Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Dollies for Dollars, Part 1


One of the most common things that dolls were used for was to raise revenue for the suffrage cause.  Suffrage booths were often set up at fairs and other local events; it appears that dolls were profitable (and popular) because it was such a widespread product.

Pennyslvania--Reading and Pittsburgh--1915

Girl with decorated buggy, early 19th century

One of the most charming fundraisers came from Selma, Alabama.  Suffragists held a Suffrage Doll Bazaar shortly before Christmas.  A big draw of the day in 1916 was the "Parade of Doll Buggies"; children decorated  their doll buggies and their dolls and competed for prizes.  Candy and assorted other treats were furnished and dolls and doll furniture as well as other wares were sold.  It is most likely that this event only drew upper-class and white children.  Newspaper articles reported that the winning buggies were decorated with pink crepe paper and assorted other finery.

Have a safe and happy day!


Monday, June 29, 2020

Oh you beautiful doll!



This week we are going to look at suffrage and dolls.  Dolls were used to promote the cause but I suspect that part of the reason might have been to encourage the next generation to think of equal rights even if this generation didn't get the vote.  

This concept became clear when I read about Winifred Sackville Stoner.  In 1912, there were a variety of syndicated articles about the little girl who at 10 years old was a prodigy.  She had already had many poems published--one that you might know is "The History of the United States" and begins:

In Fourteen Hundred Ninety -Two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue
And found this land, the land of the Free, beloved by you, beloved by me...
Winifred Sackville Stoner in 1915.

Although only 10 or 11 years old in 1912, Winifred believed in woman's suffrage and her poems about suffrage were widely published although I couldn't find any specific one to share with you.  Winifred was blessed with an above average intelligence and a mother who believed in "natural education" and that learning should be made fun for children.

Both mother and daughter created suffrage games that explained the concept of suffrage to boys and girls.  An article at the time cited, "They (children) will soon be the power in America.  It is the lead ones that lead us."  You can read more about Winifred at Wikipedia.

So this week we will be looking to escape bad news by studying how and what types of dolls were used to aid the suffrage cause.
I hope you find these posts fun.  

Have a safe and happy day!




Friday, June 26, 2020

Flower Friday: Linda's Garden

It's Flower Friday!

Today we honor our suffrage foremothers by posting flowers in yellow, purple, and white (yellow being the color of suffrage; purple and white for the women of the National Woman's Party).

Linda has an extensive and lovely garden.  She kindly sent these photos for us.  Some of you emailed me photos as well this week but I will share those photos on next Friday's post.

Thank you Linda!  To have your flower photos included in next on Flower Friday post, please email your photos to me at allentownquilter@gmail.com  

Tomatoes count!
















Dogwood

Have a great weekend!


Thursday, June 25, 2020

This and That Suffrage News!

Good morning!  Today I'm featuring a number of small items.  First of all, in the great state of Tennessee, a Woman's Suffrage monument is finally being placed.  Read all about it here!


Tomorrow we will tour Linda's Garden for Flower Friday!  If you would like to be included in "Flower Fridays"--please email me your photos of yellow, purple, and/or white flowers:  allentownquilter@gmail.com.

A friend sent me this last week.  I loved it:
Here's why I love this so much.   It's wrong.  What is wrong?  Well as you know, women had gained suffrage by 1920.  So I looked this up and found info (of all places) at Snopes.com

According to Snopes, the women are eating fruit pies, not pizza and pizza wasn't even introduced into World War 2.  BUT I found information on the internet to dispute that fact-- pizza was introduced as early as 1905 in some northeast cities.  So nice photograph but I couldn't find any research that supported this myth in an actual newspaper.


Finally, I know many of my blog readers are living in states that are surging with the pandemic.  Beth and I are praying for you all.  Please stay safe.  We all need a diversion so next week, we will be publishing lighter posts because the actual news remains grim.

 We send all of you virtual hugs.  Stay safe.

Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Fair Season

It appears that most of the crowd filled fairs are going to be cancelled this year in Pennsylvania.  Most of our agricultural fairs are usually held in the later part of the summer but I wanted to give a nod to the many suffragists who spent the dog days of summer in fair booths.  A net search of suffragists at fairs indicated that most states had suffrage booths at county fairs.  It was not unusual for there to be booths rented by the Antis.  

I already posted about the Allentown Fair and that kind of situation here.

In 1915, suffragists at the Lehighton Fair received positive press for their booth:



It is not surprising that most residents accepted suffrage buttons from Mrs. Butler.  The Butlers were a prominent family in Mauch Chunk (neighboring Lehighton) and is now known as Jim Thorpe, PA.  W. R. Butler not only the president of Lehigh Stove Works in Lehighton, but he was on the Board of directors of the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company.

Ellen Fielding Butler was William's second wife (his first wife had passed in 1885) and she was an active force for suffrage in the "slate belt" area.  She was a well-known singer before marrying Butler and became a prominent hostess in the region.

A prominent artist from this region was Franz Kline (1910-1962).  Here is his painting of Lehighton, PA

Have a wonderful day!




Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Battling the Heat!

So Saturday was the first day of summer!  When I used to tell the kids that we didn't have air conditioning in most homes when I was a kid, they thought I was crazy.  But imagine what it was like when there weren't even electric fans.  People relied on a few tools in the summer:  the fan and the fly swatter.  I found some images of suffrage themed fans:

According to Wikipedia, screens for windows became more common in the 20th century.  But must of us still have a fly swatter around for when those pesky flies get in the house.  Although I don't have a photo, I know that suffragists also distributed fly swatters to raise awareness for the cause:


Stay cool and have a great day!

Saturday, June 20, 2020

Donna Daley's Quilt Entry


Donna Daley emailed me her entry for the Suffrage Centennial Quilt Challenge a week ago.  I wanted you to enjoy her quilt through the weekend and we love her explanation of her quilt.


The Esther Morris Quilt
A Celebration of a Remarkable Life

New York State – Esther Hobart McQuigg was born in Owego, New York on August 11, 1814.

Bonnet – Orphaned as a young woman, Esther supported herself with her own millinery business.

Old Country Church – Esther attended abolition meetings at her Baptist church, the first anti-slavery church in the country. When an angry mob of men with torches disrupted a meeting and threatened to burn the church down, Esther turned them away.

Railroad Crossing – Esther met her first husband, Artemas Slack, at an anti-slavery meeting at the church. He was a civil engineer for the railroads. They had one son, Archie

Illinois – After Artemas was killed in a railroad accident, Esther traveled to Illinois to claim land that he had owned. She was denied her inheritance because she was a woman, and therefore not allowed to own property.

Lincoln’s Platform – While in Illinois, Esther lived with her Aunt Di and Uncle William. William was a lawyer in the Springfield area. It is likely that he knew Abraham Lincoln, and possible that Esther met him as well.
Log Cabin – Esther met her second husband, John Morris, in Illinois. Together they claimed her land and built a house on it. They had twin sons, Edward and Robert. When gold was discovered in Wyoming in 1867, the Morris family moved to South Pass City. They lived in the log cabin built by John and Archie.

Teacup – Esther believed that women should be allowed to vote. When she found out that an election was to be held, she gave a tea party on the Sunday before the election. She invited prominent citizens of the town, as well as the candidates. She persuaded each of the candidates to introduce a bill for women’s suffrage if they were elected. 

Ladies’ Fancy – The bill was introduced and passed. Governor John Campbell signed it into law on December 10th, 1869. Women could now vote for the candidates they liked, or “fancied.” Esther and other women of Wyoming voted for the first time on September 6, 1870.

Contrary Wife – Esther’s husband, like many others, did not believe that women should vote. Esther and other contrary wives voted anyway in defiance of their husbands’ wishes. 

Courthouse Square – Eight days after the women’s suffrage bill became law, the county’s justice of the peace resigned. Esther was appointed to take his place, thereby becoming the first female justice of the peace in the world. Her son Archie, as clerk of the court, swore her in. When her predecessor refused to turn over the docket to a woman, she simply bought a new one. Esther held the position for eight and a half months. She ruled on 26 cases, including 9 criminal cases, none of which were overturned on appeal.

Cheyenne – Esther’s husband, John, died in 1877, and she eventually moved to Cheyenne, where her son Archie and his family lived. Wyoming became a state on July 8, 1890, the first state where women could vote. Esther took part in the parade and was honored at the celebration of Wyoming’s statehood on July 10th, 1890. At age 80, she was a delegate to the national suffrage convention in Cleveland. Esther Morris died in Cheyenne on April 3, 1902, at the age of 87. In 1960 a statue of her was erected at the state capitol. A copy is in the Hall of Statues in Washington, D.C. 


Thank you Donna!
Have a great day!


Friday, June 19, 2020

Flower Fridays: Betsy G.'s Garden!

It's Flower Friday and time to honor our brave suffragists with flowers we photographed in the colors of yellow, purple and white.

Today we feature flowers from Betsy G.'s garden!  Thank you Betsy! 


Thyme in purple and Mother of Thyme in white!

Lovely Clematis

Chamomile

Day Lilies!

Yellow blooming sedum

Lovely Lavender!

If you have flowers you want featured on Flower Fridays, please email me photos to allentownquilter@gmail.com!
Have a day!

Tuesday, June 16, 2020

Thimble Party


Don't you just love the name "Thimble Party" for a sewing get together?  It was a phrase often used by a variety of women's groups.  

Today I just want to remind you that the deadline is approaching for photographs of your suffrage quilts.  July 4, 2020 is when we asked that you submitted your photograph.  As you know, we have had many submissions already.  Later this week, I'll be sharing a photograph and a story that we received over the weekend.

In the meantime, stay well and have a great day!

Sunday, June 14, 2020

HAPPY FLAG DAY!

Happy Flag Day!

In 1884, there was a song published called "The Suffrage Flag".  The chorus goes like this:

"Hurrah!  Hurrah!  For Equal Rights Hurrah!
Hurrah for the suffrage flag that bears the woman's star!"

In 1902, a flag with only 4 stars was featured in a newspaper article: "The suffrage flag is like the United States flag excepting that it in the place of the stars for each state of the Union, the suffrage flag contains only four stars that represented Wyoming Idaho, Utah and Colorado."  I found  this on the Smithsonian website:

By 1912, a fifth star was added when Washington state granted women the right to vote.

California joined suffrage states in1911:

In 1916, Pennsylvania suffragists presented a flag to the National American Woman Suffrage Association Convention in Atlantic City.  It was yellow with 11 stars, these surround a blue eagle on wing clutching a yellow globe."  The flag was approved by the delegates and was first unfurled at the NAWSA headquarters in February 1917:
The suffrage flag is on the right.

And now for some interesting anecdotes about flags:

In 1909, Helen Lareine Baker of Spokane, Washington arranged to have a special train take her to the op of Pike's Peak so she could plant a suffrage flag on the top of the peak with "Votes for Women" printed on it.  Baker was a well known suffragist and one of the wealthiest women in the west; one newspaper noted that "she is the largest taxpayer in Washington." 

In 1910, New York suffragists announced they placed suffrage flags on the graves of Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Lucy Stone, and other suffragists.  This caused a bit of a ruckus with Antis who considered the flags a "desecration of graveyards."

National Woman's Party flag, around 1918.

Flags have always held an emotional meaning to people.  In 1911, Two Berkeley college boys attempted to secure the suffrage flag at the Berkeley Suffrage Headquarters.  Newspaper speculated as to whether it was a fraternity prank or a plot by the Antis.  Unfortunately for the boys, a number of suffragists witnessed the act and "descended upon them" thus saving the flag.  No word on how the boys fared.

A cigarette silk featuring Annie E. Peck.  It's possible this silk was incorporated into some kind of quilted piece; it was very common to sew the silks into quilts in the early part of the 20th century.



Individual groups of suffragists almost always had their own flags with symbolic meaning.  Annie E. Peck, an explorer with a penchant for high altitudes, returned from South America after having planted the yellow suffrage pennant of the "Joan of Arc Suffrage League of New York" on one of the five icy summits of Corunpuna in southern Peru, estimated to tower 22,500 feet above sea level.

Happy Flag Day!










Friday, June 12, 2020

Flower Fridays



This week is a little different because I didn't receive any photos of yellow, purple, or white flowers from you.  It's been stinking hot and humid here in PA and I haven't been out much since the humidity kicked in.

This week, I thought I would share photos of my suffrage garden.  I'm sure there will be more as the summer progresses--gardens are constantly evolving and changing.

Welcome to my humble cottage garden!  There are four main borders in the front.  Two on other side of the doorway and two along the sidewalk.



Last year I had ordered signs for the garden:

And explanatory signs:


I wasn't sure if anyone would even stop to read the signs (they are in the front of the garden).  I was convinced the signs were ignored until an elderly neighbor up the street asked, "what is everyone reading on those signs?"  She's on a walker and couldn't make it down to the house herself until her husband drove her by.  But she assured me that she could see walkers stopping to read the signs.  Sure enough, my pup now tells me everytime we have a visitor to the garden now.  That is gratifying enough.

We had a spectacular first bloom of roses.  Unfortunately they are now under attack by Spotted Lantern Fly Nymphs.  I hose them off the rose canes and won't use chemicals; I don't want to hurt our ladybug population.


The sundrops (yellow above) are setting blooms and the coreopsis (below) is in first bloom.



I hope you have a wonderful day and enjoy a fantastic weekend!  
Stay safe!