This volume presents the important speeches and correspondence of Governor Martha Layne Collins, the first and only woman to be elected governor of Kentucky. Papers from the state archives chronicle the agenda and rhetoric that Collins, a former schoolteacher, used to accomplish the intertwining goals of education reform and economic development. Included are Collins's letters to automobile makers to consider Kentucky as a manufacturing site and her triumphant announcement that Toyota had selected Kentucky for its plant.

The volume also includes Collins's pivotal speeches during her rise to leadership in the Democratic Party, which chose her to chair its 1984 National Convention. Other chapters deal with related issues of labor and management, energy and environment, health and welfare, and women in politics. An introductory essay summarizes Collins's life and career and the impact of her administration on the future of the state.

Elizabeth Duffy Fraas is professor emerita at Eastern Kentucky University, where she taught journalism and was faculty adviser for The Eastern Progress. She is a contributor to Kentucky's Governors and Kentucky Settlement & Statehood, 1750-1800.

Reviews:

"Women considering careers in politics will find a chapter that includes Collins's statements to a variety of audiences on gender issues, motherhood, and the role of women in politics."--Back Home in Kentucky

"Women considering careers in politics will find a chapter that includes Collins's statements to a variety of audiences on gender issues, motherhood, and the role of women in politics."--Back Home in Kentucky

"Of great interest and value are the editor's informative endnotes to each selection, identifying the personalities and issues involved. In this manner, her annotations and interpretations are enduring, underscoring the importance of such publications in an age of digitization. Fraas' introductory summary of the life and career of Kentucky's first woman governor, Martha Layne Collins, is the best succinct overview to date.... Fraas' superior editing skills give life and breathe to her governorship, making this collection a valuable addition to both scholarly and public libraries."--Ohio Valley History