Download & Print
January 13, 2026
Today in Texas History
On this day in 1913 four Black Texas women, with 18 other women, all students at Howard University in Washington, D. C. cofounded Delta Sigma Theta, Inc., which became an international service organization. The sorority’s first public action was to march in the Woman Suffrage Procession with national civil rights leader Mary Church Terrell on March 3, 1913, in Washington, D. C.
Of the four Texan founders, Zephyr Chisom of El Paso, Myra Davis of San Antonio, and Jessie McGuire of Galveston were seniors and wore their caps and gowns in the parade. The fourth, Frederica Chase, hailed from Dallas.
After graduation, all four sorors became educators, worked for social improvement in Texas, and remained active Delta Sigma Theta sisters.
Of the four Texan founders, Zephyr Chisom of El Paso, Myra Davis of San Antonio, and Jessie McGuire of Galveston were seniors and wore their caps and gowns in the parade. The fourth, Frederica Chase, hailed from Dallas.
After graduation, all four sorors became educators, worked for social improvement in Texas, and remained active Delta Sigma Theta sisters.