Temperance Movement
Alcohol blamed as cause for societal problems – reformers wanted to end alcohol abuse and problems created by it.
Definition of temperance- drinking alcohol in moderation
American Temperance Society- thousands of members all over US pledged to refrain from alcohol
Neal Dow passed a law in Maine restricting the sale of alcohol.
Women’s Movement
In the 1800s, women’s freedoms and rights were severely limited.
After the 2nd Great Awakening, women took a much greater role in society.
Women’s Limitations
- no property
- no public office
- no voting rights
- usually forbidden to speak in public
- limited education
The reform movements previously discussed in this chapter all had women playing prominent roles.
Industrialization provided women economic opportunities outside the home
Social Independence- networks of friends with other factory workers
Economic Independence- working to make their own wages in the mills
Women’s Labor Unions- went on strike for better pay and working conditions in the 1830s
2 trends of the 1830s led to the Women’s Movement’s true beginnings
1. many urban middle-class women hired poor women for the house giving them more time to think about society
2. women began to see their own social restrictions like slavery
Margaret Fuller- transcendentalist who didn’t believe personal power was needed. She believed rather that one should grown in nature and intellect.
Grimke Sisters- Abolitionists who published ideas on women’s rights by saying God created men and women (and slaves) equally
Lucretia Mott- Active reformer for women’s rights and abolition. Helped to found the American Anti-Slavery Society and the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society
Elizabeth Cady Stanton- Female abolitionist married to Henry Stanton who also fought for women’s rights
Seneca Falls Convention (New York) – 1848
- “Declaration of Sentiments” – Women’s Rights convention publication modeled on Declaration of Independence which marked the beginning of the Women’s movement in America
- Susan B. Anthony – Temperance and Abolition supporter at Seneca Falls who helped gain the right to vote
Married Women’s Property Act- (1848) – New York law which guaranteed many property rights for women.