Effiegene Locke Wingo
Her life and accomplishments for the state of Arkansas

Kristy Brasfield
April 23, 2012
Final Draft

US Southern Women’s History Spring 2012
Professor: Dr. Sarah Wilkerson-Freeman

Born into a well-known family, Effiegene Locke Wingo lived her life in such a way that would keep her family name in good light. She gained political experience and connections while assisting her husband during his term in the Arkansas State Senate and during his terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. Mrs. Wingo used these assets to help her constituents in her district after succeeding her late husband in Congress. ¹ Mrs. Wingo poured her life into helping the people she represented during the Great Depression. She suspended her social activities in Washington, D.C. in order to travel to Arkansas and used every tool she had to send help and money into her district. She used her federal contacts to bring in projects such as bridges and buildings. Having to rely on the same staff as her husband had, she tried to balance a family life with her new lead role in her community and quite possibly eclipsed her husband’s career. ² Effiegene Wingo was born April 13, 1883 in Lockesburg, Arkansas to George Todd Locke and Callie Blanche Dooley Locke, the first of seven children. She is also the great-great-great granddaughter of Matthew Locke from North Carolina.3 George Locke moved the family to DeQueen, Arkansas where he owned quite a bit of land in July 1897. He donated land to the town for several different projects including building the town site and cemetery, constructing sidewalks, contributing to churches, and bringing an electric power plant to town. George Locke was also a member of the Masons and had his daughter, Effiegene join the women’s order of the Eastern Star. After losing his crops to natural disasters, George Locke reorganized his assets