Anna Howard Shaw was an American physician and a leader of the women’s suffrage movement in the United States. Along with Susan B. Anthony, she was one of the chief leaders of the National American Woman Suffrage Association. Shaw was a multifaceted personality, being one of the first ordained female Methodist ministers in her country. She strongly believed in gender equality and championed for the rights of women. Despite facing opposition from her family, she followed her heart and became a successful preacher and physician. The cause of women’s suffrage became the one closest to her heart, and she dedicated the rest of her life campaigning for this cause.
Quick Facts
- Died At Age: 72
- Family: siblings – Eleanor Shaw, Henry Shaw, James Shaw, John Shaw, Mary Shaw, Thomas Shaw
- Physicians
- Political Activists
- Died on: July 2, 1919
- Place of death: Moylan, Pennsylvania, United States
- City: Newcastle Upon Tyne, England
- Education: Boston University, Albion College, Boston University School of Theology, Boston University School of Medicine
Childhood & Early Life
Elizabeth Cady Stanton was born on 14 February 1847 in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England. When she was four, her family immigrated to the United States and settled in Massachusetts. She had several siblings. However, she had a very difficult childhood. Her father was mostly absent and her mother suffered a nervous breakdown, unable to take care of the children all alone. The illness of a brother added to their miseries. Despite these challenges, she was a responsible and hardworking girl who not only tended to the household chores but also performed physically laborious works like digging wells and chopping firewood.
Career
During the Civil War, her elder brothers enlisted in the army, and it fell upon her to support the family financially. Thus, she became a school teacher at the age of 15. After the Civil War, she decided to pursue higher education and moved to Michigan with her married sister. She attended high school and also took up the job of a seamstress. It was during this time that she realized her interest in preaching, which was inspired by Reverend Marianna Thompson who supported her pursuit of education. When she was 24, Dr. Peck invited her to give her first sermon, which was successful. However, her passion to preach was met with disapproval from her friends and family. Yet she followed her heart and continued to preach.
Her career as a preacher allowed her to save enough money for furthering her education, and she entered Albion College, a Methodist school in Albion, Michigan in 1873 where she studied for two years. In 1876, she went on to study at Boston University’s School of Theology. There she was the only woman in her class and thus often discriminated against. It was a difficult time for her as she was struggling financially to support herself. Yet she persevered and completed her graduation in 1878. Upon her graduation, she took over a congregation in East Dennis, Massachusetts. Again she faced sexism as the New England Conference and the General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church refused to ordain her because she was a woman. Finally, in 1880 she received ordination in the Methodist Protestant Church and became one of the first ordained female Methodist ministers in the United States.
Ever the eager learner, she enrolled at Boston University and received an M.D. in 1886. While studying in the medical school, she became actively involved in the women’s rights movement, advocating for political rights for women. The women’s suffrage movement was gaining momentum during the late 1880s, and she decided to give up her pastoral work to get involved with this cause. She came into contact with the noted feminist and activist Susan B. Anthony and was greatly influenced by her. Both women focused on the cause of women’s suffrage, and she was made the vice president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association in 1892 and the president in 1904, serving in this post till 1915. Under her administration, the number of suffrage workers increased from 17,000 to 200,000, and ten campaigns were being held every year. The whole suffrage movement gained strength and attracted the attention of the entire nation. She also headed the Woman’s Committee of the Council of National Defense during World War I and received the Distinguished Service Medal in 1919 for her wartime service—becoming the first woman to win the coveted medal. She continued lecturing for suffrage after the war.
Personal Life & Legacy
Elizabeth Cady Stanton contracted pneumonia while on a speaking tour in 1919. She died of the disease on 2 July 1919, at the age of 72 in Pennsylvania. The 19th Amendment, which granted women in the US the right to vote, was ratified a few months after her death. However, she knew at the time of her death that the goal she was working towards had almost been reached.