Anna Howard Shaw
Born 14 Feb. 1847 at Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England.[1] Daughter of Thomas Shaw and Nicolas Stott.[2] Immigrated to the United States aboard the John Jacob Westervelt, spring 1851.[3] Family moved to Lawrence, Essex Co., Massachusetts, and then settled in northern Michigan, 1859.[4] Preached her first sermon at age twenty-three at Ashton, Osceola Co., Michigan, 1870.[5] Attended Albion College in Albion, Calhoun Co., Michigan, 1873–1876.[6] Admitted to the Boston University theological school, Feb. 1876.[7] Both Albion College and Boston University have centers named in her honor.[8] Ordained in the Methodist Protestant Church, Oct. 1880, becoming the denomination’s first female minister.[9] Resigned her pastorate, 1885, to devote her life to fighting for temperance, suffrage, and social purity; lectured for the Massachusetts Woman’s Suffrage Association, 1886–1892.[10] Earned a medical degree from Boston University, 1886, but never practiced medicine.[11] Visited Utah Territory with Susan B. Anthony, arriving 12 May 1895; attended a celebration in her honor planned and hosted by EBW.[12] President of the National American Suffrage Association, 1904–1915.[13] Appointed chair of the woman’s committee for the Council of National Defense, Apr. 1917; awarded the Distinguished Service Medal, 1919.[14] Toured with former president William Howard Taft and others, seeking support for President Woodrow Wilson’s League of Nations.[15] Died 2 July 1919 in Upper Providence, Delaware Co., Pennsylvania.[16]
[1] Anna Howard Shaw, The Story of a Pioneer (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1915), 7. “Family Tree,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org, accessed 20 Mar. 2018), Anna Howard Shaw (K4VT-JMR).
[2] Edward T. James, ed., Notable American Women 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1971), 3:274. Anna Howard Shaw, The Story of a Pioneer (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1915), 7–8.
[3] Anna Howard Shaw, The Story of a Pioneer (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1915), 7–8.
[4] Anna Howard Shaw, The Story of a Pioneer (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1915), 12, 20.
[5] Anna Howard Shaw, The Story of a Pioneer (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1915), 62. Edward T. James, ed., Notable American Women 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1971), 3:275.
[6] Albion College History Timeline, Albion College Library, http://campus.albion.edu/library/archives-and-special-collections/histories-and-timelines/albion-college-history-timeline/. Anna Howard Shaw, The Story of a Pioneer (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1915), 66, 82.
[7] Albion College History Timeline, Albion College Library, http://campus.albion.edu/library/archives-and-special-collections/histories-and-timelines/albion-college-history-timeline/. Anna Howard Shaw, The Story of a Pioneer (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1915), 82.
[8] “About Anna Howard Shaw,” Boston University School of Theology, Anna Howard Shaw Center, https://www.bu.edu/shaw/anna-howard-shaw/. “Welcome to the Anna Howard Shaw Women’s Center,” Albion College, https://www.albion.edu/student-life/student-affairs/offices-and-programs/anna-howard-shaw-womens-center.
[9] “Anna Howard Shaw,” Britannica Online Encyclopedia, https://www.britannica.com/print/article/539038. Anna Howard Shaw, The Story of a Pioneer (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1915), 122–129.
[10] “Anna Howard Shaw,” National Women’s Hall of Fame, https://www.womenofthehall.org/inductee/anna-howard-shaw/. Edward T. James, ed., Notable American Women 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1971), 3:275.
[11] “Anna Howard Shaw,” National Women’s Hall of Fame, https://www.womenofthehall.org/inductee/anna-howard-shaw/. Edward T. James, ed., Notable American Women 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1971), 3:275.
[12] Carol Cornwall Madsen, An Advocate for Women: The Public Life of Emmeline B. Wells, 1870–1920 (Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Press; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2006), 293–294. EBW, Diary, 13 May 1895. “Local News,” Salt Lake Herald-Republican, 11 May 1895, 4. “Miss Anthony and Party,” Woman’s Exponent, 1 Apr. 1895, 4.
[13] Edward T. James, ed., Notable American Women 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1971), 3:276.
[14] Edward T. James, ed., Notable American Women 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1971), 3:276–277. Wil A. Linkugel and Kim Giffin, “The Distinguished Was Service of Dr. Anna Howard Shaw,” Pennsylvania History: A Journal of Mid-Atlantic Studies 28, no. 4 (Oct. 1961): 372–384.
[15] Edward T. James, ed., Notable American Women 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1971), 3:277.
[16] Certificate of Death, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, file no. 76384/125, Anna H. Shaw, 2 July 1919. “Death Claims Dr. Anna Shaw,” Salt Lake Herald, 3 July 1919, 1.