The National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) was formed in 1890 when the two rival suffrage organizations, the National Woman Suffrage Association and the American Woman Suffrage Association, combined forces.

The purpose of NAWSA was to advocate in favor of women’s suffrage in the United States.

NAWSA’s first headquarters was based out of Washington, D.C., and saw the likes of Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Hauser and Harriet Taylor Upton.

Upton served as the treasurer for the National American Woman Suffrage Association.

Her sway caused the move of the organization’s national headquarters to Warren from 1903 to 1910. Nationally and internationally known suffrage proponents visited Warren to assist with the cause, including Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

In 1903, NAWSA’s headquarters was first operating out of Harriet Taylor Upton’s home on Mahoning Avenue. They then moved to the Packard Mansion on High Street and they made their final move in 1905 to the Trumbull County Courthouse.

In 1910, NAWSA moved their headquarters from Warren to New York.

Even after the NAWSA headquarters left, the people of Warren remained active in the suffrage movement. Women in Warren had a long history of supporting social justice causes as early as the 1840s with a presence in operating the local Underground Railroad.

After the Civil War, women’s clubs became common support networks, and the Warren Political Equality Club roster boasted the most affluent and well-known women of the era.

Women like Harriet Taylor Upton, Alaska Packard, Zell Hart Deming and Elizabeth Hauser used their influence to rally women and men to support the cause locally. Deming, owner of the Warren Daily Tribune, used her platform to print editorials supporting Upton and her work.

In 1919, the issue of women’s suffrage was brought to congress. It passed and was then handed off to the state legislatures who passed and then ratified the 19th amendment in 1920 giving women the right to vote.

NAWSA hosted its last convention just six months before the 19th amendment was ratified. It was at this event that they created the League of Women Voters. The LWV was created to help women have a larger role in public affairs after they won the right to vote, helping them exercise that right.

The League of Women Voters was exclusively a women’s club until 1974 when they allowed men to join as members.

Interested in more local stories like this? Check out the Trumbull County encyclopedia. The encyclopedia can be found on the Trumbull County Historical Society’s website at www.trumbullcountyhistory.org.

Have any questions? Reach out to us at info@trumbullcountyhistory.org or call 330-394-4653.