Matilda Joslyn Gage
Women's History Month
(1826-1898)
Childhood
Gage was born on March 24,1826 in Cicero, New York. She was the only child of two liberal parents. She was mostly taught at home. Frequent guests of scientists, philosophers, and theologians influenced her greatly. She got particularly interested in theology, always teaching herself Greek and studying the Bible.
Education
Gage had early schooling by her father Hezekiah. She was taught things such as Greek, mathematics, and philosophy. Her learning experience was increased because of the exposure to scientist, philosophers, and theologians who were guest that came by her home frequently. When she got older she was enrolled into Clinton New York Liberal Institute. She stopped going to school when she married Henry H. Gage. She continued to read and write to further educate herself.
Family
She married Henry H. Gage when she was 18. They moved to Fayetteville, New York where they had one son and three daughters. Gage was an active abolitionist and later opened up her home to runaway slaves. Her home soon became a known stop in the Underground Railroad.
Career
She was the youngest speaker at the Third National Woman's Rights Convention. She made a speech about women's accomplishments. Her speech was so well put together that it was later distributed as apart of the literature movement. She said that there were parallels to women and slaves, they were both facing the same enemy. Over the years Gage became an important factor in the women's rights movement. She continuously made more speeches, articles, and letters about women's rights and slavery.
Accomplishments
She was elected head of National Women's Suffrage Association. She published Women As Inventor, praising women's accomplishments and exposing men who had seized the fruits of women's labor. She was made an honorary member of the Council of Matrons. She dedicated a great deal of writing to compile a complete history of women's rights suffrage.
Bibliography - APA
"Matilda Joslyn Gage." DISCovering U.S. History. Detroit: Gale, 1997. Research in Context. Web. 4 Apr. 2016
"Matilda Joslyn Gage." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Research in Context. Web. 4 Apr. 2016.
"Matilda Joslyn Gage." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Research in Context. Web. 4 Apr. 2016.