Annual Reports: Equal Suffrage Association of North Carolina from 1914-1920

[text on left hand side] Please preserve G. W. PRESIDENT REPORT FOR YEAR ENDING NOV. 1914. The Presidents report for this year is of necessity an informal one. It has been impossible to get an executive meeting, and it has been necessary therefore to assume the responsibility personally, in order to carry on the work. It is my earnest hope that the organization may be so effected at this convention that the work for the coming year may be systematically carried out. At the request of the Secretary and the Chairman of the Membership Committee, I have incorpor- ated their reporst with my own. Owing to illness of officers and other causes, it has been necessary during the past year that I should do personally so much of the work in various departments, that separate reports could not be made with out undue overlapping. I wish merely to state at the outset, that without the able and enthusiastic work of Miss Suzanne Bynum, the work of the Equal Suffrage League could not have been carried on. It is impossible to give a definitely tabulated report. I hope that may follow later. At present I shall have to report general activities and progress and give a few recommendations for the coming year. A little more than a year ago, the first local suffrage league in North Carolina was formed in Morganton, with a handful of enthusiastic women as mem- bers. In Nov., 1913, Miss Suzanne Bynum and Miss Liddell of Charlotte, with five other women of the city, formed the North Carolina Equal Suffrage League, obtain- ing a charter from the state. The charter members represented every class and every section of North Carolina. Mrs. Valentine, President of the Virginia Equal Suffrage League, was present and spoke at the first meeting held in Charlotte for the organization of the league. At the meeting Mrs. Archibald Henderson of Chapel Hill was elected President of the League. The first executive meeting was held in Charlotte on Dec. 27th, 1913. At that time there were in existence three leagues in North Carolina. A large league in Charlotte, one in Morganton, and one in Greenville. Early in March, Miss Lavinia Engle, of the most successful organizers of the National Suffrage Association, visited Mrs. Archibald Henderson in order to assist in planning suffrage work for the state. A quantity of literature was dis- tributed throughout the state, and a number of leaflets were compiled for the State League by Mrs. Henderson and distributed. The State League through its Pres- ident, declared itself opposed to any form of militancy, and went on record as desiring to gain the vote by an appeal to reason and fair play. Miss Engle returned to the State in April, remaining several weeks. Meetings had been arranged for Miss Engle in various towns throughout the State, and dur- ing her visit many new leagues were formed. A large and flourishing league was formed in Asheville by Mrs. C.M. Platt. Since January, leagues have been formed in Salisbury, Asheville, High Point, Reidsville, Kinston, New Bern, Raleigh, Chapel Hill Henderson and Goldsboro, and in Washington, with an active Suffrage Committee in Hickory. There are in all fourteen leagues in the state. These leagues with their Presidents are as follows: Charlotte, Miss Suzanne Bynum; Morganton, Mrs. Hossfeldt; Hickory, Miss Mary Shuford; Salisbury, Mrs. A.H. Boyden; Asheville, Mrs. C.M. Platt; High Point, Mrs. Gordon Burnett; Henderson, Mrs. J.T. Alderman; Kinston, Miss Sybil Hyatt Greenville, Miss Sallie Davis; Goldsboro, Miss Gertrude Weill; Chapel Hill, Miss Harriet Berry; Raleigh, Mrs. James Pou; Reidsville, Mr. T.W. Andrews; Washington, Mrs. H [?] Carter. Leagues are in process of formation also in Greensboro, Oxford and Pine Bluff. The membership is made up of almost, if not quite as many men as women. There is a large number of members at large. The exact number cannot be ascertain ed at present, as it is constantly growing. Meetings have been held and speeches made at various points throughout the State. The membership committee is actively engaged in a campaign for new members, and the State League is distributing lit- erature wherever there is a demand for it. The chief work of the year has been the effort to arouse interest in the work without arousing opposition. The work has consisted in large measure of eve ry possible form of propaganda: meetings, addresses, distribution of literature, writing hundreds of personal letters, and keeping in touch with the work of the National Association.