READ, MARY ANICE BARBER (1932 ~ 1999). Born on Christmas Eve of 1932, in Fort Worth, Texas, Anice Barber Read attended Sweet Briar College in Virginia and Southern Methodist University before graduating from Texas Christian University. She was a member of Austin Downtown Rotary and University Christian Church.
Active in community and historic preservation activities, Ancie was appointed to the Texas Historical Commission in 1968, by Governor John B. Connally. After serving as commissioner, she accepted a professional staff position where she conceived and created the Texas Main Street Program, which has become a national model for community economic revitalization. One of her trademarks around the State Capitol was her renowned Main Street chocolate cake, which was widely employed to help encourage lawmakers to provide funding for her program in its early days.
While undergoing treatment at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, she became equally persuasive is speeding up appointments and paperwork flow by routinely distributing Hershey bars to staff members.
Upon her retirement, Anice was honored with a ceremony in the Texas Senate Chamber by First Lady Laura Bush, former First Lady Nellie Connally and Jan Bullock, culminating in the naming of the Anice Read Main Street Center adjacent to the Capitol. She has been the recipient of numerous other awards, including presentation last year of the Lifetime Achievement Award of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the highest honor accorded by that body. She considered her proudest legacy to be the successes of scores of young Main Street managers mentored over more than 18 years.
Read died on November 30, 1999 and was buried at the Texas State Cemetery.
Information taken from Texas State Cemetery file materials.