter appointed Atkins as a delegate to the United Nations. When she returned to Oklahoma, she served as Assistant Director of the state Department of Human Services (1983-1987) and Oklahoma Secretary of State (1987-1991).

Hannah Diggs Atkins, left, and Judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange at the Oklahoma Hall of Fame ceremony. 2000. Courtesy Oklahoma Hall of Fame Archives. 

Throughout her life, Atkins remained active in several organizations, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the National Association of Black Women Legislators, and the Oklahoma Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. She also founded the Oklahoma Black Political Caucus and co-founded the Oklahoma Chapter of the National Women's Political Caucus.