Edith turned it over to the National Trust in 1961 on her death. It has been lovingly cared for. We welcome you tonight. I wanted to tell you about how we started this speaker series. Manager said to me this summer when i first started the job there is a commission on the suffrage and i think we should go to that meeting. It is the womens Suffrage Centennial commission. I said ok. I will go with you. We went down to the library of congress and we sat at a big table. They were about 20 women in the root. A big square table. There were another 20 women on the telephone. Everyone goes around introducing themselves. They are from the alice paul house, this commission and that commission. From the National Portrait gallery. All these places. It comes around to us and introduce myself. Im from the Woodrow Wilson house. Suck and a collectives sigh, and maybe one or two cases of whiplash. There was no oxygen left in the room. They turned to look to us to say, do you know where you are . What a
Railroad conductor, and union army scout during the civil war. Next, karen hill of the Harriet Tubman house talks about Harriet Tubmans lesserknown role as an activist in the Womens Suffrage Movement. The president Woodrow Wilson house hosts this conversation as part of a series commemorating the 100th anniversary of women gaining the right to vote. Elizabeth welcome, good evening. My name is elizabeth carter, and i am the executive director at the Woodrow Wilson house. It is truly my pleasure to welcome you to the first of a series of speaking events that we are going to have on a suffrage series. The wilson house, if you have not been here before, is part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Wilson and his wife edith lived in this house. They turned edith turned it over to the National Trust in 1961 on her death. And it has been lovingly cared for. And so we welcome you tonight. I wanted to tell you a little bit about how we started this speaker series. Our senior manager
From inside the democracy exhibit at the smith Smith National museum of American History, were joined by anthea hartig, the director of the museum. Explain that wagon behind you and how it ties into the story of womens suffrage and democracy in america. Good morning, and welcome to the year of the woman, which you could argue every year should be. This year is incredibly special for all of us in america and especially here at the smithsonian. We are banded together in celebrating the american womens History Initiative throughout the smithsonian museums, online, and through all of our activities this year. And here at the American History museum were particularly grateful to have three exhibitions opening, spurring really from this one. This is democracy in america, the great leap of faith that opened a few years ago. I am in the gallery that takes us through the long and arduous and continuing effort to expand democracy to enfranchise more and more americans. As you might know, early o
Of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Wilson and his wife edith lived in this house. They turned edith turned it over to the National Trust in 1961 on her death. And it has been lovingly cared for. And so we welcome you tonight. I wanted to tell you a little bit about how we started this suffrage speaker series. Our senior manager of collections and interpretation said to me this summer when i first started the job there is a commission on the suffrage, and i think we should go to that meeting. It is the womens Suffrage Centennial commission. And i said ok. I am going to go with you. We went down to the library of congress, and we sat at a big table. And they were about 20 women in the room, a big square table. There were another 20 women on the telephone. And everyone goes around and they are introducing themselves. And they are from the alice paul house, this commission and that commission. And, you know, from the National Portrait gallery. All these places. It comes aroun
To the civil war when the nation was very clearly divided into two political camps. We live in a politically divided time, although i dont want to imply we are headed for civil war. I dont know what we are headed toward, but there is resonance in the way we have red and blue states today. There were northern and Southern States than that were fundamentally divided over this giant issue of slavery. There are other things. The 1840s and 1850s was a time of enormous technological change. Within a few years of the invention of the telegraph, cities east of the mississippi were connected and there was National Conversation which becomes part of the story i tell. It turns out these communication devices that were designed to bring people closest together drove them farther apart. They were horrified by what people on the other side were saying. There is that, there is also just the fact that it is a story of america. It takes place in the same cities we know today. Sometimes even in the same