Had Elizabeth “Bess” Clements Abell (1933–2020) been a boy, she would likely have become a politician like her father, Kentucky’s Earle C. Clements.
Effectively barred from office because of her gender, she forged her own path by helping family friends Lyndon and Lady Bird Johnson. Abell’s Secret Service code name, “Iron Butterfly,” exemplified her graceful but firm management of social life in the Johnson White House.
After Johnson’s administration ended, she maintained her importance in Washington, DC, serving as chief of staff to Joan Mondale and cofounding a public relations company.
Donald A. Ritchie, historian emeritus of the U.S. Senate, and Terry L. Birdwhistell, founder of UK’s Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, draw on Abell’s own words and those of others known to her to tell her remarkable story in Washington’s Iron Butterfly which will be published by the University Press of Kentucky on January 11.
Focusing on her years working for the Johnson campaign and her time in the White House, this engaging oral history provides a window into Abell’s life as well as an insider’s view of the nation’s capital during the tumultuous 1960s.
The book is already drawing praise.
“To me, Bess was wisdom, humor, competence, creativity, loyalty, reliability, and kindness on two feet,” said Luci Baines Johnson, the President’s daughter. “But most of all, she was a once-in-a-lifetime friend. If you care about your country and the ‘can do’ spirit of a ‘can do’ woman ahead of her time, the story of Bess Abell will inspire you and comfort you in a time when we all need both.”
David S. Ferriero, archivist of the United States, said, “A new and fresh look at the inner workings of the Johnson White House from the perspective of the ‘Iron Butterfly.’ While she was officially social secretary to the First Lady, Bess Abell’s political and social skills shaped the success of the East Wing’s contributions to that administration.”
Co-author Donald Ritchie conducted oral history interviews with former senators and retired staff as part of the Senate oral history project. He has authored a number of books including, Electing FDR: The New Deal Campaign of 1932 and Press Gallery: Congress and the Washington Correspondents.
Terry Birdwhistell served as dean of the University of Kentucky Libraries and is former president of the Oral History Association and coauthor of Our Rightful Place: Women at the University of Kentucky, 1880-1945.
