MORAL COMPASS: Great Places to Go Where the Going Does Good

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Historic Places, Historic Preservation, New York State tourism, Uncategorized

On Centennial of 19th amendment, NYS Announces Preservation Project of Historic Susan B. Anthony Childhood Home

August 18, 2020 MoralCompass

“Wave” Sculpture puts you in the march toward the first Women’s Rights Convention, at Women’s Rights National Historical Park in Seneca Falls. New York State is marking the centennial of the 19^th amendment by allocating money to preserve and restore Susan B. Anthony’s childhood home in Battenville © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

On the 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced an effort to stabilize and preserve the childhood home of prominent 19th century women’s rights activist Susan B. Anthony, in Washington County. The work at the 1832 two-story brick home on Route 29 in Battenville where Anthony lived from ages 13 to 19, which includes repairs to the roof, masonry and drainage, as well as mold remediation and water damage, is expected to be complete by September.

“New York has been the birthplace to many of the progressive movements that have left an indelible mark on our society while pushing the nation forward and particularly for women’s suffrage, which began at Seneca Falls and included legendary New Yorkers such as Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and so many more,”Governor Cuomo said. “As we commemorate the 100th anniversary of women gaining the right to vote, we must also recognize there is more work to be done. New York will continue to lead the nation in creating greater equality for all and we are proud to preserve and enhance this important part of American history for future generations.”

“On the anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, this development will stabilize Susan B. Anthony’s childhood home in Washington County, allowing for the reuse of the property,” said Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul. “While the Susan B. Anthony House and Museum in Rochester showcases the history of one of the world’s greatest revolutionaries, this project will further preserve Anthony’s legacy in New York State. As the birthplace of the women’s rights movement, New York was the first major state to grant the right to vote in the country, leading the way for the 19th Amendment. As we celebrate the centennial of women’s suffrage, we still have more work to do to achieve true equality and justice. Now more than ever, we must embrace this time to continue to fight for real change.”

This year is also the 200th anniversary of Susan B. Anthony’s birth, in 1820. The child of a Quaker family that promoted abolition and temperance, she lived in Washington County, in Battenville and later in Center Falls, from 1826 to 1845 between the ages of 6 and 25 before her family moved to Rochester.

Governor Cuomo also announced that the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, which is managing the $695,000 stabilization project, has reached a purchase agreement on an adjoining four-acre site that contains a former historic tavern dating to the period when the Anthony family lived next door. Supported by the state Environmental Protection Fund, the $130,500 purchase will allow for future creation of adequate parking for the Anthony home and serve as a staging area for continued phased redevelopment of the building for an as-yet undetermined future use.

State Parks Commissioner Erik Kulleseid said, “Part of our mission is the preservation of our state’s historic legacy. The home where Susan B. Anthony spent her formative years has a story to tell and we want to get the home in the proper condition, so it one day is able to tell it.”

The stabilization project is supported by a $250,000 grant obtained by state Assembly Member Carrie Woerner and the remainder from New York Works; support was also obtained by State Senator Betty Little.

The Battenville home was built in 1832-33 by Anthony’s father who had moved the family from Adams, Mass., to manage a cotton mill on the nearby Battenkill River. At the age of 13, Susan joined the Easton Society of Friends. The Anthonys lost their home in 1839 due to financial setbacks caused by a national financial recession in 1837. The former family residence was in a state of disrepair by the time State Parks purchased it at foreclosure for $1 in 2006.

Anthony, who died in 1906 at age 86, worked for decades to advance women’s rights, but did not live to see the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920. She is buried in Rochester.

“To have played a small role in preserving this unique part of the history of Susan B. Anthony’s life truly is a privilege,” Greenwich Supervisor Donald Ward said. “The Town of Greenwich is supportive of NYS efforts to revitalize the Anthony home. The home is a symbol of those Suffragettes that battled for the Womens Right to Vote. In the future we are hoping the SBA house will become a historical site bringing visitors to Greenwich and honoring our hometown heroine. It is my hope that in doing so we are helping assure that the magnitude of her accomplishments, her courage and her unwillingness to yield in the face of enormous obstacles will never be forgotten. As we commemorate the centennial of women’s suffrage this year, we celebrate the life of this remarkable woman who recognized that the ideals enshrined in the U.S. Constitution are, in fact, a call to action to be better individuals and to be a better nation.”

Assembly Member Carrie Woerner said, “Susan B. Anthony’s contributions to our nation through the Women’s Suffrage movement are crucial pieces of history, and on the 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment I am pleased to see her homestead in Washington County brought back to life for countless generations to visit and learn from. The dedication and relentless passion of local community leaders have been essential in the restoration of this historic property and I am glad to continue to lend my support to this project.”

Salem Supervisor Evera Sue Clary said, “We are honored to support the woman whose formative years were spent here on the banks of the Battenkill. Susan B. Anthony reminds us of the power of women, the power of the vote, and the importance of taking risks in order to force necessary change in our society. May she continue to inspire our local youth and beyond to create good trouble she is remembered for. ”

“I have passed that schoolhouse thousands of times. It at one time way back bordered my family property,” Jackson Supervisor Jay Skellie said. “Some of my relatives attended it and my grandmother taught there for a short time. To think that events that happened there to Susan B Anthony set her course in life which would change history for women in the U.S. is mind blowing.”

Ann Kril, Co-President of the League of Women Voters of Saratoga County, said, “It is fitting that NYS announces the work to preserve the childhood home of suffragist Susan B. Anthony on this 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which is also the 100th anniversary of the transformation of the National Woman Suffrage Association into the League of Women Voters.”

New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation oversees more than 250 individual parks, historic sites, recreational trails and boat launches, which were visited by a record 77 million people in 2019. A recent university study found that spending by State Parks and its visitors supports $5 billion in output and sales, 54,000 private-sector jobs and more than $2.8 billion in additional state GDP. For more information on any of these recreation areas, call 518-474-0456 or visit parks.ny.gov, connect on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter. The free New York State Parks Explorer mobile app is available for iOS and Android devices. To download, visit: Google Play Store, NY State Parks Explorer App or Apple Store, NY State Parks Explorer App.

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Historic Places, Museums & Exhibits, New York State tourism, Uncategorized

NYC Cultural Organizations Unite to Celebrate Women’s Suffrage Centennial

February 29, 2020 MoralCompass

The exhibition **Women March** at the New-York Historical Society explores the efforts of a wide range of women to expand American democracy in the centuries before and after the suffrage. It is part of **The Women’s Suffrage NYC Centennial Consortium,** a collaboration of cultural organizations citywide with exhibitions and programs that, together, offer a multi-dimensional picture of the history of women’s suffrage and its lasting, ongoing impact © *Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

(New York, NY) One hundred years ago, women earned the right to vote with the ratification of the 19th amendment. To honor their fight and commemorate this moment in history, a collective of New York City cultural organizations has formed the Women’s Suffrage NYC Centennial Consortium.

The Women’s Suffrage NYC Centennial Consortium is a collaboration of cultural organizations citywide that foregrounds exhibitions and programs that, together, offer a multi-dimensional picture of the history of women’s suffrage and its lasting, ongoing impact. The consortium has launched www.WomensSuffrageNYC.org to highlight the activities being presented across New York City throughout 2020.

Founding members are the New-York Historical Society, the Staten Island Museum, the New York Philharmonic, The New York Public Library, Brooklyn Historical Society, the Museum of the City of New York, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, the Brooklyn Museum, Park Avenue Armory, and Snug Harbor Cultural Center and Botanical Garden.

Announced programming includes the exhibition Women March at the New-York Historical Society, which explores the efforts of a wide range of women to expand American democracy in the centuries before and after the suffrage victory (February 28 – August 30); Women of the Nation Arise! Staten Islanders in the Fight for Women’s Right to Vote at the Staten Island Museum, which presents the remarkable stories of local suffragists acting on the grassroots level to create the momentum necessary for regional and national change and the bold tactics they employed to win the vote (March 7 – December 30); the New York Philharmonic’s Project 19—a multi-season initiative to commission and premiere 19 new works by 19 women composers, the largest women-only commissioning initiative in history, which launched earlier this month and continues in the spring (May – June) and beyond; and 100 Years | 100 Women a partnership of Park Avenue Armory with National Black Theatre and nine other cultural institutions in New York City to commission work exploring the complex legacy of the 19th Amendment 100 years after its ratification from 100 artists who identify as women or gender non-binary (showcase of commissions on May 16).

For a full list of exhibitions, events, and programs, visit WomensSuffrageNYC.org.

The consortium is committed to showcasing women’s contributions to the past, present, and future. Though many women were given access to the right to vote 100 years ago, the fight for equality continues. Their goal is to expand the conversation through meaningful cultural experiences that convey that all women should be seen, heard, and counted.

The Women’s Suffrage NYC Centennial Consortium is co-chaired by Janice Monger, president & CEO of the Staten Island Museum, and Valerie Paley, director of the Center for Women’s History and senior vice president and chief historian at the New-York Historical Society, to bring together a group of vital New York City cultural organizations with a shared vision to honor the Women’s Suffrage Centennial.

“We are so proud to bring together this collective of organizations and colleagues who share the vision that women’s stories are important and need to be told. All of these activities represent multi-faceted, nuanced cultural and historical insights into the early 20th century movement and equality in progress today,” said Janice Monger, consortium co-chair and Staten Island Museum president & CEO.

“In an effort that was many decades in the making, a century ago, women came together to fight for and win the right to vote. While that right was not fully and immediately extended to all women, their continued collective action galvanized movements to expand and give substantive meaning to American democracy after the suffrage victory,” said Valerie Paley, consortium co-chair and senior vice president and chief historian at the New-York Historical Society, where she directs the Center for Women’s History. “Through these cultural experiences across New York City, we hope New Yorkers and visitors alike will be inspired by the women who made history and the women who are making history now,” she added.

The Women’s Suffrage NYC Centennial Consortium will continue to grow as new programs and exhibitions are announced during the year.

The Women’s Suffrage NYC Centennial Consortium has been supported by the founding organizations and Humanities New York.

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Historic Places, Historic Preservation, New York State tourism

NYS, Birthplace of Women’s Suffrage, Plans Centennial Events Beginning 2017 Through 2020

March 4, 2017 MoralCompass

“The First Wave” statue by Lloyd Lillie in the lobby of the Women’s Rights National Historical Park, Seneca Falls, NY, represents the first wave of women’s rights activists in the United States, depicted almost life-sized © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

March is Women’s History Month, but Women’s History has a special significance in New York, which considers itself the birthplace of women’s suffrage a century ago. This year, and continuing through 2020, the state’s Women’s Suffrage Commission is planning to offer major events and exhibits across the state.

This year, to commemorate the 100^th anniversary of women’s suffrage in New York, the Women’s Suffrage Commission just launched a website: www.ny.gov/suffrage, providing information about upcoming events across the state, profiles New York suffragists and takes visitors on a tour of New York’s historic destinations relevant to the suffrage movement and women’s rights.

“This month, we celebrate the critical role that New York played in the fight for a woman’s right to vote from the Seneca Falls Convention all the way to the passage of the Women’s Equality Agenda in 2015 because in New York we know that women’s rights are human rights,” Governor Andrew Cuomo said. “I encourage all New Yorkers and visitors alike to visit one of these exhibits and trace the historic timeline that New York’s women pioneered and to learn about the obstacles that they conquered in the fight for equality.”

New York was home to the first-ever Women’s Rights Convention, held in Seneca Falls, on July 19 and 20, 1848 and organized by Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Sixty-nine years later, on Nov. 6, 1917, women in New York State won the right to vote.

The National Women’s Hall of Fame, in Seneca Falls, moved, fittingly, into the 170-year old Seneca Knitting Mill factory, where women became activists over discriminatory wages © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

“New York women have an enduring legacy in the pursuit of equal rights that began nearly 170 years ago in Seneca Falls, and as a result of their advocacy this state passed women’s suffrage three years before the rest of the nation. This year we celebrate the accomplishments of the women who led the fight for equality, setting the stage for future battles against workplace discrimination, in support of pay equity, and to preserve a woman’s right to make decisions about her health care,” said NYS Women’s Suffrage Commission Chair, Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul. “As the state’s highest ranking elected woman, I consider it my mission to inspire the next generation of women to rise up and shape a more just, equitable society.”

As part of New York’s recognition of Women’s History Month this year, a number of exhibits are available for public viewing in both the Empire State Plaza and the New York State Capitol Building. The exhibit “Women’s Suffrage in New York State,” located in the Capitol corridor which connects the state house to the Empire State Plaza, will include imagery of pro- and anti-suffrage propaganda with historic photographs of the women who organized and marched until the vote was won. The exhibition offers a glimpse of this historic struggle and groundbreaking victory for women’s rights.

The exhibit, “New York State Women’s Suffrage 1917 – 2017 | The Fight for the Vote and the March for Full Equality,” is located in the East Gallery on the second floor of the Capitol and traces the almost 70-year struggle for the vote. The exhibit highlights the lives of 12 influential Suffragists and the critical role they played in securing the vote by African Americans and working women. This month-long exhibit features the “Spirit of 1776” wooden suffrage wagon in which a Long Island Suffragist and her eight-year-old daughter traveled throughout Long Island and Manhattan during the summer of 1913 to spread the importance of votes for women, a 1917 banner carried by Suffragists, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s 1854 address to the New York State Legislature.

One of the highlights of the New York State Capitol is the Great Western Staircase, which features a gallery of historic Americans brought to life in elaborate stone carvings. As the staircase was nearing completion, it was observed that not one famous woman was represented. Located in the area just outside the Empire State Plaza Visitor Center and Gift Shop this exhibit will feature photographs of the six carvings of women that were added to the staircase: Harriet Beecher Stowe, Clara Barton, Frances E. Willard, Molly Pitcher, Elmina Spencer, and Susan B. Anthony.

Also on view outside the Visitor Center is the mural Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad, which was created by students from the Monroe Community College Art Department in Rochester. Known for being a “conductor” on the Underground Railroad, Tubman later became a strong supporter of the women’s rights movements.

Throughout the month of March, special one-hour Capitol tours focused on the suffrage movement will be available to visitors. The tours will feature artifacts selected to showcase the suffragists’ journey. For more information about the Capitol tours, visit www.empirestateplaza.org.

In addition, events and celebrations are also planned across New York State to mark the centennial:

In Seneca Falls, Convention Days is an annual three-day event scheduled for July 14-16, 2017, that continues to build on the ideas of the 1848 convention. The Women’s Rights National Historic Park, also in Seneca Falls, still echoes with the memories of the first women’s rights convention in the McClintock Home, the home of convention leader Elizabeth Cady Stanton, where the convention was planned and the Wesleyan Chapel, where the convention met. Convention Days in Seneca Falls is an annual three-day event scheduled for July 14-16, 2017, that continues to build on the ideas of the 1848 convention.

*Wesleyan Chapel, Seneca Falls, NY, where the Women’s Rights convention met in 1848 © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

During VoteTilla Week, scheduled for July 16-22, 2017, participants will travel in canal boats from Seneca Falls to Rochester, concluding with a final celebration at the National Susan B. Anthony Museum & House. Along the way, boats will dock at towns and villages for historic re-enactments, speeches and music, co-hosted by local groups and partner organizations including the Canal Society of New York State, Seward House and the University of Rochester’s Susan B. Anthony Center for Women’s Leadership. Also in Rochester, the Central Library of Rochester, which will be honoring the centennial with an exhibit titled “Because of Women Like Her,” a collaboration between a number of partners that aims to draw visitors into the history and its contemporary implications.

In Fayetteville, near Syracuse and the site of the 1852 National Women’s Rights Convention, visitors can tour the home of suffragette Matilda Joslyn Gage. Gage, along with Anthony and Stanton, was a founding member of the National Woman Suffrage Association. The museum looks at Gage’s work and strives to focus attention on current social justice issues. Shakers were also early proponents of women’s rights and suffrage and the Shaker Museum/Mount Lebanon, in partnership with Bard College at Simon’s Rock, will be presenting a special exhibition, walking tour and public and academic programs this year in honor of the centennial.

Information on these, as well as other important historical sites connected to New York’s leading role in the fight for racial and LGBT equality and justice are available at www.paththroughhistory.com and www.iloveny.com/milestones.

Statewide Centennial of Women’s Suffrage Programs to Begin This Year, Run Through 2020

The 14-member NYS Women’s Suffrage Commission, which Lt. Governor Hochul chairs, is planning and executing a series of statewide programs starting in 2017, which marks the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in New York, and lasting through 2020, a century after the ratification of the 19th Amendment granting all women in the United States the right to vote.

“As someone who benefitted greatly from the suffragists’ efforts, I am proud that OGS is highlighting their accomplishments in these special tours and exhibits,” Commissioner RoAnn Destito said. “I encourage everyone to take the time and learn about New York’s place in history as the birthplace of the women’s rights movement and as one of the first states where women were granted the right to vote.”

“New York was the birthplace of the modern women’s rights movement and we have a responsibility to build on that legacy and continue the progress,” said Senate Democratic Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins. “Our state has been fortunate to have many strong women who worked, sacrificed and fought to build a fairer and more equal society. Women’s History Month is a chance to recommit ourselves to come together to support women and pass pro-women legislation.”

“This year’s centennial of women’s suffrage in New York State is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to celebrate this momentous achievement,” said Senator Betty Little, who sponsored the legislation creating the commission. “I am incredibly honored to serve on the suffrage centennial commission with Lieutenant Governor Hochul and many other accomplished women. Generations of women before us struggled, sacrificed and persevered, assuring our right to vote and creating a chance for us to lead. We must make the most of this important time to educate a younger generation of the historical significance of women’s suffrage and our State’s unique role in women gaining the right to vote nationally.”

“Throughout history, NYS has been a national leader in advancing women’s rights,” said Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo, Chair of the Legislative Women’s Caucus. “As we recognize the 100th anniversary of Women’s Suffrage in the state, it is important to note that 58 women currently serve in the State Legislature, a percentage higher than the national average. The Legislative Women’s Caucus is honored to continue the tradition of promoting issues and concerns of importance to women across the state.”

*Historic nomination of Hillary Rodham Clinton for President by Democratic party, at Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, July 2016 © Karen Rubin/news-photos-features.com*

Indeed, New York State produced the first woman to run as Vice President on a major party ticket (Geraldine Ferraro) and the first woman to run for President on a major party ticket (Hillary Rodham Clinton).

“For over 100 years, New York State has played a pivotal role in the women’s rights movement, and the City of Albany is proud to be the capital of that progress,” said Albany Mayor Kathy M. Sheehan. “As the City of Albany’s first female Mayor, I am proud that our City carries forward that same commitment to equity and equality to this day. Thank you to Governor Cuomo and Lieutenant Governor Hochul for honoring the important role that women have played and continue to play in the history of our great State.”

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Historic Places, Women's History

New Sculpture Commemorates Tennessee’s Role in Ratifying Women’s Right to Vote

August 20, 2016 MoralCompass

*Tennessee Woman Suffrage Monument (Dean Dixon photo; PRNewsFoto/Tennessee Woman Suffrage Monume)*

NASHVILLE, Tenn.– A monument celebrating Tennessee’s pivotal role in securing victory for woman suffrage was unveiled on Women’s Equality Day, Aug. 26, 2016, in Nashville’s Centennial Park.

Tennessee was the last state of the then 48 states that could possibly ratify the 19^th Amendment which granted all American women the right to vote in 1920. Editorial cartoonists called the state “The Perfect 36” since three-quarters of the states were necessary for ratification.

This privately funded $900,000 monument is sculpted by renowned Nashville artist Alan LeQuire, who created the 19^th Amendment bas relief sculpture that hangs inside the Tennessee State Capitol and Athena Parthenos inside The Parthenon at Centennial Park.

A photo hung at The Hermitage Hotel in downtown Nashville immortalizes the fact that the hotel was headquarters for both the Suffragettes and the anti-Suffragette movements lobbying the Tennessee Legislature, which ultimately became the last state needed to ratify the 19th Amendment © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

It features five women who were actually in Nashville during the final ratification effort – Anne Dallas Dudley of Nashville; Frankie Pierce of Nashville; Sue Shelton White of Jackson; Abby Crawford Milton of Chattanooga; and Carrie Chapman Catt, the national suffrage leader who came to Nashville during the summer of 1920 to direct the pro-suffrage forces and stayed at the Hermitage Hotel.

“There is nothing outside the state capitol building that depicts this historic event. By having this monument in Centennial Park, which has a historic connection to the suffrage movement, it will be seen by thousands of visitors,” said Paula F. Casey of Memphis, who is Tennessee Woman Suffrage Monument, Inc., board president.

Casey, who helped publish The Perfect 36: Tennessee Delivers Woman Suffrage(www.theperfect36.com), said the statewide volunteer board has worked for nearly six years to get the monument completed.

“We’ve overcome a lot of obstacles to make this happen. What we had to go through pales in comparison to the struggle the suffragists went through to win the right to vote for us,” she said. “This monument is for the ages. A hundred years from now, people will be reading about these remarkable women. Public art is forever.”

For more information, go to www.tnsuffragemonument.org.

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