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Leah Wheeler Freeman (1890–1987) Little seems to be known about Leah's suffragist activities other than that she was involved in the Bristol Women's Club where she was a speaker on the topic of Women's Suffrage. If you know more about her, you can help us tell her story. Please use our Add a Suffragist form to submit your information. Evergreen Cemetery (AKA Baptist Hill Cemetery) ​ 3812 Co Road 2, Bloomfield, NY 14469 Ontario County Learn More

Anna Murray Douglass (1813–1882) Anna Murray was an American abolitionist, member of the Underground Railroad, and the first wife of American social reformer and statesman Frederick Douglass, from 1838 to her death. Anna was a member of the Anti-Slavery Society as well as a regular donor. Like her husband Frederick, she was committed to the emancipation of her people. In Rochester, she was also an agent on the Underground Railroad – where she provided food, clean clothes, and a safe place for fugitive enslaved people to stay on their journeys to freedom in Canada. An early advocate of Women’s Suffrage, Anna Murray's husband Frederick Douglass is often called a Suffragent. His enlightenment was said to be influenced by relationships with some of the movement’s founders. But the example of his wife Anna Murray Douglass must have also been a major and earlier influence. She was among the most fearless and independent women in his life and had been so even before they met. The records of Caroline County, Maryland, held at the state archives show that 17-year-old Anna and three of her siblings requested official "Certificates of Freedom" from the county court on 29 May 1832 attesting to their free status. The certificates enabled them to travel freely in Maryland, because the law required they provide proof that they were free people, or risk being enslaved. It is likely that Anna and her brother and sisters were planning to move to Baltimore, where Anna eventually met Frederick Bailey [Douglass] and helped him escape. A resourceful young woman, she established herself as a laundress and housekeeper and became financially secure. Murray's freedom made Douglass believe in the possibility of his own. When he decided to escape enslavement in 1838, Murray encouraged and helped him by providing Douglass with some sailor's clothing her laundry work gave her access to. She also gave him part of her savings, which she augmented by selling one of her feather beds. After Douglass had made his way to Philadelphia and then New York, Murray followed him, bringing enough goods with her to be able to start a household. Anna's daughter Rosetta reminded those who admired her father that his "was a story made possible by the unswerving loyalty of Anna Murray." Mt. Hope Cemetery Section T, Lot 26 1133 Mt Hope Ave, Rochester, NY 14620 Monroe County Learn More

Addie Waites Hunton (1875–1943) Addie was a leading African-American reformer -- a powerful force in the YWCA/YMCA movement and a founder of the National Association of Colored Women (NACW). As the first African-American employee of the Young Women's Christian Association, a segregated institution at that time, Addie leveraged the power of its national network to support civil rights. Her husband William Alphaeus Hunton was the first African-American employee of the Young Men's Christian Association. They both traveled extensively for their jobs and moved several times. She was a leader in every community in which they settled: first in Richmond, VA, then in Atlanta, and finally in Brooklyn. Addie Hunton was a well-known speaker and writer from 1900 onward, publishing in popular periodicals like Voice of the Negro, Colored American Magazine, and later the NAACP's The Crisis. As a leader in the very white world of the YWCA, she pushed that organization to be more engaged in fighting lynching and discrimination. At the same time, she urged African-Americans to appreciate the power of working with the YWCA/YMCA despite its segregated structure. Her experiences during World War I bitterly informed her activism. After her husband died in 1916, Addie accepted the YMCA's request to go to Europe to support African-American troops. Historian Adrienne Lash-Jones describes her experience: "Upon reaching France for this assignment, she found that she was one of only three Black women permitted to work among two hundred thousand racially segregated Black troops." Work in the war effort exposed Addie to the most blatant racial discrimination that she had ever experienced, as she witnessed the many ways that Black troops had to endure officially sanctioned racial prejudice and segregation while they served in the United States armed forces. Her book, Two Colored Women with the American Expeditionary Forces (1920) co-written with Kathryn M. Johnson, is most revealing of the bitterness and indignation that she felt as a result of the entire experience. Her book also revealed the smoldering anger within the Black community as they fought to participate in the war effort, and their disappointment with the lack of progress that their participation made. Upon returning, Addie joined the women's peace movement. Due to racism in the white-led peace groups, Addie Hunton and Mary Margaret (Mrs. Booker T.) Washington created a new peace group, the International Council of Women of the Darker Races. She traveled the world for that group and for the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, a more deliberately integrated organization. In addition to leading both of those peace groups, Addie remained an active board member - often president or executive committee - of NACW, NAACP, YWCA, and the Empire State Federation of Women's Clubs. Bio by Rachel B. Tiven. Cypress Hills Cemetery ​ 833 Jamaica Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11208 Kings County Learn More

Rachel Schenck Martin (1844—1937) Rachel served as the Vice President of the New York Chapter of Women Suffragists, as established at an 1869 Convention in Saratoga. Evergreen Cemetery Possibly Jackson Lot 296 Martin Road, Fonda, NY 12068 Montgomery County Learn More

Zaida Zoller (1882–1980) Little Falls was regarded as “the hot bed of Herkimer County” for women’s suffrage and Zaida Zoller was central to the activity. Susan B. Anthony and Dr. Anna Howard Shaw were guests at meetings held in the Zoller home. Zaida was chairwoman of the Little Falls Suffrage Club. In 1916, the Herkimer County Suffrage Convention was held in Little Falls. In 1917, Zaida hosted a Suffrage School meeting. Zaida’s twin brother, Abram (Mayor of Little Falls), spoke on the benefits of women’s suffrage. A suffrage library was also established at the local YMCA. In that same year, Zaida invited Dr. Anna Howard Shaw (past-president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) to Little Falls to attend a suffrage party at her home. Zaida organized numerous meetings and parades. After the passage of the 19th amendment, she was president of the Little Falls Chapter of the League of Women Voters. Fairview Cemetery ​ 1274 NY-169 (West Monroe Street), Little Falls, NY 13365 Herkimer County Learn More

Bessye Johnson Banks Bearden (1893–1943) Bessye was a journalist and civic leader known particularly for her work with the Democratic Party. She wrote as a correspondent for the Chicago Defender and was the first black woman elected to the New York City Board of Education, a position she served in for seventeen years. Bessye was tapped to work for the IRS as an auditor while continuing to be an active community leader. She served on the executive boards of the Urban League, Council of Negro Women and the Harlem Community Council and was the first president of the Colored Women's Democratic League. Bessye and her husband, Richard Bearden, opened their Harlem home to artists and intellectuals. The Jazz Cadence of American Culture described Bessye as a political force, someone you came to to cut through red tape and get action. Her son, Romare Bearden, became a famous collage artist. On the community level, Bearden served on numerous boards, including the Citizens Welfare Council, the Harlem Community Council, the NAACP, and the Utopia Neighborhood Club. She received a number of honors for her devoted service, including medals from the Citizens' Welfare Council and Veterans of Foreign Wars. Bessye accomplished a lot in her 52 years. Woodlawn Cemetery ​ 4199 Webster Ave, Bronx, NY 10470 Bronx County Learn More

Maritcha Remond Lyons (1848–1929) Maritcha was an American educator, civic leader, suffragist, and public speaker. In 1892, she founded the Women’s Loyal Union of New York and Brooklyn. one of the first women's rights and racial justice organizations in the United States. The organization helped fund the printing of Ida B. Wells’ anti-lynching pamphlet, "Southern Horrors: Lynch Laws in All Its Phases." In 1897, Victoria Earle Matthews, a journalist for the New York Age, and Maritcha Remond Lyons founded the White Rose Association, a social settlement that provided assistance to southern, black women migrants in Manhattan. She was also a member of the Colored Women's Equal Suffrage League of Brooklyn, an organization dedicated to voting rights for African-American women. Maritcha was a dedicated teacher for 50 years and rose to the position of assistant principal of an integrated public school. She was the second African-American to hold such a position. Cypress Hills Cemetery ​ 833 Jamaica Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11208 USA Kings County Learn More

Grace Edna Lewis Cornwall (1877–1957) Born in Beaver Falls, NY, Grace was the daughter of Julia Slocum and James Polk Lewis, founder of J. P. Lewis Paper Company. She was actively involved in the paper industry for years, inheriting shares of her father’s company. Grace married Harold D. Cornwall in 1911, and devoted her time to several community organizations throughout Lewis County. As an advocate for women’s suffrage, Grace served as the district leader of the Lewis County Woman’s Suffrage League from 1914–1916. During her chairmanship, the number of suffrage clubs throughout the county increased from only two to sixteen. Once she was able to vote, Grace continued her civic involvement by becoming a member of the Lewis County Women’s Republican Club. Riverside Cemetery (AKA Beaver Falls Old Cemetery, Salem Cemetery) ​ 9586 Beaver Falls Road, Beaver Falls, NY 13305 Lewis County Learn More

Reverend Annis Bertha Ford Eastman (1852–1910) Annis was a restless intellect who was under-nourished by the opportunities for women in her day. Despite those limitations, she became a pulpit minister, an active suffragist, and a lifelong student of philosophy, religion, and psychology. Two of her children - Max and Crystal Eastman - became well-known reformers and intellectuals, influenced by their mother’s ideas. Annis and her sisters grew up in Peoria, Illinois in a household with a violent, alcoholic father. All five sisters were determined to make their own living, which Annis did by seeking a college education at Oberlin College (class of 1874). There she met her husband, Samuel Eastman, who was studying for the ministry. They settled in Canandaigua, NY. The early years of their marriage were fraught and difficult, marked by the births of their four children and the death of their oldest son at age seven. In 1886, Samuel Eastman’s health collapsed and he stepped down from his pulpit. This made space for Annis to lead both the church and the family. In 1889 she was ordained a Congregational minister based on her independent study of scripture, one of the first female clergy in the denomination—and the country. She led a church in Brookton, NY (near Ithaca) and became increasingly well known as a preacher. In 1893 she addressed the World’s Parliament of Religions at the Chicago World’s Fair. The following year Annis and her husband were both hired as assistant pastors of Park Church in Elmira. Whether Samuel Eastman was active in the ministry or hired because they would not have hired Annis alone is unclear. When Rev. Thomas K. Beecher died in 1900, the Eastmans were elevated to co-pastors with Annis as the intellectual leader of the church. Her own academic journey included summer study at Harvard with some of the great men of philosophy, and she grew increasingly skeptical of Christian dogma. In 1907 she led the church to change its affiliation from Congregational to Unitarian. The shift indicated her own engagement with the secular world. In her 50’s she became increasingly interested in suffrage and social reform. In 1908 she addressed the 60th anniversary ceremony at Seneca Falls—giving one of two keynotes, alongside Mary Church Terrell, one of the most prominent African-American activists in the country. In 1910 Annis wrote a eulogy for Mark Twain, Elmira’s most famous resident, but was too sick to speak so her husband delivered it on her behalf. She died later that year. Samuel Eastman outlived his wife by 15 years. Their shared headstone reflects the partnership Annis Eastman and her husband eventually developed: ministers and equals. Bio by Rachel B. Tiven. Woodlawn Cemetery Section 5, Lot 207 NP 130 N Pearl Street, Canandaigua, NY 14424 Ontario County Learn More

Gussie Mable (Narcissa) Cox Vanderlip (1880–1966) Gussie was a leading New York suffragist and a co-founder of the New York State League of Women Voters. She was Chairman of the 24 and 25 Congressional Districts of the New York State League of Women Voters in 1918-1919. In 1919, Gussie was elected as State Chairman of the NYS League of Women Voters. She also recruited Eleanor Roosevelt to join the League of Women Voters board of directors, having previously worked with her on wartime relief projects; they were friends. Gussie helped found the Scarborough School, the the first Montessori school in the U.S., with her husband, Frank Arthur Vanderlip. During World War I, Gussie served as Chairman of the War Service Committee of the NYS Woman Suffrage Party. Sleepy Hollow Cemetery Lot 3413, Section 65 Lebanon 540 N Broadway, Sleepy Hollow, NY 10591 Westchester County Learn More

Lillian Huffcut (1890–1920) Lillian was a lead organizer of the Broome County Woman Suffrage Party and also held executive positions in the NYS Women's Suffrage Party and was a director of the League of Women Voters; the latter group formed out of the Votes for Women Club after suffrage was won. Floral Park Cemetery ​ 104 Burbank Avenue, Johnson City, NY 13790 Broome County Learn More

Leila (Lee) Vanderbilt Stott (1880–1969) Leila (Lee) was an active suffragist and educator in New York State, who was also connected to the settlement house and labor movements. She herself never married. Lee was especially active in the final few years of the push for suffrage in NY, chairing the National Woman's Party 3rd district in Albany, NY. She held meetings in Ravena and Voorheesville, NY. In October of 1917, Lee and other New York suffragists journeyed to Washington to hear a special address from President Wilson, who showed his support and passion towards women's suffrage. However, the suffragists who were present sought to push the President to work harder and to push Congress to actually grant women the right to vote. Lee was recognized on the National Roll of Honor of the National League of Women Voters in Washington D.C. as a substantial suffragist throughout the movement. Along with 72 other women, Leila Stott's name was inscribed on a bronze tablet that was placed in the national headquarters of the National League of Women Voters. *courtesy alexanderstreet.com Hudson City Cemetery Sec. B, Lot 48 Cemetery Road, Hudson, NY 12534 Columbia County Learn More

Maria Boughton Crump (1850–1909) Maria and her sister, Christine Boughton Dunning, were founding members of the Pittsford Political Equality Club. Maria’s family is an example of the connections between women’s suffrage and abolition. Maria’s father-in-law and husband were ardent abolitionists who aided runaway slaves. Maria and her husband had nine children. Their son, Dr. Walter Crump, was a Trustee of the Tuskegee Institute, the historically Black college founded by Booker T. Washington. Pittsford Cemetery J 148 38 Washington Road, Pittsford, NY 14534 Monroe County Learn More

Amy Kirby Post (1803–1889) Involved in the suffrage movement from its inception until the end of her life, Amy Kirby Post attended the Seneca Falls Women's Rights Convention in July 1848 where she signed the Declaration of Sentiments. She served on the arrangements committee for the continuation of the convention held in Rochester, NY, in August 1848. Amy was instrumental in nominating a woman to preside over the meeting, which was unheard of at the time. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott were opposed to this "most hazardous experiment;." However, Amy won them over when she "assured them that by the same power by which they had resolved, declared, discussed, and debated, they could also preside at a public meeting." Together with two seamstresses, Amy formed the local chapter of the Working Women's Protection Union which promoted wage increases for women and served as the treasurer. After the Civil War, she joined to the Equal Rights Association and later, the National Woman Suffrage Association. She was one of the women who attempted to vote in the national election along with Susan B. Anthony in 1872 but was turned away. She tried a second time in 1873, without success. Mount Hope Cemetery Range 2, Lot 121 1133 Mount Hope Avenue, Rochester, NY 14620 Monroe County Learn More

Isabel Howland (1859–1942) Isabel was born into a family active in the abolition and suffrage movements. By her early 20s she was corresponding secretary of the Association for the Advancement of Women and active with the New York State Woman Suffrage Association, and communicated with key people including Susan B. Anthony, Carrie Chapman Catt, William Lloyd Garrison, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucy Stone, Booker T. Washington, and Julia Ward Howe. In 1891 Isabel was a founding member of the Sherwood Equal Rights Association, (in what is now known as Aurora, rather than Sherwood NY) a chapter of the national Equal Rights Association. She helped to found the Sherwood Political Equality Club, a woman's suffrage group, which met in her parents' home. She served as treasurer of New York State Woman Suffrage Association’s important conventions, including the 1897 convention in Geneva, NY and the 1895 convention in Newburg, NY where the New York Times reported she was one of the “prominent” suffragists in attendance. In the 1910s Isabel served as an officer of NYSWSA during her Cornell University classmate Harriet May Mills’ tenure as president. Because of its importance, well after her passing, the entire hamlet where her family lived, known as the Sherwood Equal Rights Historic District, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places (in 2008). One of the parcels that has been restored is Opendore, Isabel's former estate. Howland Cemetery ​ 1180-1202 Sherwood Road, Aurora, NY 13026 Cayuga County Learn More

Katherine Lincoln Brougham (1893–1969) Katherine became very involved with the woman suffrage movement and supported the National Woman's Party. On November 10, 1917, she was arrested and, after refusing to pay a fine, sentenced to prison in the Occoquan Workhouse. During this time, she and many others challenged the notion of inequality through participation in hunger strikes. After women won the right to vote, Katherine campaigned for Anne Martin, a candidate for the United States Senate from Nevada. She then seems to disappear from the historical record. Kenisco Cemetery ​ 273 Lakeview Avenue, Valhalla, NY 10595 Westchester County Learn More

Anna May Kelly Boughton Brown (1859–1949) Anna May was active in her Universalist Church as well as the Victor Equal Suffrage Association. Her second husband, Brown, worked for Frank Cobb, owner of Cobb Drug Store, who was an active suffrage participant as well. If you know more about Anna May, you can help us tell her story. Please use our Add a Suffragist form to submit your information. Macedon Village Cemetery Unknown Erie Street Road, Macedon, NY Wayne County Learn More

Elizabeth Chatfield (1843–1917) Elizabeth was a suffragist who served as the private secretary to Susan B. Anthony in the late 1800s. She resided at 18 Front Street in Owego (different from Oswego) until eventually moving to New York City for her work with Anthony. While Susan B. Anthony was touring and promoting “Revolution,” the newspaper on women’s suffrage, she presented her case at the Tioga County Courthouse in 1894 and stayed overnight and was hosted by Elizabeth. Evergreen Cemetery Section 1, Lot 62 Prospect Street, Owego, NY 13827 Tioga County Learn More

Louise Meyer Van Buskirk (1845–1915) On September 6, 1902, the first meeting of the Pittsford Political Equality Club was held at the Main Street home of Louise Meyer Van Buskirk, daughter of German immigrants. The Pittsford Club members felt a strong connection to the national and global movement. The following year the Club again met in the Van Buskirk home on February 13, 1903, “on account of a desire to make the February meeting an anniversary (in so far as we could) of the 83rd birthday of “The Grand Woman” Susan B. Anthony... The day is celebrated by Suffrage Societies throughout the world, on either Saturday or Monday. In large cities and towns they were to do some fine things, raise money, &c. to help the cause so dear to Miss Anthony’s heart, and for which she has toiled through a long life of self-denial...” Cortland Rural Cemetery Section W, Lot 86 110 Tompkins Street, Cortland, NY 13045 Cortland County Learn More

Alberta Hill Smith (1889–1952) Alberta was secretary to the Women's Political Union, which was once known as the Equality League for Self-Supporting Women. It merged with the Congressional Union and later became the National Woman's Party under Alice Paul. Alberta was audacious in her beliefs. She rode on horseback in the Woman Suffrage Parade in Washington, D.C., March 3, 1913. The parade was the brainchild of Alice Paul and marked the first significant public event that re-energized the suffrage movement. Over five thousand women marched in that parade. Alberta is well known because her wedding was headline news. By itself that was not surprising. Both she and her husband were involved in politics. She worked on Woodrow Wilson’s presidential campaign in 1912. Her husband was secretary to the Secretary of the Navy. After the ceremony, the officiating priest asked if she planned to obey. With good humor and a gracious bow she said "no". The New York Tribune headline read, “Alberta Hill, Suffrage Bride, Laughs Refusal to ‘Obey Him.’” Moravian Cemetery ​ 2205 Richmond Road, New Dorp, New York 10306-2557 Richmond County Learn More