Here’s another chance to revisit some of the great women’s bass organizations of the past. I came across this amazing photo of the Texarkana Bass’N Babes featuring a lot of their members, as well as a lot of their tournament trophies. It was part of a write-up from a story in Fishing Facts magazine authored by Genie Howard in February 1977. They had just finished holding a Powder Puff Tournament the previous year (June 12-13) at Millwood Lake, AR.
The event had 85 lady contestants from 6 states: Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Missouri. Unfortunately, they only listed the top-10 finishers for the event and the only name I recognized was Chris Houston, who finished in 6th place.
The tournament had a lot of industry support, some of the biggest names in the industry at the time. Here are Genie Howard’s words regarding the companies that supported the event:
“Our top prize was $1000.00 cash and, thanks to Ron Pierce of Bass Cat Boats, a beautiful special color, fuchsia and white, high performance bass boat as well. We had help from so many people in the fishing industry. People such as: Jim Bagley, of Bagley Bait Co.; Forrest Wood, of Ranger Boats; Jim Rogers, of Silvertroll; Jim Jost, of Evinrude Motors; Bill Norman, of Norman Lures; Lindy Tackle Co.; Creme Lure Co.; Fishing Facts Magazine; Heddon Bait Co.; Lowrance Electronics; Lazy Ike Co.; Nasty Bait Co.”
Here’s the Top-10 as listed in the article:
- Freda Cleveland – Tulsa, OK
- Polly Bryan – Ashdown, AR
- Maxine Lawrence – El Dorado, AR
- Rosemary Lach – Texarkana, AR
- Barbara McConnel, El Dorado, AR
- Chris Houston, Tahlequa, OK
- Judy Grady – Texarkana, AR
- Carol Massey – Little Rock, AR
- Nancy Millican – Houston, TX
- LaMona Eley – Little Rock, AR
If any of the lady anglers out there can put names with the faces in the image above, please leave a comment below. It’d be cool to have all their names listed with this piece.
