10 Facts About Mazola McKerson

Mazola McKerson was the first of many things during her lifetime.

Mazola McKerson was the first chairperson of the Governor's Commission on the Status of Women.

Mazola Holman McKerson was born on January 10,1921, to parents Daisy Turner and Calvin Holman in Bluff, Oklahoma, a small community located near Hugo, Oklahoma.

Mazola McKerson's aunt was a maid for Marie Smith, part of a wealthy Ardmoreite family.

On July 30,1938, Mazola McKerson married her late husband, Alfred Mazola McKerson, and the couple struggled financially for the first years of their marriage.

Mazola McKerson's catering service eventually became so successful over the next ten years that she eventually had to transform her business into a restaurant.

In 1962, McKerson purchased the location for The Gourmet restaurant which earned the reputation and clientele for being the finest dining establishment in Ardmore and remained in full capacity until 1994 when Mazola retired for the first time.

In 1979, Mazola McKerson was elected as Ardmore's mayor, making her the first African-American woman to serve in this position as well as the first woman in the United States to serve as mayor of a city of more than 30,000 people.

Mazola McKerson was later appointed to the Commission on the Status of Women by former Oklahoma governor George Nigh.

Mazola McKerson served as president of the Ladies of Action Club and was inducted into the Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame in 1997.