Woman's Christian Temperance Union - Timeline Event
Time Period
1874
Description
During the winter of 1873-74, housewives from New York to Ohio staged "pray-ins" at saloons to protest the perils of alcohol in what became known as the "Woman’s Crusade." Organizers followed up that fall with a national convention in Cleveland, Ohio, and there formed the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU).
Their goal was protection of the family and women’s moral authority through total abstinence from alcohol and other drugs. They targeted saloons -- from which women were excluded -- as a symbol of their overall lack of civil rights.
When Frances Willard became president in 1879, the WCTU broadened its campaign to include such issues as suffrage. It also began to employ political tactics -- not just moral persuasion -- in its temperance quest.
The WCTU grew to become one of the largest and most influential women’s groups of the 19th century. Membership declined after passage of the 18th Amendment in 1919, but the WCTU continues today to work on women’s issues.
Their goal was protection of the family and women’s moral authority through total abstinence from alcohol and other drugs. They targeted saloons -- from which women were excluded -- as a symbol of their overall lack of civil rights.
When Frances Willard became president in 1879, the WCTU broadened its campaign to include such issues as suffrage. It also began to employ political tactics -- not just moral persuasion -- in its temperance quest.
The WCTU grew to become one of the largest and most influential women’s groups of the 19th century. Membership declined after passage of the 18th Amendment in 1919, but the WCTU continues today to work on women’s issues.
Interactive Timeline(s)
Browse Related Timeline Entries
Biographies
Smith, Hannah WhitallWillard, Frances
Movements
Temperance MovementRelated Dictionary Terms
Christianity, Temperance, Willard, Frances (1839-1898)Photographs
Singing hymns in front of barrooms in aid of the Temperance Movement- Library of Congress, LC-USZ62-90543
Frances Willard portrait- Library of Congress, LC-USZ61-790
Praying in front of a saloon- Library of Congress, LC-USZ62-121647
Women's Christian Temperance Union sign- Library of Congress, LC-USF34-081219-D
National WTCU headquarters- Internet Archive- from Women Torch-Bearers by Elizabeth Putnam Gordon
Web Source(s)
https://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/womans-christian-temperance-unionHistory, "Woman's Christian Temperance Union"
Web Page Contributor
Sandi DolbeeAffliated with: Former Religion and Ethics Editor, The San Diego Union-Tribune
