Frances Willard

Frances Willard (1839–1898) was an American educator, temperance reformer, and women's suffragist. Her influence was instrumental in the passage of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution.

Early Life

Frances Elizabeth Caroline Willard was born on September 28, 1839, in Churchville, New York. She was the middle child of Josiah Flint Willard and Mary Thompson Hill Willard. The family moved to Oberlin, Ohio, in 1841 and then to Janesville, Wisconsin, in 1846.

Career

Willard became the president of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) in 1879 and remained in office until her death in 1898. She developed the "Do Everything" policy of the WCTU to promote women's rights and social reform, which led to the adoption of many other causes, including women's suffrage.

Legacy

Willard's legacy is marked by her tireless efforts for women's suffrage and temperance. Her home in Evanston, Illinois, is now the Frances Willard House Museum and Archives, which was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1965.

See Also

• List of suffragists and suffragettes
• List of women's rights activists
• Prohibition in the United States
• Women's suffrage in the United States

External Links

• Frances Willard House Museum and Archives