Eunice Viola “Ola” Babcock Miller

Eunice Viola “Ola” Babcock Miller was the first female Secretary of State in Iowa. During her time in office she laid the foundation for the State Highway Patrol. She learned the art of political influence from her husband and the events happening around her. Ola Babcock Miller is important in Iowa history because of her role in forming the Iowa State Highway Patrol and being one of the first women in Iowa politics.  

On March 1, 1871 in Washington County Iowa, Eunice Viola “Ola” Babcock Miller was born. She remained in Washington country for her adolescence and attended public school there. She moved to Mount Pleasant for college and attended Iowa Wesleyan College. Following college Miller moved back to her hometown and taught in rural schools. She married Alex Miller, a newspaper editor who ran the weekly Washington Democrat. In 1927, now widowed, she continued to be active in the Democratic party, as she had learned from her late husband. Her platform was heavily influenced by her late husband. She traveled around Iowa to speak at a multitude of political events.  

Miller was nominated for Secretary of State by the Iowa Democratic Party during the 1932 election. She had her doubts about being elected but wanted to continue with the campaign in honor of her late husband. Miller won the 1932 election against then secretary of state G.C. Greenwalt by fewer than 3,000 votes, becoming the first female Secretary of State in Iowa history. This election was straightforward in both the state and in the country. Within Iowa, Democrats held the majority of political offices up for election.  Even though she won by a small margin for that election, she was reelected in 1934 and 1936.  

While in office, the son of a friend died in a highway accident. Motived by that event Miller began to advocate for and organize a state road patrol. “She spoke constantly throughout the state … driving home the gospel of safe and sane driving.”   

On August 1, 1934, Miller activated a group of 15 motor vehicles to oversee the highways and prevent accidents. In May of 1935 Governor Clyde Herring signed a law that officially created the Highway patrol. This patrol consisted of 50 men who were under the command of Miller. This was not the first instance of Highway Patrol in the United States but it was the first time in Iowa. The first of these patrols within the United States was established in 1917 in New York. By the time Iowa’s patrol was  established, there were similar units in a handful of states  The formation of the highway patrol was a symbol of Miller’s status. With a recession in the United States occurring during her time in office, few people had the funds to afford a car.   However, due to her own wealth, and the wealth of those around her, she thought it was important to the public safety that the patrol was formed. 

In 1936 Miller contracted pneumonia. Although feverish and feeble, she continued to speak at political and public events. She was later admitted to Iowa Methodist Hospital in Des Moines. On January 25, 1937 Miller died of pneumonia. Miller was not forgotten. She was one of the few women in politics during this time.  The first women had been elected to federal offices in the early 1900s.   Since her time in office, only 43 women have held a state level office in Iowa.  In 1975 Miller was one of the first women to be inducted into the Iowa Women’s Hall of Fame. A newly renovated complex at the Iowa Capitol was renamed in her honor in 1987. The Ola Babcock Miller Building now houses the State Library of Iowa. In her five years as Secretary of State Ola Babcock Miller made a lasting contribution to the state of Iowa.