VOTES FOR WOMEN

Inscription

VOTES FOR WOMEN
THE REV. MARY A. SAFFORD,
MEMBER OF THIS CHURCH, LED
FLORIDA EQUAL SUFFRAGE ASSN
AS 1ST PRESIDENT 1913-1916
AND AGAIN 1918-1919.
WILLIAM G. POMEROY FOUNDATION 2022

Unitarian minister and suffragist, Reverend Mary Augusta Safford (1851-1927) served as the first president of the Florida Equal Suffrage Association from its formation in 1913 to 1916. She served as president again from 1918 to 1919. Safford was active in the fight for women’s right to vote, including lobbying Florida legislators in the state capital to garner support for suffrage.

On June 4, 1919, the United States Congress passed the Nineteenth Amendment which states, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.” Despite the efforts of Florida suffragists, the state did not vote on the amendment. However, by August 1920, the necessary 36 states had ratified the Nineteenth Amendment, securing women’s right to vote across the United States, including in the state of Florida.

Safford was a member of the First Unitarian Church of Orlando, Florida and included a bequest to the church as part of her will upon her death in 1927. As of 2022, the First Unitarian Church was located at 1901 East Robinson Street in Orlando.

Rev. Mary Augusta Safford