University of North Texas Athletics
Beulah Harriss: North Texas Trailblazer
3/8/2021 9:00:00 AM | General
Today, dozens of women – former student-athletes, coaches and administrators – occupy the North Texas Athletics Hall of Fame. Thousands more have gone on to become leaders in their fields and in our communities. Banners and retired jerseys hang in the rafters of the UNT Coliseum, honoring the achievements of former women’s basketball teams and players; achievements made possible over a century ago by trailblazer Beulah Harriss.
Beulah Harriss (1889 – 1977) came to the University of North Texas (then known as North Texas State Normal College) in 1914. She was specially recruited from the University of Nebraska by university president William Herschel Bruce to lead NTSNC’s fledgling physical education program and women’s recreation initiatives.
During the early 20th century, organized women’s sports were virtually non-existent, relegated, instead, to primarily intramural activities. The prevailing philosophy towards women in sports at the time was to discourage competition between schools. Despite this, Beulah Harriss organized the first women’s basketball team at the university and lead them to three consecutive undefeated seasons from 1918-1920, culminating in recognition as champions by the State of Texas.
Three undefeated teams in three years is the record of Miss Harriss as Mentor of girls' basketball at the college... The success with which she has met in the shaping of her teams marks her as perhaps the foremost coach of girls' athletics in this section of the country.From the Yucca Yearbook, 1921
In 1920, NTSNC formed the school’s first athletic committee, a precursor to the modern athletic department. Harriss’ spot on this committee made her the first female athletic administrator at North Texas. In recognition of her contributions, a new women’s gymnasium was built and named in her honor in 1924.
Our present Physical Education Department was organized in 1914 by Miss [Beulah] Harriss…From the Yucca Yearbook, 1924
…There is ample proof that the [Physical Education] Department has been a success. Our college was the first in the State to issue a degree with physical education as a major… …This year a very progressive step has been made. Women’s gymnastics have been moved to the women’s new gymnasium. A description of the building will convinve the greatest skeptic that the Physical Education Department of our college is worth while.
The Texas Teachers’ Colleges Board of Regents enacted sweeping bans of all women’s sports in 1925. Undeterred, Harriss organized the Women’s Athletic Association in order to continue athletic competition on campus. In the same year, she organized the Green Jackets, a student organization dedicated to both service and school spirit. The Green Jackets continue to operate as one of the oldest service-oriented organizations on campus.
Beulah Harriss’ impact on the Denton community extend beyond her work in recreation and athletics. Following the Great Depression, Harriss, along with several other NTSNC professors, established the Denton County Teachers Federal Credit Union (now known as DATCU) in order to support fellow educators in the area. Harriss was also heavily involved in bringing the Girl Scouts of America to Denton, establishing the first troop in 1917 and remaining active with the organization for 50 years.
Today, Beulah Harriss’ legacy can still be found around Denton and the University of North Texas. In 2014, thanks to research from Denton Girl Scout Elise Clements, the Texas Historical Commission designated Harriss’ story as an “Undertold” marker. On October 25, 2015, an official historical marker was placed in Quakertown Park, near the former site of Harriss’ Girl Scout office and council room. On March 14, 2017, another marker, this time on the UNT campus near the former site of the Harriss Gymnasium, was unveiled thanks to the continued efforts of Clements. In 1987, Beulah Harriss was the first woman to be inducted into the North Texas Athletics Hall of Fame.
Special thanks to the University of North Texas Digital Library Collections, the Portal to Texas History and to Elise Clements for cultivating the legacy of Beulah Harriss.
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