Hannah Johnston Bailey (July 5, 1839 – October 23, 1923) was an American Quaker teacher, activist, and advocate for peace, temperance, and women's suffrage.

Early life

Hannah Clark Johnston was born in Cornwall, New York, in the

Hudson Valley The Hudson Valley (also known as the Hudson River Valley) comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York. The region stretches from the Capital District including Albany and Troy south to ...

, the daughter of David Johnston and Letitia Clark Johnston. Her parents were Quakers; her father was a tanner and a farmer. She was the eldest of eleven children. Although they were Quakers, two of her younger brothers fought in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

, and one died, cementing for Hannah Johnston a commitment to peace.

Career

Bailey taught school in

Plattekill, New York Plattekill is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 10,424 in 2020,US Census Bureau, 2020 report, Plattekill town, Ulster County, New York https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?searchType=web&cssp=SERP&q=Platte ...

from 1858 to 1867. She ran her late husband's businesses, a factory producing oilcloth and a carpet store, from 1882 until 1889, and 1891, respectively. In 1883, she joined the

Women's Christian Temperance Union The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) is an international temperance organization, originating among women in the United States Prohibition movement. It was among the first organizations of women devoted to social reform with a program ...

(WCTU), and worked with

Lillian M. N. Stevens Lillian M. N. Stevens (1843–1914) was an American temperance worker and social reformer, born at Dover, Maine. She helped launch the Maine chapter of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union (W.C.T.U.), served as its president, and was elect ...

to establish a reformatory for women in Maine. She represented Maine at the National Conference of Charities and Correction. In 1887, she became head of the WCTU's new Department of Peace and Arbitration, and through the organization worked to oppose war and violence in all forms, including

capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

, lynching,

prizefighting Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...

, military conscription, even toy soldiers and military drills in schools. In 1898 she was elected president of the

Woman's Temperance Publishing Association The Woman's Temperance Publishing Association (WTPA) was a non-commercial publisher of Temperance movement, temperance literature. Established in 1879 in Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana during the national convention of the Woman's Christian T ...

, succeeding Matilda Carse. She was editor and publisher of two WCTU peace periodicals, ''Pacific Banner'' and ''Acorn'' (intended for young readers), from her home in

Winthrop, Maine Winthrop is a town in Kennebec County, Maine, United States. The population was 6,121 at the 2020 census. Winthrop's population, however, approximately doubles during the summer months as part-year residents return to seasonal camps located on ...

. She retired from her WCTU posts in 1916, as

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

began and the WCTU endorsed American involvement. From 1891 to 1897, she was president of the Maine Woman Suffrage Association, and from 1895 to 1899 she served as treasurer of the National Council of Women. In 1915 she joined the

Woman's Peace Party The Woman's Peace Party (WPP) was an American pacifist and feminist organization formally established in January 1915 in response to World War I. The organization is remembered as the first American peace organization to make use of direct acti ...

, and was a member of the

Women's International League for Peace and Freedom The Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) is a non-profit non-governmental organization working "to bring together women of different political views and philosophical and religious backgrounds determined to study and make kno ...

at the end of her life. Bailey wrote a biography of her late husband, ''Reminiscences of a Christian Life'' (1885).

Personal life

Hannah Clark Johnson married Moses Bailey in 1868, as his second wife. They had one child, Moses Melvin Bailey, born in 1869. She was widowed when her husband died in 1882, after a long illness. She died in

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropo ...

in 1923, aged 84. She is buried in Lakeview Cemetery in Winthrop, Maine. Her papers are archived in the Swarthmore College Peace Collection.Hannah J. Bailey PapersSwarthmore College Peace Collection
accessed July 11, 2020.

Selected works

* ''Reminiscences of a Christian Life'' (1885)

References

External links

* * Much of the periodicals edited by Hannah J. Bailey have been digitized and are available at th
In Her Own Right project
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Hannah Johnston 1839 births 1923 deaths 19th-century American non-fiction writers 19th-century American women writers American pacifists American Quakers Suffragists from Maine Temperance activists from Maine American women biographers American women non-fiction writers Wikipedia articles incorporating text from A Woman of the Century