Margaret Brent stands out in the beginning of American history for her daring and self-determination. She never married but that did not keep stop her from flourishing in a world ruled by men. Instead, she became a successful businesswoman, trading land and servants, and earned the respect of Governor Leonard Calvert, who entrusted her with managing his estate upon his death. (Witkowski) While these achievements were both unusual and significant, Margaret is best known for being the first woman in America to request the right to vote.
According to Lois Green Carrborn, the leading social and economic historian of the Colonial Chesapeake, Margaret was born sometime around 1601 and ended up being one of the thirteen catholic children born in Gloucester, England to Richard and Elizabeth Brent. Not much is known of her life until she migrated to Maryland in 1638, so they could practice their religion without penalty, with her brother Giles and her sister.(Witkowski) It takes a tough women to uproot her life on the chance that she might have a better one free of persecution. As a relation to Count Baltimore, lord proprietor of colonial Maryland, they were granted the same generous amount of land as the original Maryland settlers.(White) Margaret soon became good at business, profiting from lending money to new immigrants, importing and selling servants and representing herself in court to collect debts . The only way a women during this time could own and manage land was if she was not married. Margret is know because she did not marry allowing her to be an independent women.
However what makes Margaret stand out the most is that she was the first women to request the right to vote in the Maryland Assembly. When civil war broke out...
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... internationally recognized as the leading social and economic historian of the Colonial Chesapeake. She has made an indelible contribution to the State of Maryland in her professional and personal calling as Maryland’s preeminent Chesapeake historian.
WHITE, PAMELA J. "Margaret Brent--Maryland's First Female Lawyer." University Of Maryland Law Journal Of Race, Religion, Gender & Class 7.1 (2007): 11-13. Academic Search Complete. Web. 30 Apr. 2014.
Pamela J. White is an associate judge on the Eighth Circuit Court for Baltimore City in Maryland. She has served as a judge on the court since February 8, 2007 and her current term expires in 2023.
Witkowski, Monica C. "Margaret Brent (ca. 1601- 1671)." Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, 29 Jan. 2013. Web. 30 Apr. 201
Monica C. Witkowski is an independent scholar from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Mary Eugenia Surratt, née Jenkins, was born to Samuel Isaac Jenkins and his wife near Waterloo, Maryland. After her father died when she was young, her mother and older siblings kept the family and the farm together. After attending a Catholic girls’ school for a few years, she met and married John Surratt at age fifteen. They had three children: Isaac, John, and Anna. After a fire at their first farm, John Surratt Sr. began jumping from occupation to occupation. Surratt worked briefly in Virginia as a railroad contractor before he was able to purchase land in Maryland and eventually establish a store and tavern that became known as Surrattsville. However, the family’s fina...
Margaret Cochran Corbin (1751-c.1800) fought alongside her husband in the American Revolutionary War and was the first woman to receive pension from the United States government as a disabled soldier. She was born Nov. 12, 1751 near Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.A., orphaned at the age of five and was raised by relatives. When she was twenty-one she married John Corbin. John joined the Continental Army when the American Revolution started four years later and Margaret accompanied her husband. Wives of the soldiers often cooked for the men, washed their laundry and nursed wounded soldiers. They also watched the men do their drills and, no doubt, learned those drills, too.
Margaret (Peggy) O’Neal (who preffered to be called Margaret) was born in 1799 in Washington DC. She was the daughter of William O’Neal, who owned a thriving boarding house and tavern called the Franklin House in that same town. It was frequented by senators, congressmen, and all politicians. She was the oldest of six children, growing up in the midst of our nation’s emerging political scene. She was always a favorite of the visitors to the Franklin House. She was sent to one of the best schools in Washington DC, where she studied English and French grammar, needlework and music. She also had quite a talent for dance, and was sent to private lessons, becoming a very good dancer. At the age of twelve, she danced for the First Lady Dolley Madison. Visitors of the Franklin House also commented on her piano playing skills.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, born in 1815, was known for her dedicated role as a women’s rights activist. At the peak of her career, she teamed up with Susan B. Anthony and formed the National Woman Suffrage Association (NWSA) and also eventually brought about the passage of the 19th amendment, giving all American citizens the right to vote. But before all that, Stanton started out as an abolitionist, spending her time focused on abolishing slavery but then later becoming more interested in women’s suffrage. One of her most famous moments was
A key figure in both the women’s rights and abolition movements, she brought them from lectures to full organizations. Stone died before women earned the right to vote, nevertheless, she was still a major influence. Nowadays, women have much more rights because of efforts put in by many reformers, including Lucy
Martha Dandridge was born on June 2, 1731, to Frances Jones Dandridge and Colonel John Dandridge. She was the eldest of seven brothers and sisters to come. Martha was born in New Kent County, Virginia on the Chestnut Grove plantation. She grew up among other plantation families of the Tidewater region of eastern Virginia. Martha did not receive any formal education; however, she did receive the traditional education for young women of her time. This included domestic skills and the arts rather than science and math. The skills that she learned were the skills needed to run a household. Unlike other young women in her time, Martha did learn how to read and write as a child. She had several hobbies too; such as: horseback riding, sewing, and dancing.
Susan B. Anthony believed that women should have the same rights as men. She fought for this right in many different ways, but she is most famous for showing civil disobedience by voting illegally. Unfortunately, Anthony fought all her life for women’s rights, but her dreams were not fulfilled until 14 years after she died (“Susan” Bio).
More than three hundred citizens came to take part in one of the most important documents written in women’s history during the Women’s Right’s Convention in upstate Seneca, New York, led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott on July 19-20, 1848 (Ryder). Stanton became persistent when she included a resolution supporting voting rights for women in the document, intimidated by this notion her loyal husband threatened to boycott the convention. “Even Lucretia Mott warned her, ‘Why Lizzie, thee will make us ridiculous!’ ‘Lizzie,’ however, refused to yield” (Rynder). As Mott dreaded, out of eleven resolutions the most argumentative was the ninth–women’s suffrage resolution. The other 10 resolutions passed consistently. “According to Cady Stanton’s account, most who opposed this resolution did so because they believed it would compromise the others. She, however, remained adamant” (Rynder). When the two-day convention was over, one hundred men and women signed the historical the Seneca Falls Declaration of Sentiments to...
Up until and during the mid -1800’s, women were stereotyped and not given the same rights that men had. Women were not allowed to vote, speak publically, stand for office and had no influence in public affairs. They received poorer education than men did and there was not one church, except for the Quakers, that allowed women to have a say in church affairs. Women also did not have any legal rights and were not permitted to own property. Overall, people believed that a woman only belonged in the home and that the only rule she may ever obtain was over her children. However, during the pre- Civil war era, woman began to stand up for what they believed in and to change the way that people viewed society (Lerner, 1971). Two of the most famous pioneers in the women’s rights movement, as well as abolition, were two sisters from South Carolina: Sarah and Angelina Grimké.
As a social studies girl, I knew most famous women in history. But without a doubt, I would choose Susan B. Anthony. She was a social reformer who played a significant role in women’s suffrage movement. As a feminist, she went against women stereotypes. During the 1800s, women were recognized as a social inferior group. Their jobs were categorized as a phrase- Republican Motherhood. This phrase means that as a woman, our job is to take care about domestic issues and we cannot take over men’ jobs. As a young woman, I had experienced gender stereotype in China. I believe that I state it in my personal statement. If I had a chance to talk to her, I would love to ask about her role as a political figure. What did she experienced that made her a
...n to women’s suffrage and guaranteeing rights to women, resulting in the 19th amendment to the Constitution and gender equality. Her involvement within the feminism movement contributed to the achievement of women’s equality. Today, in the 21st century, women are given the same political and social representation than that of men, something deemed impossible in Cady Stanton’s time. With Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s ordinary destiny, she transformed her own time and the future for the female party into an extraordinary chance to make a difference and stand for equality. Because of her work, and the work of many others in Women’s History, female suffrage has remained a norm of the past and society has pushed forward into new levels of acceptance. Finally, women withhold the place in society today with confidence that gender equality will continue and opportunity embrace.
Pioneers of the women’s rights movement provided the present freedoms the United States offers today such as voting in federal elections, owning property, containing custody of their children, and holding public office. Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Carrie Chapman Catt were one of the first crusaders of the movement, who sacrificed their own time and happiness to pursue the respect women deserved. The suffragists inspires thousands of individuals to lead the country that offers independence and justice for all men and
Upon her arrival to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1634, Anne Hutchinson was a much respected member of her community. As time went on, her dealings with the religion began to be...
Susan B. Anthony is the most well known name in women's rights from the 1800s. Most people who are not familiar with the history of this time are aware of Susan's reputation and nearly everyone of my generation has seen and held a Susan B. Anthony silver dollar. For these reasons I was greatly surprised to learn that Elizabeth Cady Stanton was the original women's rights movement spokeswoman and Susan B. Anthony her protégé.
In the history of women’s rights, and their leaders, few can compare with the determination and success of Lucy Stone. While many remember Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony for being the most active fighters for women’s rights, perhaps Stone is even more important. The major goal for women in this time period was gaining women’s suffrage. That is what many remember or associate with the convention at Seneca Falls.