The Wilmington Equal Suffrage Study Club (WESSC)[1] was the name of an African American women's suffrage organization,[2] founded in Wilmington, Delaware, in March 1914.[3]

History

Historical marker for the Equal Suffrage Study Club along the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal Trail

The Equal Suffrage Study Club was founded in the East Side[4] of Wilmington, Delaware, at the Thomas Garrett House. The club focused on studying suffrage issues at every level, whether local, state, national, or worldwide, especially as relating to women's rights and advancement.[5]

Fannie Hopkins Hamilton served the founding treasurer. The club also included fellow Wilmington activists Susie Estella Palmer Hamilton, Emma Belle Gibson Sykes, Alice M. Dunbar-Nelson, Bessie Spence Dorrell, Mary J. Johnson Woodlen and Blanche Williams Stubbs.[3][6][7][8]

On May 2, 1914, four hundred women demonstrated by marching through Wilmington, Delaware, in the state's first suffrage parade.[1][9] The Equal Suffrage Study Club led the segregated section in the rear of the parade.[10][11] On June 7, 1914, the club held "the first of a series of public meetings in Bethel A.M.E. Church," and hosted a talk by Maryland senator Washburn focusing on the significance of the suffrage movement for African American women.[5]

The club was one of Delaware's most active group of suffragists,[12] with members speaking in public, lobbying, and marching.[1]

Legacy

On August 19, 2020, the Delaware House of Representatives passed a resolution celebrating the centennial of the passing of the 19th Amendment, noting that "a woman’s right to vote would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of Delaware women from the National Women’s Party Suffragists, the Wilmington Equal Suffrage Study Club Suffragists, and the Delaware Equal Suffrage Association Suffragists."[13]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Delaware and the 19th Amendment (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  2. ↑ "3 – Delaware's Suffrage Organizations – Votes for Delaware Women". Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  3. 1 2 "Biographical Sketch of Susie Estella Palmer Hamilton, 1862-1942 | Alexander Street, a ProQuest Company". search.alexanderstreet.com. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  4. ↑ "Women Who Paved the Way – Old Swedes Historic Site". Retrieved 2021-04-08.
  5. 1 2 Humanities, National Endowment for the (1914-06-06). "Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, June 06, 1914, Image 3". Evening Journal. p. 3. ISSN 2641-6123. Retrieved 2021-04-11.
  6. ↑ "Where Women Made History". contest.savingplaces.org. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
  7. ↑ "For the Record, Oct. 12, 2018 | UDaily". www.udel.edu. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
  8. ↑ Boylan, Anne M. (Summer 2019). "Delaware Women's Suffrage Timeline" (PDF).
  9. ↑ Marks, Carole C. (1996). A history of African Americans of Delaware and Maryland's Eastern Shore. Christian Council of Delaware and Maryland's Eastern Shore, Delaware Heritage Commission (Second ed.). Wilmington, Del.: Delaware Heritage Commission. ISBN 0-924117-12-5. OCLC 40960961.
  10. ↑ The Sunday Morning Star - Google News Archive Search. "Suffrage Parade Striking Success". news.google.com. Retrieved 2021-05-07. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  11. ↑ ""Suffrage Parade Striking Success." The Sunday Morning Star - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  12. ↑ "Commemorating the Nineteenth: The Nineteenth Amendment and the National Park Service". past@present. 2019-11-08. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
  13. ↑ "Legislation Document". legis.delaware.gov. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
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