Born Matilda Joslyn on March 24, 1826, in Cicero, New York. Her parents were, Hezekiah Joslyn, a doctor and a nationally renowned abolitionist and his wife, Helen Leslie. The family home was a safehouse on the Underground Railroad. She was raised in a household that vehemently advocated for the eradication of slavery, which had a profound impact on Matilda's life. Through her homeschooling, Matilda became fluent in Greek and knowledgeable in physiology and mathematics. After homeschooling, Matilda enrolled at the Clinton Liberal Institute, in New York.
She married Henry Gage and moved to Fayetteville, where they raised 5 children; 2 sons, Charles Henry & Thomas Clarkson and 3 daughters, Helen Leslie, Julia Louise & Maud. In 1852, at the age of 26, Matilda began her lifelong mission as a women's rights activist at the National Women's Convention in Syracuse, New York: the first convention was held in Seneca Falls only 4 years earlier. She gave a speech that focused on how slavery and women's limited rights were two sides of the same issue. Matilda was actually arrested at one point, because of her advocacy for the abolition of slavery and the aid she provided to fleeing slaves. She wasn't just concerned about exploitation of white women but throughout her life she advocated for the rights of African slaves, Native Americans and other marginalized groups.
Throughout the majority of her career and adult life, she worked closely with her good friends and fellow suffragettes, Susan B. Anthony & Elizabeth Cady Stanton. In 1869, Matilda became a member of the advisory council of the National Women's Suffrage Association (NWSA). She was president of the NWSA for a year in 1875-76.
Susan was arrested in 1872 for voting in the presidential election, but Matilda remained by her side. Advocating for her friend and writing an analysis of the case for the Albany Law Journal. Matilda also helped organize the New York and Virginia state suffrage associations, continuing on as an employee of the New York branch for 20 years. From her New York home, she published the National Citizen & Ballot Box, the NWSA's official newspaper, from 1878-81. Matilda's also worked as a correspondent for newspapers all over the US, from New York to California, writing primarily about women's rights and activities. Along with Elizabeth, Matilda co-authored the NWSA's major documents.
In 1880, under Matilda's leadership, the New York Women's Suffrage Association temporarily won the right for women to vote in school board elections. After holding a series of organizational meetings at her home, she headed a group of more than 100 women to the polls. During the election, an all-women board of officials was appointed. In 1893, Matilda attempted to petition for women, in a case challenging the state's law that gave women the vote in school elections.
In 1890, Matilda established the Women's National Liberal Union (WNLU), as she was concerned about the expanding religious movement to join church and state. This stance, caused a rift between Matilda and Susan and Elizabeth, who supported the union of the church and the state. Some of the WNLU's goals were reforms to improve prison conditions and creating labor unions. She published her only solo book, Woman, Church & State, in 1893. Matilda also edited the WNLU's newspaper
Along with Susan and Elizabeth, Matilda co-edited the first three volumes of the 6 volume, The History of Women Suffrage. Most of the work was done out of Matilda's home in Fayetteville. Matilda, Susan and Elizabeth gained such a reputation for their work one newspaper even predicted that the trio would, "ever hold a grateful place in the hearts of posterity".
Elizabeth once said of Matilda, "She always had a knack of rummaging through old libraries, bringing more startling facts to light than any woman I ever knew". Matilda noted and compiled many women's accomplishments, that had been forgotten or often misattributed. Including, Catherine Littlefield Greene's invention of cotton gin, which had been credited to Eli Whitney and Anna Ella Carroll's detailed outline for the Tennessee Campaign during the Civil War, wrongly credited to General Ulysses S. Grant. She also wrote many essays about a wide array of topics including how many Native Americans had more equal political leadership processes.
Matilda Joslyn Gage died on March 18, 1898, aged 71. Her gravestone at the Fayetteville cemetery is inscribed with one of her quotes, "There is one word sweeter mother, home or heaven; that word is liberty". Matilda was inducted into the Women's Hall of Fame, in 1995.
https://suffragistmemorial.org/matilda-joslyn-gage-march-24-1826-march-18-1898/
https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/matilda-joslyn-gage-6654.php
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We Won't Stay Silent
Non-Fiction"We need women who are so strong they can be gentle, so educated they can be humble, so fierce they can be compassionate, so passionate they can be rational and so disciplined they can be free" ...
