By: iTrucker  / Mario Pawlowski 

Celebrating Women’s History Month. Lillie Elizabeth Drennan (1897-1974) was Texas’ first female licensed truck driver and a pioneering trucking company owner.

In 1928, she and her husband began delivering drilling supplies to the burgeoning Texas oil fields running two old, patched-up pickup trucks. Lillie became the sole owner of the Drennan Truck Line a year later when the couple divorced.

The company quickly grew — and Lillie continued to drive. When she sought to obtain her commercial truck-driver’s license, the Railroad Commission of Texas was reluctant.
Perceiving sex bias, Lillie argued her case: “If any man can beat my safety record, I’ll just get out of here.” She received her Texas truck-driver license in 1929.

Her colorful personality brought her national acclaim.

The Los Angeles Times hailed her as a “dry land Tugboat Annie.” During World War II, she helped lead the U.S. Army’s successful recruitment campaign to attract women truck drivers for the Quartermaster Corps.

In 1952, she sold the Drennan Truck Line and later operated the “Six Shooter Junction Novelty and Package Store” on U.S. Highway 290 in Hempstead, Texas.

Related articles at itrucker.com/news: Autonomous-and-electric-trucks-are-the-reason-why-women-are-increasingly-interested-in-trucking-career

Source and credits: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration FMCSA Facebook page

iTrucker  / Mario Pawlowski / iTrucker.com

Trucking, women truckers, women month, women truck drivers