The Elizabeth Cady Stanton House is a historic house at 32 Washington Street in the village of

Seneca Falls, New York Seneca Falls is a town in Seneca County, New York, United States. The population was 8,942 at the 2020 census. The Town of Seneca Falls contains the former village also called Seneca Falls. The town is east of Geneva, New York, in the north ...

. Built before 1830, it was the home of suffragist

Elizabeth Cady Stanton Elizabeth Cady Stanton (November 12, 1815 – October 26, 1902) was an American writer and activist who was a leader of the women's rights movement in the U.S. during the mid- to late-19th century. She was the main force behind the 1848 Seneca ...

(1815-1902) from 1847 to 1862. It is now a

historic house museum A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that has been transformed into a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a ...

as part of

Women's Rights National Historical Park Women's Rights National Historical Park was established in 1980, and covers a total of of land in Seneca Falls and nearby Waterloo, New York, United States. The park consists of four major historical properties including the Wesleyan Methodi ...

. It was declared a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1965.,

Description and history

The Elizabeth Cady Stanton House stands in a quiet residential area of Seneca Falls, east of its downtown at the junction of Washington and Seneca Streets. It is a modest -story wood-frame structure, its L shape covered by gabled roofs and its exterior finished in wooden clapboards. The north wing, oriented with its gable to the street, is stories, while the south wing is a single story with an open porch extending across most of its width. The main entrance is located in the south wing near the junction of the two sections. The house is not architecturally distinguished. A small garage stands southeast of the house. The property was purchased in 1836-1837 by Samuel and William Bayard, who bought the recently built structure from Colonel Wilhelmus Mynderse, who had founded Seneca Falls. In 1838, William and his family took out a mortgage on the property and were residing there. The Bayard family ran into financial difficulties and were sued several times in the early 1840s. In 1842, the house went up for public auction and was purchased by William A. Sacket and Robert L. Stevenson with a caveat that Bayard could redeem it within one year for the debts owed. Having failed to pay their debt, the property was conveyed in 1844 to William Pennington and the acquired by

Elisha Foote Elisha Foote (August 1, 1809 – October 22, 1883) was an American judge, inventor, and mathematician. He served as the eleventh United States Commissioner of Patents from 1868 to 1869 and was responsible for launching an investigation into pre ...

Jr., in March. Foote was the husband of

Eunice Newton Foote Eunice Newton Foote (July 17, 1819 – September 30, 1888) was an American scientist, inventor, and women's rights campaigner. She was the first scientist to conclude that certain gases warmed when exposed to sunlight, and that rising carbo ...

and had trained in law with

Daniel Cady Daniel Cady (April 29, 1773 – October 31, 1859 in Johnstown, Fulton County, New York) was a prominent American lawyer, politician and judge in upstate New York. While perhaps better known today as the father of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Judge C ...

, Elizabeth's father. Foote deeded the property to Elizabeth's father in 1845, who in turn gave the property to his daughter in 1846. The oldest portion of the house, the south wing, was probably built before 1830, with the north wing added by 1840. Henry and Elizabeth Cady Stanton lived in the house from 1847 to 1862. During this period, Elizabeth Cady Stanton was active in organizing the first United States convention on women's suffrage. Held in 1848, the

Seneca Falls Convention The Seneca Falls Convention was the first women's rights convention. It advertised itself as "a convention to discuss the social, civil, and religious condition and rights of woman".Wellman, 2004, p. 189 Held in the Wesleyan Methodist Church ...

resulted in the first major calls for women to be granted the right to vote. Stanton remained an influential figure in the women's rights movements of the 19th century until her death in 1902. The house was acquired by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

in 1982 to become part of the

. It then underwent restoration, removing alterations made after the Stantons sold the property and returning it to its appearance during their occupancy.

References

External links

Elizabeth Cady Stanton House, National Historical Park, at National Park Service
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stanton, Elizabeth Cady, House (Seneca Falls, New York) Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) National Historic Landmarks in New York (state) Cady Stanton Historic American Buildings Survey in New York (state) Elizabeth Cady Stanton House Cady Stanton House Cady Stanton House Houses in Seneca County, New York Women's Rights National Historical Park National Register of Historic Places in Seneca County, New York Elizabeth Cady Stanton Seneca Falls, New York

Description and history

See also

References

External links