Women in the 1800s had one simple goal- they wanted to be seen as equal with men, including having the right to vote. By the 1820-30s, most states had given all men the right to vote despite how much money or property they owned (history.com). Women wanted this same right, which they saw as a "natural right". Until this point, women were seen as confined to the private sphere in the Cult of Domesticity, and were supposed to stay far away from the public sphere (which included government) because it was corrupt, and they needed to stay moral to educate their children (Brinkley). The whole conception of the role of women in society started to change because of the women and other members of the social reform groups that started to form advocating for gender equality (a democratic ideal) in the right to vote (history.com).
first leaders of the Reform
Lucretia Mott: co-leader of the Seneca Falls Convention (Boundless) Elizabeth Cady Stanton: co-leader of the Seneca Falls Convention; women's suffrage and abolitionist activist (Women who fought...)
Margaret Fuller: wrote The Great Lawsuit; Man vs. Woman (Boundless)
Lucy Stone: organized the National Women's Rights Convention (Women who fought...)
Seneca Falls convention
In July 1848, in Seneca Falls, NY, there was a meeting led by Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton and consisting of abolitionist men, including famous abolitionist Stephen Douglas, and women to discuss the issue of women's rights (Boundless.com). Previously, Stanton had not been allowed to speak to at the World Anti-Slavery Convention in London because she was a woman, so she decided to call this meeting so the issue could be discussed (Women who fought...). After 2 days of discussion with about 300 attendees, 68 women and 32 men (for a total of 100 delegates) created and signed a Declaration of Sentiments. This declaration was modeled after the constitution, and said, "that all men and women are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life. liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" (World History in Context). The convention did not have an immediate impact because it was rejected by government officials and other members of society, but was a foundation for women's rights discussions in the future (World History in Context).
Failures
Women's suffrage in the 1800s "failed" in that it did not have the immediate results that the women in that time had hoped for. The 19th amendment, which gave women the right to vote, was not included in the Bill of Rights until 1920.
National women's rights convention
On October 23, 1850, the National Women's Rights Convention was held in Brinley Hall, in Worcester, MA (Mass Moments). Over 1,000 people came to listen to women such as Cady Stanton, Lucy Stone, and Susan B. Anthony (who would later establish the Women's New York State Temperance Society) (Mass Moments). Stone addressed biblical passages that seemed to promote women's inferiority, out of context (Mass Moments). She also spoke about the important role of the country's founding "mothers" (Mass Moments). Lastly, she proposed that all women should have the right to vote and own property (Mass Moments). Just like after the Seneca Falls Convention, the outside world did not respond as the reformers had hoped. Many people and even newspapers attacked their beliefs and said that they all wanted to "abolish the Bible" and "abolish the constitution and the laws of the land" (Mass Moments).
Successes
Even though women were not granted the right to vote until years later, the reforms that took place during the 1800s laid the foundation and got the ball rolling on the issue of women's rights. Overall, I think they were successful because they were the foundation that later was built upon and secured the rights of women everywhere.
There were also some small successes on the state level. In Indiana, divorces could now be made and accepted because of other things besides just adultery (Boundless). They could be granted because of desertion, drunkenness, and cruelty (Boundless). In New York, an act was made that gave women shared ownership of their children (Boundless). This also allowed them to have a voice in their wills, property inheritance, and wages (Boundless).
Bibliography Brinkley, Alan. The Unfinished Nation. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. Print. Elson, Henry William. History of the United States of America. The MacMillan Company, New York, 1904. Print. Chapter IV p. 108. "First National Women's Rights Convention Ends in Worcester." Mass Moments. Mass Humaities, n.d. Web. 4 DEC. 2015. <http://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/women-who-fought-for-the-vote>. "The Fight for Women’s Suffrage." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 4 Dec. 2015. <http://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/the-fight-for-womens-suffrage>. "Women Who Fought for the Vote." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 4 dec 2015. <http://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/women-who-fought-for-the-vote>. "Suffrage, Women’S." International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. Ed. William A. Darity, Jr. 2nd ed. Vol. 8. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2008. 214-218. World History in Context. Web. 4 Women's Rights." Boundless. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Dec 2015. <https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/textbooks/boundless-u-s-history-textbook/religion-romanticism-and-cultural-reform-1820-1860-14/the-age-of-cultural-reforms-112/women-s-rights-601-8558/>.