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VOTES FOR WOMEN

Program
National Votes for Women Trail
Subject
Event
Location
89 Liberty Street, Warsaw, NY, USA
Lat/Long
42.7348881, -78.1391567
Grant Recipient
National Collaborative for Women's History Sites
Historic Marker

VOTES FOR WOMEN

Inscription

VOTES FOR WOMEN
WYOMING COUNTY POLITICAL
EQUALITY CLUB EST. 1891.
RALLIED IN SUPPORT OF WOMEN’S
SUFFRAGE HERE AT COUNTY FAIR
BETWEEN 1892 AND 1918.
WILLIAM G. POMEROY FOUNDATION 2022

During September 17th and 18th of 1891 a suffrage convention was held in Warsaw, New York. Located in the western portion of the state, the convention saw the likes of Susan B. Anthony and Anna Howard Shaw attend as lecturers. At that convention there was a call to form a county-wide organization for Wyoming County, which would be dedicated to women’s suffrage.

And following that call, the Wyoming County Political Equality Club (PEC) was formed. The Wyoming County PEC brought together activists from across the region: including the towns of Warsaw, Perry, Castile, Java, Middlebury, and Gainesville. By connecting reformers from these towns, the Wyoming County PEC was able to drastically increase outreach efforts, while establishing themselves as a coordinated community able to advocate at the local and state level.

Along with the Wyoming County PEC’s use of lectures, literature, and marches, a valuable and continued advocacy effort was the organizations tent at the county fair, which was held in Warsaw. Here, the Wyoming County Political Equality Club connected with the local community amidst the gathering of food vendors, games, rides and farming competitions. By using the fair, the Wyoming PEC further established local ties while increasing visibility.

A key figure in the history of the Wyoming County PEC was Ella Hawley Crossett, who established herself as a leader within the women’s suffrage movement both locally and statewide. After forming the Warsaw Political Equality Club, which she would serve as President of until the ratification of the 19th Amendment, she helped establish the Wyoming County PEC—which this marker commemorates—and was then elected Vice-President of the New York State Suffrage Association and, eventually, President of the statewide organization. Along with her work for women’s suffrage, Crossett was involved in a number of social movements, including education reform.

This marker commemorates the efforts of the Wyoming County PEC and Ella Hawley Crossett, and it sits at the location of the fairgrounds where they rallied for women’s suffrage from 1892-1912.