Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin
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Josephine St. Pierre
August 31, 1842 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
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| Died | March 13, 1924 (aged 81) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
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| Burial place | Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge, MA |
| Occupation | Publisher, journalist, activist |
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| Children | 5 (including Florida Ruffin Ridley) |
| Parent(s) | John St. Pierre Elizabeth Matilda Menhenick |
Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin was an important African-American leader. She was born on August 31, 1842, and passed away on March 13, 1924. She worked as a publisher and journalist. Josephine was a strong voice for civil rights and women's right to vote. She also edited The Woman's Era, which was the first national newspaper made by and for African-American women.
Contents
Growing Up and School
Josephine Ruffin was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Her father, John St. Pierre, was from Martinique. Her mother, Elizabeth Matilda Menhenick, was from Cornwall, England. Her father was a successful tailor and helped start a church in Boston.
Josephine went to public schools in Charlestown and Salem. She also attended a private school in New York City. Her parents did not want her to go to segregated schools in Boston. After segregation ended in Boston schools, she finished her studies at the Bowdoin School.
When she was 16, Josephine married George Lewis Ruffin in 1858. George became the first African-American graduate from Harvard Law School. He was also the first African American elected to the Boston City Council. Later, he became the first African-American municipal judge. The couple lived in Liverpool for a short time before returning to Boston. They bought a house in the West End area of the city.
Fighting for Change
Josephine and her husband, George, worked hard to end slavery. During the American Civil War, they helped recruit black soldiers for the Union Army. These soldiers joined the 54th and 55th Massachusetts regiments. They also helped the Sanitation Commission, which provided aid to soldiers.
After the war, Josephine focused on helping formerly enslaved people. She worked with the Kansas Freedman's Relief Association. She collected money and clothes for black people who moved to Kansas. These people were known as Exodusters.
Supporting Women's Rights
Josephine Ruffin strongly supported women's suffrage, which is the right for women to vote. In 1869, she helped create the American Woman Suffrage Association (AWSA) in Boston. She worked with famous leaders like Julia Ward Howe and Lucy Stone.
She also became the first black member of the New England Women's Club in the mid-1890s. This club was founded by Julia Ward Howe and Lucy Stone in 1868.
Josephine started The Woman's Era, which was the first newspaper for black women in the country. She also wrote for The Courant, a black weekly paper. She joined the New England Woman's Press Association.
In 1910, Josephine helped start the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). She was one of the first members of this important civil rights organization.
The Woman's Era Newspaper
When her husband George passed away in 1886, Josephine used her money and skills to start The Woman's Era. This newspaper was the first in the country published by and for African-American women. She was the editor and publisher from 1890 to 1897. The newspaper encouraged black women to demand more rights for their race. It also promoted activities where different races worked together.
Women's Clubs
In 1891, Josephine was the first president of the Co-Worker's Club in Boston. This was a well-known charity group.
In 1894, she created the Woman's Era Club. This group worked to support black women. Her daughter, Florida Ruffin Ridley, and a school principal named Maria Louise Baldwin helped her.
In 1895, Josephine organized the National Federation of Afro-American Women. She brought together women from 42 black women's clubs. These clubs came from 14 different states. The next year, this group joined with the Colored Women's League. They formed the National Association of Colored Women's Clubs (NACWC). Mary Church Terrell became the president, and Josephine Ruffin was one of the vice-presidents.
Around the same time, Josephine was also working to include black women in the New England Woman's Club. In 1900, she planned to attend a meeting of the General Federation of Women's Clubs in Milwaukee. She wanted to represent three clubs: the Woman's Era Club, the New England Woman's Club, and the New England Woman's Press Club.
However, some leaders in the General Federation were from the South. When they found out that all members of the Woman's Era Club were black, they would not accept Josephine's credentials. They told her she could represent the two white clubs, but not the black one. Josephine refused to accept this unfair rule. She was then not allowed to join the meeting.
This event became known as "The Ruffin Incident." Newspapers across the country wrote about it, and most supported Josephine. After this, the Woman's Era Club decided that black women should focus on their own clubs.
The New Era Club closed in 1903. But Josephine Ruffin continued to fight for equal rights. She and other women from the New Era Club started the League of Women for Community Service. This organization still exists today.
Personal Life
Josephine and George Ruffin had five children. Their children were Hubert, who became an attorney; Florida Ruffin Ridley, a school principal; Stanley, an inventor; George, a musician; and Robert, who passed away as a baby.
Josephine Ruffin passed away in 1924 from a kidney illness. She was buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Legacy
In 1995, Josephine Ruffin was honored by being added to the National Women's Hall of Fame.
In 1999, six tall marble panels were added to the Massachusetts State House. Each panel has a bronze bust of an important woman. Josephine Ruffin is one of these women. Two quotes from her are carved into her marble panel. The wall behind the panels has wallpaper made of government documents related to the women's causes.
Her home on Charles Street is part of the Boston Women's Heritage Trail.
Images for kids
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In Spanish: Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin for kids
