The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages the informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influence public policy through education and advocacy.

Fifty Year Members, 2009
LWVLC BOARD 2010-2011
President, Pat Hocken
Vice President & Program,
      Pat McDaniels
Secretary, Merle Bottge
Treasurer, Phyllis Loobey
Action, Kappy Eaton
Argus Editor, Charlcie Kaylor
Finance, Janet Calvert
Public Relations, Fran Boehner
Units, Anne Mehl
Voter Service, Susan Tavakolian
      & Barbara French
Membership, Sue Miller-Wielesek
Webmaster, Fred Andrews
Historian, Gayle Downing
Nominating, Nancie Fadeley
LWVOR Liaison, Deanie Anderson

HISTORY OF THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS                                                   Fifty Year Members, 2009

When did the League of Women Voters begin? One answer is in March 1919 at the 50th Convention of the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA). At that meeting the NAWSA Constitution was amended to include a new organization: “to increase the effectiveness of women’s votes in furthering better government, women from the enfranchised states shall form a League of Women Voters within the National American Woman Suffrage Association.” At this point, there were 15 states, primarily in the West (including Oregon), that had granted full voting rights to women, but the 19th amendment to the US Constitution had not yet been adopted. By the time of the NAWSA convention in February 1920, the 19th amendment had been adopted by Congress and was in the process of being ratified by the states. The gathering was a joint event — the final convention of NAWSA and the first convention of the League of Women Voters. By August 1920, the last necessary (36th) state had ratified the 19th amendment.

Maybe a better question is “What were the origins of the suffrage movement that ultimately led to the League of Women Voters?” The highlights below are taken primarily from Forty Years of a Great Idea, a 1960 publication of the national League of Women Voters, and show the tenacity and dedication of our foremothers.

in 1840, Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton met in London at the World Anti-Slavery Convention. Mrs. Mott was one of eight American delegates denied seats because they were women. Mrs. Stanton was the wife of a delegate. These two women made a pact to start a woman’s rights movement in the United States.

In 1848, the first Woman’s Rights Convention was held in Seneca Falls, New York. The most daring proposition to come out of this gathering was: “It is the duty of the women of this country to secure to themselves their sacred right to the elective franchise.”

After the Civil War, the woman’s suffrage movement suffered bitter disappointment at the passage of the 14th and 15th amendments to the U.S. Constitution by which male former slaves, but not any women, received voting rights.

The year 1869 saw the formation of the National Woman Suffrage Association with the purpose of obtaining a federal constitutional amendment and the American Woman Suffrage Association with the purpose of gaining suffrage state by state. The groups merged in 1890 to become NAWSA.

In 1875, Susan B. Anthony drafted the wording of a federal constitutional amendment; her language was ultimately adopted 45 years later. She wrote: “The right of citizens of the United States shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”

In 1878, the amendment was first introduced into the U.S. Congress. It was introduced in each succeeding Congress until it passed.

Finally, in May 1919, the 19th amendment was passed by the House of Representatives by a vote of 304 to 90, and in June it was passed by the Senate with a vote of 66 to 33.

Garrett Epps in Democracy Reborn comments on the long struggle as follows: “Poignantly, one and only one woman who had been in the church at Seneca Falls in 1848 lived to celebrate the Nineteenth Amendment; as Charlotte Woodward, she had signed the Declaration of Principles; seventy-two years later, as Charlotte Woodward Pierce, she cast a vote in the 1920 presidential election.”

HISTORY OF THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF OREGON AND LANE COUNTY

Initially, the state Leagues were the keystone of the League’s structure and had the responsibility for organizing local Leagues. Although the Portland League was successfully established in 1926, it was more of a struggle in other Oregon locations. Local Leagues were started, disbanded, and established again. It took three attempts for the Salem League to flourish and two for the Corvallis League.

The Eugene League, which is one of the predecessors of the Lane County League, was formed in 1939 with 60 members. Although membership dropped to 27 during World War II, by 1950 it had climbed to 139. The Springfield League was formed in 1956 and in 1969 merged with the Eugene League to become the League of Women Voters of Central Lane County. At the time of the merger, there were almost 300 members in the combined group. In 1984, the word “Central” was dropped from the name.

What was the League doing in the early years? A pamphlet entitled Brief History of the League of Women Voters of Oregon reports on the period from 1920 to 1950. It states:

“The Oregon League placed its early emphasis upon winning recognition for women in public life, removing discrimination against women, providing protections for women in industry and for children, and stimulating members and the public to register and vote.” The League soon “moved to a more fundamental concern with government. It worked to improve general welfare standards, to secure civil rights for all citizens, to raise the standards of government service and to provide a system of finance adequate to state needs. In the early years the program was little more than a long list of desirable objectives… far beyond the ability of members or the resources of the treasury to carry out. The 1935 program had 11 items for action and 19 for study.”

Some successes illustrate the League’s substantial impact in this era. Interest in the civil service system began in 1934 with a national League resolution to “publicize the evils of the spoils system and win public support of the merit system as the means by which to select public personnel in all levels of government.“ Using local League research and working in coalition with unions representing government employees, the Oregon League helped convince the legislature to adopt a merit system bill in 1945.

Another legislative effort addressed Oregon’s public schools, particularly the disparity in funding and standards between urban and rural areas. The League’s concern led to intensive work for the Rural School Bill which was passed in 1946. The bill was an equalization measure to encourage consolidation and to raise the standards of rural schools. A memorandum explaining the bill, written and published by the League, was widely used throughout the state. The League also supported the basic school bill which provide increased state aid to schools.

A Ten Year History of the League of Women Voters of Eugene, Oregon (1940-1950) also reports early activities. The League provided speakers to community groups on various topics; members spoke to an estimated 5,500 people during the 1947-48 year. It published candidate interviews and digests of ballot measures. It held candidate programs, including a 1944 forum on foreign policy featuring three of three four candidates for U.S. Senate.

The Eugene League’s first attempt to influence the structure of local government was successful in 1944 when Eugene citizens adopted the city manager model. The League also worked for better services for juvenile offenders and for the adoption of the county manager form of government for Lane County (still no success on this).

With regard to land use planning, the Eugene League worked with the state League to obtain passage of the county planning and zoning bill by the Oregon legislature. Subsequently, local League efforts led in 1948 to Lane County becoming the first Oregon county to adopt a county zoning ordinance, thus taking advantage of the opportunity to promote the orderly development of suburban areas.

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