The Oklahoma Bar Journal September 2024

W omen in L aw

Fred Andrews

F RED ANDREWS, CHRISTENED FREDDIE, was born Jan. 14, 1895, in Cecil, Arkansas. When asked if she had been named Freddie because her father wanted a son, she said she “doubted it, for he had plenty of boys, seven girls and six boys.” 1 She grew up in Cecil on the family farm and attended Fort Smith Business College.

contracts.” 4 The farmer became a regular client. Ms. Andrews served as county attorney and, in 1947, served as county judge pro tempore for a brief period of time. She was appointed to the county and juvenile court judgeship in Pontotoc County in 1955 and was unopposed when she ran for election in 1956. During the rest of her 14-year tenure as judge, she would draw an opponent in each election and always come out the victor. She “was the only woman to hold the office of county and juvenile court judge in Pontotoc County.” 5 She served “until 1969, at which time she retired and returned to the general practice of law.” 6 A 1957 article in The Daily Oklahoman noted, “Oklahoma women lawyers couldn’t be said to dominate the state’s judiciary – yet. But keep an eye on them.” 7 Ms. Andrews was one of the seven who had made a “wedge into what until very recent times was con sidered strictly a man’s field.” 8 Upon retiring from the judi ciary, Ms. Andrews said: “For the most part my work has been pleas ant. The last five years, though, the workload has snowballed. With the

addition of criminal cases, juvenile and dependent children’s cases and mental health matters doubling, there’s much more to be done. I’m too compassionate, and tense up trying to find solutions in ‘the best interest’ of the child or adult.” 9 Although Ms. Andrews never felt the legal profession called “for exceptional qualities in a woman any more than it does a man,” she did question the ability of women to deal with “dependent and neglected or delinquent children.” 10 Although she had her doubts about her abilities in these areas, she felt she had helped a number of young people, a fact confirmed by the many who kept in touch with her throughout her life. Retiring to a private practice, Ms. Andrews hoped to return to a 9-to-5 workday. She anticipated that private practice would allow her more time to work in her yard with her flowers, a diversion she thoroughly enjoyed. She opened her office in Ada’s First National Bank in a space offered by Albert E. Trice. Returning to the areas of practice she enjoyed before she became a judge, she opened her doors to a civil practice focusing on probate matters.

Ms. Andrews started her career as a legal stenographer in Wetumka. Working in a law firm gave her the opportunity to study law as she worked. She augmented her legal studies with night classes and correspondence courses in law, and after taking the bar examina tion, she was admitted to the bar on Dec. 13, 1934. She moved to Ada around 1930 and practiced “law in a partnership until 1939, when she opened her own office.” 2 She was the first woman attorney in Ada and practiced there for 21 years. Since there were so few women attorneys when she began her prac tice, she decided that if she were going to get clients, she would have to use the shortened version of her name. 3 Ms. Andrews tells the story of her first client, a farmer, who purchased a tractor only to find it unsatisfactory. Upon his arrival at the office of “Fred Andrews, Attorney at Law,” the farmer kept insisting he wanted to see a lawyer. When Ms. Andrews finally con vinced him she was Fred Andrews, he said, “Well, I better find another, a man. A woman wouldn’t know anything about farm machinery.” She retorted, “No, but I know about

Statements or opinions expressed in the Oklahoma Bar Journal are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Oklahoma Bar Association, its officers, Board of Governors, Board of Editors or staff.

32 | SEPTEMBER 2024

THE OKLAHOMA BAR JOURNAL