Women's Equality Day 2014

In my last post I discussed the lack of planning for the NY Women's Suffrage Centennial. This is not to say that there are not efforts being made throughout the state, but they are typically individual women's history sites going about there regular business, which is FABULOUS! but more effort is needed if we are to get a fire started.

That said, Women's Equality Day is fast approaching. What is Women's Equality Day you ask? It is the anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment's official inclusion in the US Constitution guaranteeing that the right to vote will not be denied due to gender. The Amendment was ratified one week prior on August 18, 1920 when the Tennessee legislature voted in favor of ratification. The House passed it by ONE VOTE!

19th Amendment stamp 1998- 150th anniversary of Seneca Falls Convention

Women's Equality Day, August 26th, is approved by resolution every year as it is not a national Holiday. This year marks the 94th anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment.

Here are some places in NY commemorating Women's Equality Day & the 94th Anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment (all times are EDT). If you know of any others, please let me know...

The National Abolition Hall of Fame and Museum in Peterboro, NY (near Syracuse) will present a program "Legacies of Equality" on Sunday, August 24 at 2:00 p.m.

*Foundation for the National Archives in conjunction with the Sewell-Blemont House are presenting a live stream via YouTube- Women's history on the horizon: The Centennial of Women's Suffrage in 2020- Tuesday, August 26 at 7:00 pm.

The Elizabeth Cady Stanton Hometown Association in Johnstown, NY is hosting a garden party on Monday, August 25.

Women's e-News is hosting a live stream of the 1972 documentary "The Hand hat Rocks the Ballot Box" on Tuesday, August 26 at 6:00 p.m.

 Women's Rights National Historical Park in Seneca Falls, NY does not have a specific commemoration, but the M'Clintock House is open, and Ranger Programs are offered all weekend.

The National Susan B. Anthony Museum & House in Rochester, NY held their event last weekend, but it is always a great place to visit.

If nothing else, invite some friends over & have a suffrage tea. Tea parties were a frequent fundraising event for the later half of the suffrage movement. I even have a Votes for Women tea pot & tea towel. There is a great collection of china displayed on the Suffrage Memorabilia page. For event kits & balloons, check out the National Women's History Project.

Here are some women's suffrage blogs you might be interested in as well:

Suffrage Wagon News Channel
Suffrage Centennials
Long Island and the Woman Suffrage Movement
Woman and Her Sphere
Suffrage Memorobilia


*added 8/20/14 at 3:57 pm

Another woman to research curtsey of the Mowry clan: Ann Caroline Holmes

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I recently came across the obituary of Ann Caroline Holmes (nee Mowry) & her husband Henry Holmes. The Holmes' were involved in both Abolition & Temperance & were founding members of the Free Church which used to sit on Main St, across from the Rough & Ready Firehouse. Cool, right? But, she was also a nurse during the Civil War. The following is a quote from the obituary

In 1864, moved by her country's needs and the sufferings of its sick and wounded defenders, she hastened, in company with Miss Prudence Fitch of Battenville and Miss Phebe Bernard, now Mrs. F. A. Gale of this village, to the hospital at Frederick City, Maryland, where she served for three moths as head nurse, with her companions and assistants. Here her business, energy and experience in the care of the sick, and her cheerful disposition were of greater value and the soldiers, turning to look after her as she passed along, said her presence was a ray of sunshine and called her "Mother."^

 I got excited yesterday when I located her on page 85 of the book Emma Willard and Her Pupils: Or, Fifty Years of Troy Female Seminary, 1822-1872 on Internet Archive. How unsatisfying that it neither mentioned her service during the Civil War, nor her aid in the fight for Abolition & Temperance. It simply mentioned who her parents were: William & Lydia (nee Whipple) Mowry, who her husband was & how many kids they had. So disappointing.

The unusual bit in the obituary was regarding her physical description. Apparently she resembled her so much that she was mistaken for Elizabeth Cady Stanton!

Elizabeth Cady Stanton- suffragist*

*image from Accessible Archives
^People's Journal. February 11, 1875

Greenwich in the NYS Library

Some of you may know that I am working on my Master's of Science in Information Science (MSIS, formerly MLS) at the University at Albany, SUNY. I have one semester left & hope to graduate just one month after my 10 year anniversary as your Town Historian!

Today I had an interview at the New York State Archives in Albany, & it got me wondering if there were any collections relating to Greenwich. Well, The NYS Archives only deals with governmental records. So, unless the town or village governments sent records to the Archives it's unlikely they have any relating to Greenwich.

But, what about the New York State Library? They have a "archives" as well called Manuscripts and Special Collections. Running down their list of finding aids (documents that contain descriptive information regarding records in a collection) I came across the following listing...

Stevens, Mary J.
Letter. (1852). 1 item.
Collection Call Number: 20420

Letter of Mary J. Stevens to her mother, describing her new life as a teacher in Greenwich, New York. She complains about Greenwich as a place populated by "Old Bachelors and Old Maids".  

I might have to request this item to take a look at what else Miss Stevens says about our fair town in 1852.

The NYS Library has some other interesting things. I recommend you take a look at their online finding aids. I found collections & records relating to suffragists Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Belva Lockwood, Amelia Bloomer, & an interesting collection of correspondence between one of my grandmother's favorite authors, Frances Parkinson Keyes & Eleanor Roosevelt.

I also found a collection of the New York State Association Opposed to Women Suffrage records. I will have to look at those & see if I can locate anything on Mary Arthur McElroy.   The NYS Archives finding aids can be searched by clicking here.  

& after my interview today, I took a look at the NYS Museum (in the same building). I highly recommend a new travelling exhibit from the Smithsonian being featured; 1934: A New Deal for Artists. Some of the paintings are of Upstate NY, & the labels are very descriptive.

Adams, Mass is who's hometown?

My daughter & I needed to get away. I was finished with grad school for the semester, plus it was Mother's Day weekend, so we just up & left.

The 90 or so minute car ride was pleasant. We listened to Madonna (I refuse to listen to Ke$ha) & I only missed one turn in Adams. I was able to remedy the misdirection very quickly & in only a minute or so we were steadly winding our way through the northern Berkshires to our first destination.

There in the shadow of Mount Greylock, Massachusettes tallest peak (3,489 ft), sits an unassuming house with a small 4 or 5 car parking lot and gift shop. Have you guessed? It is the Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum*. Susan and her family lived in the home until she was six years old & Daniel Anthony moved the family to Battenville. When we pulled in I was so giddy & excited, I had to sit in the car for a minute to gain my composure.

Greenwich Town Historian (me) in front the house

My daughter in what was probably the stock room for Daniel's store



An intern painted representations of little Susan for the gardens

There are some period furnishings in the house, but nothing original to the family or home. The main floor is open for tours and contains suffrage, temperance & abolition memorobelia. there is informative signage throughout & little take-away brochures. The upstairs is for staff, but you can glance up the stairwell.

I plan on going back this summer for an event with Penny Colman, author of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony: A Friendship That Changed the World, which I have just started. Hope to see you there!

Some items of interest from the gift shop... The Mother of Us All: An Opera is available of CD, but the gift shop has the LP for sale. Awesome!

The Mother Of Us All on vinyl

And nothing says "Happy Golden Annivesary of the Passage of the 19th Amendment" like hairspray. You think I'm kidding? In 1970 Loreal launched suffrage hairspray in scented & unscented! I am so buying one when I go back this summer!

Loreal's Suffrage Hairspray circa 1970

Mount Greylock from the Anthony's yard



For reference:
* http://www.susanbanthonybirthplace.com/index.shtml
Penny Colman's book Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony: A Friendship That Changed the World is available from your favorite book store (ISBN 9780805082937) http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?isbn=9780805082937&sts=t&x=0&y=0
The Mother of Us All: An Opera on CD (1992)
http://www.amazon.com/The-Mother-All-Virgil-Thomson/dp/B0000030CZ/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1337827155&sr=1-1