Women Voter's Leauge and Carrie Chapman Catt

      Carrie Chapman Catt was born in Ripon, Wisconsin on January 9, 1859. She finished high school in three years and continued her schooling at Iowa State College and recieved a bachelor's degree. In 1885 she married Leo Chapman, who owned and edited the Mason City Republican. After he died Carrie became active in sufferage work. She married George William Catt who was a supporter of woman sufferage. because of her organization and public speaking skills Carrie quickly rose in the ranks of womens sufferage. She worked with The National American Woman Sufferage Association for a long time and eventually Susan B. Anthony chose Carrie as her successor in 1900. Her term as president was short, because her husband became ill and she resigned in 1904, and chose Anna Shaw as her successor. Soon after her resignation her husband George died. After his death she focused on starting and running the International Woman Sufferage Allience. During World War I she gained President Woodrow Wilson's support by urging women to get involved in the war effort. She was extremely important to the 19th ammendment being passed. She spent two months in Tennesse campaigning to get it ratified. After the ammendment was passed she helped found the League of Women Voters.
       The League of Women Voters was started by Carrie Chapman Catt. It's job was to unite women to vote after the 19th ammendment was ratified. They stressed the importance of women voting, because they could create what is called a voting "bloc" which would make it possible for women to make a bigger difference in elections. If they all formed together and voted the same way, they could even help determine the victor. This would work to their advatntage, and their aproach was one of a feminist nature. They wanted all women to be politically educated, and for them to improve the government overall. For many years they paid a lot of attention to issues of wages/working hours, and child labor instead of other women's rights issues such as: the right to use birth control, divorce law reform, and equal pay. Although most of the members of the Leauge of Women Voters were of the upper or middle class, they wanted to reach out to as many women as they could, making their overall impact greater in the end.