Many of the suffrage movement's most revered sites are in central and upstate New York. Seneca Falls is considered home to the movement, where Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott and Mary Ann M'Clintock planned and carried out the first national Women's Rights Convention on July 19 and 20, 1848.
Sites in Seneca Falls include:
The Women's Rights National Historic Park, which includes a visitors center that screens a 25-minute movie, "Dreams of Equality," and traces the history of the women's movement through interactive displays. The site of the old Wesleyan Chapel, where the first convention was held, is there, along with a wall engraved with the "Declaration of Sentiments" and the names of its original signers. Tours of the Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Mary M'Clintock homes are also offered daily.
The National Women's Hall of Fame, which pays tribute to the nation's first membership organization devoted ex- clusively to recognizing the accomplish- ments of American women. It honors those who have made enduring contri- butions to the arts, athletics, business, education, government, humanities, philanthropy and science. Notable figures include Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Eleanor Roosevelt, Pearl Buck and Rosa Parks.
"This is woman's hour . . ." — The Life of Mary Baker Eddy, an exhibit at the Women's Rights National Historic Park that explains the life of the founder of modern Christian Science, who challenged conventional thinking in theology, science and medicine.
Seneca Falls Historical Society, which has an extensive archive and photo collection devoted to women's history.
"When Anthony Met Stanton," a statue of Susan B. Anthony being introduced by Amelia Bloomer to Elizabeth Cady Stanton. The bronze likeness of the women was erected in 1999 on the Erie Canal waterfront to honor the early pioneers of women's suffrage.
Other New York sites important in suffrage history include:
The Ontario County Courthouse in Canandaigua. On June 17, 1873, Susan B. Anthony was put on trial for voting in a state election in Rochester the previous November. In 1990, a bronze bust of Anthony was placed in the courthouse.
The Susan B. Anthony House in Rochester. Anthony was arrested in her front parlor for voting and organized much of the campaign for women's suffrage within the house. Her attic served as the first archive for suffrage documents. The home contains a black silk dress made of material provided by her Mormon suffrage friends in Utah to commemorate her 80th birthday.