The Alabama Federation of Republican Women was incubated in the mind of Mary Ellen Miller. Mary Ellen Miller moved from Oklahoma to Mobile Alabama in 1955. She had been a member of the Young Republicans in OK. When she asked about republican organizations in Mobile she was told there was only a Republican Executive Committee whose sole purpose was to recommend Republicans for federal office.  Mary Ellen then set about establishing the Mobile Republican Women’s Club, along with the women volunteers in the 1956 Eisenhower campaign headquarters.

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Mary Ellen and Miss Olive Spann traveled the state speaking to any woman’s group interested in politics. The Mobile Republican Women’s group began to prosper and helped start other Republican clubs in Mobile. She was also invited to join the Mobile County Executive Committee. This committee had full control over delegates selected to attend the National Convention. Mary Ellen was urged to become a delegate to the Republican National Convention. Her attendance at this convention was to become important to the founding of the Alabama Federation of Republican Women.

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At the convention, Mary Ellen met Ruth Parks, President of the National Federation of Republican Women. Ruth Parks suggested she attend the 1961 Women’s Republican National Conference.  Mary Ellen and three other women drove to Washington, D.C. to attend. At that time only Alaska and Alabama did not have a women’s federated organization. Mary Ellen made a handshake agreement with NFRW. She would work to establish a Republican Women’s Club in each of the Alabama Congressional Districts (a requirement to join NFRW) if NFRW would hold their next conference in Mobile.

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Mary Ellen succeeded and they were chartered in 1962 as the Alabama Federation of Republican Women. The Alabama Federation of Republican Women attended the 12th Biennial Convention of the National Federation of Republican Women in Phoenix, Arizona on September 27, 1962. AFRW was over 1000 members strong and received two awards.