Anna Bell Lawther (September 8, 1872 - October 21, 1957) was a leader in the

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

movement in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

Biography

Lawther was born in

Dubuque, Iowa Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a r ...

, the daughter of William Lawther and Annie Elizabeth (Bell) Lawther. She received her early education in the Dubuque public schools. She prepared for college at Miss Stevens' School at

Germantown, Philadelphia Germantown ( Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Deitscheschteddel'') is an area in Northwest Philadelphia. Founded by German, Quaker, and Mennonite families in 1683 as an independent borough, it was absorbed into Philadelphia in 1854. The area, which is ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, and received the B. A. degree from

Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh: ) is a women's liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Founded as a Quaker institution in 1885, Bryn Mawr is one of the Seven Sister colleges, a group of elite, historically women's colleges in the United ...

in 1897. The following year, she became assistant bursar of Bryn Mawr College and from 1904 to 1905 she was warden of Merion Hall at Bryn Mawr and from 1907 to 1912 was the secretary of Bryn Mawr College. After resigning her position at her alma mater, Lawther returned to Iowa and became interested in local activities. During the referendum for equal suffrage in 1916 she was the chairman of the Dubuque County, Iowa Equal Suffrage Association and for the following three years was its president. During her term of office, Lawther was appointed by Governor Harding as a member of the Council of Defense. When suffrage was granted to the women of Iowa by the Thirty-Eighth General Assembly, Lawther was made the Democratic National Committeewoman for Iowa. Lawther Hall at the

University of Northern Iowa The University of Northern Iowa (UNI) is a public university in Cedar Falls, Iowa. UNI offers more than 90 majors across the colleges of Business Administration, Education, Humanities, Arts, and Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences and gr ...

was named in her honor. She also served on the state board of education.

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lawther, Anna Bell 1872 births 1957 deaths Suffragists from Iowa People from Dubuque, Iowa Bryn Mawr College alumni University of Northern Iowa people Place of death missing