Wikipedia

Mary Clare Brassington

Mary Clare Laurence Brassington (June 5, 1874 – January 6, 1966) was an American suffragist, president of the Delaware Equal Suffrage Association (DESA) from 1915 to 1917.

Mary Clare Brassington
A white woman photographed in profile; her dark hair is in an updo; she is wearing dark garment
Mary Clare Brassington, from a 1917 publication
Born
Mary Clare Laurence

June 5, 1874
Baltimore, Maryland, US
DiedJanuary 6, 1966(1966-01-06) (aged 91)
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, US
OccupationSuffragist
Known forPresident of the Delaware Equal Suffrage Society, 1915–1917

Early life

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Mary Clare Laurence was born in Baltimore, Maryland.[1]

Career

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Brassington marched with the Delaware Equal Suffrage Association (DESA) in the 1913 suffrage parade in Washington, D.C., and led the "homemakers' section" in Delaware's first large suffrage parade in 1914. She became president of the DESA in 1915, succeeding the association's founding president, Martha Churchman Cranston,[2][3] and reelected in 1916.[4][5] She was also one of the state's delegates to the National Equal Suffrage Convention.[6][7] and a member of the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA).[8] She was also active in Wilmington's New-Century Club.[9]

In 1916, Brassington attended both the Democratic National Convention in St. Louis and the Republican National Convention in Chicago,[10] where she literally carried the banner of the Delaware suffragists: a large yellow and white silk banner featuring Delaware Blue Hens.[11][12]

In 1917 Brassington resigned the presidency because her husband's work would take her out of state.[13] But she returned to Delaware to attend DESA meetings[14] and lobby the state legislature on suffrage.[1][15][16] After suffrage was won, Brassington was active in the League of Women Voters. She lived in Port Arthur, Ontario and Milwaukee, Wisconsin in her later years, relocating for her husband's work, and in Florida in her own retirement.[1]

Personal life

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Mary Clare Laurence married John Robert Wetten Brassington, a British engineer who was born in India. They had two daughters, Marion[17] and Susan.[18] She was a member of the First Unitarian Church in Wilmington. Brassington was widowed in 1946 when her husband died in Milwaukee,[19] and she died in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in 1966, aged 91 years.[1][20]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Boylan, Anne M. "Biographical Sketch of Mary Clare Laurence Brassington". Biographical Database of NAWSA Suffragists, 1890-1920, Alexander Street Documents. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  2. ^ "Dr. Anna Shaw to Speak Here". The Morning News. November 8, 1915. p. 8. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ Schneider, Jennifer. "Biographical Sketch of Martha Churchman Cranston". Biographical Database of NAWSA Suffragists, 1890-1920, Alexander Street Documents. Retrieved May 10, 2021.
  4. ^ "Suffragists in Annual Session". The Morning News. November 11, 1916. p. 11. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Suffragists Want Planks in Party Platform". Wilmington Evening Journal. July 7, 1916. p. 13. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
  6. ^ "Delaware Delegates to Suffrage Convention". The News Journal. September 2, 1916. p. 9. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Suffrage Work in the States: Delaware". Woman's Journal and Suffrage News. 46: 395. December 11, 1915 – via Internet Archive.
  8. ^ "National 'Suffs' Remain Neutral". The Morning News. October 31, 1916. p. 14. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "New-Century Club Full Membership". The Morning News. March 10, 1916. p. 7. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "To Attend Conventions". The Morning News. June 5, 1916. p. 11. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Mrs. J. W. Brassington to Visit Conventions". The News Journal. April 29, 1916. p. 13. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Delightful Reception for Mrs. Brassington". The News Journal. July 1, 1916. p. 9. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Stanton, Elizabeth Cady; Anthony, Susan B.; Gage, Matilda Joslyn (1922). History of Woman Suffrage. Susan B. Anthony. p. 91.
  14. ^ "Equal Suffrage Board Meeting". The Morning News. September 30, 1919. p. 7. Retrieved May 9, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Ask Ratification of Suffrage Bill". The Morning News. July 16, 1919. p. 5. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "McNabb Jarred by Women's Petition". The Evening Journal. May 6, 1920. p. 18. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Brassington-Hughes". The Evening Journal. October 13, 1919. p. 13. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Attended Commencement". The News Journal. June 12, 1915. p. 6. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995, page 752; via Ancestry
  20. ^ "Mrs. Mary Brassington". Fort Lauderdale News. January 7, 1966. p. 12. Retrieved May 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
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