As we’ve previously written, the women’s suffrage movement did not begin at the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848. More importantly, Seneca Falls influenced an entire new generation with its “Declaration of Sentiments,” proclaiming all men and women were created equal, that representation in the government that ruled them was essential and that women should have the right to vote.
Unified American voices calling for equality of all persons have deep roots in American history, following the Quaker beliefs in equality of all persons, regardless of gender, race, social status or other external forces. Those voices for abolition, human rights, women’s rights and education for all gained popularity across the rapidly expanding country. In parallel, growing unrest over these tenets — slavery especially — propelled the country into the Civil War.
Two women with Quaker roots and older sisters willing to resist social norms exemplify this tradition for equality and social reform. Martha Coffin Wright joined the movement after becoming a widowed mother at age 19. Her second husband was a lawyer in Auburn, N.Y., where she befriended Frances Miller Seward. Both women had politically ambitious husbands and several small children. Frances’ husband, William Henry Seward, a two-term governor of New York and U.S. senator, became Abraham Lincoln’s Secretary of State.
Through Martha’s older sister Lucretia Mott, these women came to know Harriet Tubman. Both Martha and Frances opened their homes and kitchens as Underground Railroad stations for escaped slaves fleeing to Canada and freedom.
The Sewards financed for Harriet a home and eight acres of land where she could relocate her parents, brothers, nieces and nephews whom she had rescued from slavery in Maryland.
The influence of these women before and during the Civil War cannot be overstated. They used their insights into the hardships endured by slaves and women to become the political conscience and private counselors to their husbands.
The Civil War also caused cracks among once unified voices for women’s rights. Many women had put their activism on hold to support the war efforts. They learned nursing skills, volunteered at hospitals (jobs previously open only to men) and provided sewing, knitting and food preservation services for soldiers.
In her mid-1863 invitation to the Woman’s Loyal National League conference in New York City, Elizabeth Cady Stanton declared, “When a mother lays her son on the altar of her country, she asks for an object equal to the sacrifice. Woman is equally interested and responsible with man in the final settlement of this problem of self-government … therefore it is high time for the daughters of the revolution to lay hold of their birthright of freedom and keep it a sacred trust for all coming generations.”
Arguments erupted across the convention, with participants from across the states and territories debating the importance of supporting the government during wartime, promoting the end of slavery or fighting for women’s rights.
Fractures soon became chasms. Susan B. Anthony proclaimed a woman’s right to vote should hold greater importance than the slavery issue, and Black men’s right to vote should not be prioritized. Her wall of racism pitted the rights of uneducated freed men against those of educated white women. These priorities caused her to lose support from former allies like Lucretia Mott and her vast network of activists.
Anthony went so far as to lobby against the 15th Amendment, arguing that the vote should be granted to all or none. After that failed, Anthony and Stanton adopted a state-by-state strategy to achieve women’s suffrage. That campaign, initially spread across thousands of miles and sparsely populated new states and territories, had limited success.
In 1869, Wyoming became the first state to ratify the vote. For the remainder of the 19th century, only three more states — Utah, Colorado and Idaho — agreed. Simultaneously, Jim Crow was eroding the 15th Amendment promise for Black men.
Thus, strategic choices, fueled by racism, and the loss of unified voices set back the suffrage goal for decades.
