Basic Information

Carrie Chapman Catt was born Carrie Lane on January 9, 1859 in Ripon, Wisconsin (Howe, 2001; Schlessinger, 2003). She became involved in women’s suffrage in 1887 and by 1890 began speaking for the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA). Catt later replaced Susan B. Anthony as NAWSA’s president in 1900. Her work in the movement eventually led to the ratification of the 19th amendment.

Background Information

Carrie Lane was born to Maria Clinton and Lucius Lane on January 9, 1859 in Ripon, Wisconsin (Cox, 2016). The Lanes were a white, middle class family. When Lane was 7 years old, the family moved to Iowa as the Civil War ended (Carrie Chapman Catt, 2019). Lane was the first woman orator at a debate society in college. This skill would prove useful for her work in the suffrage movement. She also worked many jobs including teaching and washing dishes to fund her schooling.

Carrie Lane married her first husband, Leo Chapman, in 1885. He died the following year due to typhoid fever in San Francisco (Carrie Chapman Catt, 2019b). Carrie Chapman stayed in the city and became a newspaper reporter until 1887. It was during this time that she learned of the inequality women encounter in the workplace that inspired her to work for the suffrage movement (Schlessinger, 2003). In 1887, she moved back to Iowa and became a lecturer and writer for the Iowa Woman Suffrage Association (Carrie Chapman Catt, 2019b). She served as the organization’s writer from 1890-1892.

Carrie Chapman remarried in 1890 to George Catt, a fellow she met back in college and again in San Francisco. Catt encouraged her to continue the suffrage work, and supported her as he believed it was her role to “reform society” (Carrie Chapman Catt,n.d.-c). They had no children. Soon after, she started working for NAWSA. 

Contributions to the First Wave

Carrie Chapman Catt became involved in women’s suffrage when she returned to Iowa after her first husband’s death in 1887 (Carrie Chapman Catt,n.d.-b). For a few years, she helped organize the Iowa Woman Suffrage Association (Editors, 2019). As a member, she was the lecturer and secretary of the association. Her writing and oratory skills were exceptional, and became instrumental in the suffrage movement. In 1890, she spoke at a convention in Washington D.C. on behalf of the National American Women Suffrage Association (NAWSA). By 1895, she became the lead field organizer for the association (Carrie Chapman Catt, n.d.-c). Shortly after, she succeeded Susan B. Anthony as NAWSA’s president in 1900.

As NAWSA’s president, she actively arranged meetings, recruited women and organized campaigns (Carrie Chapman Catt, n.d,-b). While president, she also helped establish the International Women Suffrage Alliance (IWSA) in 1902 (Carrie Chapman Catt,n.d.-c). The organization was formed after the D.C. convention where delegates from other countries also participated. The women believed they needed a new organization that connected them globally. Its main goal was to declare that it was for pro-suffrage, unlike the International Council of Women who could not express said goal explicitly (International Alliance of Women Records). Instead, the International Council of Women simply campaigned for the advancement of women and arranged various meetings (International Council of Women Records). Therefore, Catt established the International Women Suffrage Alliance in order to exclusively and explicitly campaign for women’s suffrage. By 1913, the IWSA’s goal expanded into other issues such as employment, equal pay, and abolition to name a few.

Catt’s stint as NAWSA’s president ended temporarily in 1904 to take care of her sick husband (Carrie Chapman Catt,n.d.-b). After the successive deaths of her husband, brother, and mother, she was encouraged to travel (Cox, 2016). As a result, she traveled worldwide as IWSA’s president for nine years (Carrie Chapman Catt,n.d.-b). Catt primarily promoted equal suffrage rights across the world as IWSA’s president. She served the organization until 1923, and became an honorary president until her death at 1947 (Carrie Chapman Catt n.d.-c).

In 1915, she returned to the U.S. to find NAWSA divided due to Anna Howard Shaw’s presidency. NAWSA was decentralized because Shaw “had given scant attention to the federal amendment” (Fowler, 1988, p. 296). Shaw also had several advisers for the South that were against women’s suffrage. As a result, Catt returned as president and proposed the “Winning Plan” in 1916 and launched a campaign to reinvigorate the movement in states that did not have suffrage and refocus on getting an amendment passed at the federal level (Wheeler,1995, p. 17; Fischer, 1996).

As part of The Plan, Catt encouraged states in which suffrage would be rejected to at least get partial suffrage. While she advised women in states where women could vote to reach out to their representatives and persuade them to vote for a suffrage amendment at the federal level (Wheeler, 1995). The Plan, although secret to create momentum within states, allowed Catt to delegate certain jobs to each state (Fowler, 1988, p. 297). These include advising states to gain presidential suffrage, preparing a new campaign or asking legislators to send the amendment for a vote by the states. In other words, The Plan mobilized women to pass the federal suffrage amendment.

While women from various states worked with their representatives or to obtain partial suffrage, Carrie Chapman Catt, along with other leading suffragists, worked with the federal government (Wheeler, 1995, p.17). They lobbied in Congress and were dubbed the “Front Door Lobby” by the press. The women worked to convince congressmen to support the vote through speeches and arguments (Wheeler, 1995). Due to Catt’s determination, President Woodrow Wilson was finally convinced to support women’s suffrage and subsequently made Congress vote on the amendment in 1918 (Wheeler, 1995, p.18). Then in August of 1920, the 19th Amendment was ratified and gave women the right to vote.

“The vote is the emblem of your equality, women of America, the guarantee of your liberty.”

~ Carrie Chapman Catt (Lewis, 2019)

Analysis and Conclusion

As a white woman who was college educated and had exceptional oratory and leadership skills, Catt found her way into groups easily. She also had good organizational skills that helped her lead various organizations within the women’s rights movement. Further, her husband, George Catt’s financial stability also allowed her to focus on the movement. Besides her skills, she also employed several strategies to gain suffrage.

Carrie Chapman Catt’s strategies for advocating for women’s rights included racist remarks and supporting white supremacy (Scarbrough, 2015, p. 4). During the NAWSA Convention of 1901, Catt spoke about the reasons why women were struggling to get the vote. She believed that some of these include other groups such as the Natives and Blacks, that were given suffrage but did not deserve it (Davis, 1983, p.122). Catt also promoted women’s rights by “criticizing corruption and promoting nativism” (Scarbrough, 2015, p. 4). In other words, NAWSA used racism and white supremacy to promote suffrage. Doing so helped the women focus on a single issue.

Although she had some disagreements with some leaders such as Alice Paul and Anna Howard Shaw, she used her organizational skills and new strategies to get the Movement back on track. Her decision to reorganize NAWSA and introduce the Plan not only made women active in the movement, but also led to the passage and ratification of the 19th amendment. Ultimately, her determination and persistence helped women gain suffrage.

References

Carrie Chapman Catt. (n.d.-a). [Photograph] Library of Congress, Retrieved from https://www.loc.gov/item/rbcmiller002725/.

Carrie Chapman Catt. (n.d.-b). Articles and Essays: National American Woman Suffrage Association Collection: Digital Collections: Library of Congress. (n.d.-a). Retrieved October 13, 2019, from https://www.loc.gov/collections/national-american-woman-suffrage-association/articles-and-essays/carrie-chapman-catt/

Carrie Chapman Catt. (n.d.-c). Iowa State University: Center of Women’s Political Communication. Retrieved from https://awpc.cattcenter.iastate.edu/directory/carrie-chapman-catt/

Cox, J. (2016). A Biography. Carrie Lane Chapman Catt Girlhood Home.Retrieved from http://www.catt.org/biography.html 

Davis, A. Y. (1983). Women, Race, and Class. [Google books version]. Retrieved from https://books.google.com/booksid=74QzFiv1w10C&dq=carriechapman+catt+inertia+in+the+growth&q=carrie+chapman+catt#v=nippet&q=carrie%20chapman%20catt&f=false

Editors of Enclyclopaedia Britannica. (2019, October 16), Carrie Chapman Catt. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Carrie-Chapman-Catt. 

Fischer, A. (1996). Winning the vote for women. Library of Congress. Retrieved from  http://www.loc.gov/loc/lcib/9607/suffrage.html 

Fowler, R.B. (1988). Carrie Chapman Catt, Strategist. In M.S. Wheeler (Ed.), One woman, one vote: Rediscovering the woman suffrage movement. (pp. 295-312). Troutdale, OR: NewSage Press.

Howe, B. (1990). Reviews of Books: Carrie Chapman Catt. The American Historical Review, 95(1), 283.

International Alliance of Women Records. (n.d.) Retrieved from https://findingaids.smith.edu/repositories/2/resources/721

International Council of Women Records.(n.d.) Retrieved from https://findingaids.smith.edu/repositories/2/resources/1039

Lewis, J.J. (2019, February 4). Carrie Chapman Catt Quotes. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/carrie-chapman-catt-quotes-3530051

Scarbrough, E. (2015). “Fine Dignity, Picturesque Beauty, and Serious Purpose:” The reorientation of suffrage media in the twentieth century. Retrieved from http://scalar.usc.edu/works/suffrage-on-display/a-new-nawsa

Schelssinger, B. (2003). Carrie Chapman Catt papers. Retrieved from https://findingaids.smith.edu/repositories/2/resources/483.

Wheeler, M. S. (1995). One woman, one vote: Rediscovering the woman suffrage movement. Troutdale, OR: NewSage Press.