Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Elizabeth Cady Stanton was born on October 26, 1815, in New York City. She studied law with her father, Daniel Cady, a U.S. congressman and a New York State Supreme Court Justice. During her studies she became aware of the discrimination against women and vowed to change the system that oppressed women.

In 1840 Elizabeth Cady married Henry Brewster Stanton. He helped secure the passage of a New York statute granting women property rights in a marriage. Stanton teamed up with Lucretia Mott to organize the first Woman's Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, New York. Everything went smoothly until Stanton introduced a resolution for women's suffrage. Mott was against the idea of voting rights, and eventually it led to a split in the movement.

In 1850, Stanton joined Susan B. Anthony, whose philosophy was more compatible to hers. Anthony handled the business affairs of the movement while Stanton wrote. The two finished several books together including Revolution and The History of Woman Suffrage.

Stanton died on October 26, 1902 in New York City.

Taken from Sojourner Truth: Ain't I a Woman? by Patricia and Fredrick McKissack.