The Central Valley is filled with stories of groundbreaking women who helped lead communities, businesses and institutions. Today on KVPR’s Central Valley Roots we explore the story of one local woman who helped chronicle a city’s growth, while becoming a legend in her own time and industry.
Lucy May Morris was born in Comanche County Texas in 1873. At age 16, she married Oklahoma newspaper editor Spurgeon Case and soon began working alongside him, reporting stories and setting type, using the byline May Case. While in Oklahoma, the couple ran the Purcell Register, where she covered stories like the Oklahoma Land Rush. She earned the trust of members of the Native American community and reportedly interviewed Apache leader Geronimo.
In 1890 the couple moved to California and in 1919, they founded the Clovis Independent newspaper. They sold the paper in the 1930s, and Spurgeon died in 1949, but May Case kept working and writing for the Independent. She remained an editor writing a weekly column and covering hard news for the paper.
In 1964, at age 90, she was named Newspaper Girl of the Year by the California Press Writers Association, and was believed to be the oldest active journalist in the country, and received honors in publications like Newsweek and Editor and Publisher. She continued to write for the Clovis Independent nearly until her death in 1967.
