West Virginia Equal Suffrage Association facts for kids

The West Virginia Equal Suffrage Association (WVESA) was an important group formed on November 29, 1895. Its main goal was to help women in West Virginia gain the right to vote. This group worked closely with the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA), which was a national organization. The WVESA also teamed up with other state groups like the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, the General Federation of Women's Clubs, and clubs linked to the National Association of Colored Women's Clubs.

Even though they lost a big vote in 1916 to change the state's constitution for women's suffrage, the WVESA kept pushing. Their hard work helped West Virginia become the 34th state to approve the federal amendment for women's voting rights in spring 1920. That fall, women in West Virginia voted for the very first time. After this success, the WVESA changed its name and became the League of Women Voters of West Virginia.

Why Women Wanted to Vote in West Virginia

When West Virginia became a state in 1863, its new constitution did not give women the right to vote. In 1867, a state senator named Samuel Young tried to change this. He suggested a law that would let women vote if they could read, write, and had paid taxes. However, his idea did not get any support.

In 1869, Senator Young tried again. He wrote to a newspaper called The Revolution to share that eight out of 22 senators had voted for his bill. He also mentioned that these senators wanted Anna E. Dickinson, a famous speaker, to talk at the state-house. Despite these early efforts, the idea of women voting did not become popular in West Virginia for many years.

How the WVESA Started

Florence Jessie Grove Manley (1858–1940) was the first president of the WVESA.

The National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) had a special committee for the Southern states. This committee, led by Carrie Chapman Catt and Laura Clay, wanted to convince lawmakers in the South to support women's voting rights. West Virginia was one of the states they focused on.

In 1895, NAWSA sent Annie L. Diggs to West Virginia. She reported that the idea of women voting was too new there to start an organization. But later that fall, NAWSA sent Mary Garrett Hay and Rev. Henrietta G. Moore to the state. They spent two weeks holding meetings and helped form several local clubs.

These efforts led to a statewide meeting called by NAWSA. It took place at the courthouse in Grafton, West Virginia, on November 25-26, 1895. At this meeting, the West Virginia Equal Suffrage Association was officially formed. The first leaders were chosen:

• President: Mrs. Jessie G. Manley
• Vice-president: Mr. Harvey W. Harmer
• Corresponding secretary: Mrs. Annie Caldwell Boyd
• Recording secretary: Mrs. L.M. Fay
• Treasurer: Mrs. K.H. De Woody
• Auditors: Mrs. M. Caswell and Mrs. Louise Harden

After this meeting, Rev. Moore gave a speech in Fairmont, and a suffrage club was started there. In its first month, nine local clubs joined the WVESA. In 1896, President Manley reported that these clubs had many members, showing growing support for women's voting rights.

Yearly Meetings and Progress

After the first meeting in 1895, the WVESA held its second convention in Fairmont in January 1897. Carrie Chapman Catt, a leader from NAWSA, attended and helped support the group. Mrs. Manley stepped down as president, and a new group of leaders was elected. Mrs. Fannie J. Wheat became the new president.

The WVESA continued to hold yearly meetings to plan their work and elect new leaders. These meetings were held in different cities across West Virginia:

• April 1898 in Wheeling
• Fall 1899 in Fairmont (where Beulah Boyd Ritchie became president)
• December 1900 in Fairmont
• August 1904 in Moundsville (M. Anna Hall became president)
• October 1905 in Fairmont (Mrs. Anne M. Southern became president)
• October 1906 in Wheeling (Dr. Harriet B. Jones became president)
• November 1907 in Wheeling (Mrs. May Hornbrook became president)
• October 1908 in Fairmont
• October 1909 in Wheeling
• October 1911 in Fairmont (Mrs. Allie Haymond became president)
• October 1913 in Wheeling (Miss Margaret McKinney became president)
• November 1915 in Huntington (Mrs. J. Gale Ebert, then Mrs. Lenna Lowe Yost in 1916, became president)
• November 1917 in Fairmont (Mrs. John L. Ruhl became president)
• April 1919 in Charleston

Working for the Federal Amendment

In late 1919, WVESA president Mrs. Ruhl chose Lenna Lowe Yost to lead a special committee. This committee's job was to get the federal amendment for women's voting rights approved in West Virginia. Yost and her team gathered signatures from people across the state. They also created an Advisory Board with 150 men and women to help them talk to lawmakers.

Yost's plan was to have activists meet with each lawmaker personally. This happened during a special meeting called by Governor John J. Cornwell in February 1920. This personal approach helped overcome strong opposition. On March 10, 1920, the West Virginia legislature approved the federal amendment, sending it to the Governor for his signature.

Becoming the League of Women Voters

After women gained the right to vote, the WVESA changed its focus. On September 30, 1920, the organization officially became the League of Women Voters of West Virginia. Mrs. Ruhl, who was the last president of the WVESA, was chosen as the first leader of the new group. The League of Women Voters continues to work today to encourage people to vote and to educate them about important issues.

See also

• History of West Virginia
• Lenna Lowe Yost
• National American Woman Suffrage Association