Western Washington Woman's Christian Temperance Union holds first annual convention in Seattle in June 1884.

  • By Mildred Andrews
  • Posted 6/13/2001
  • HistoryLink.org Essay 3366
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In June 1884, the Western Washington Woman's Christian Temperance Union holds its first annual convention in Seattle. Mrs. W. F. Thomas, president, informs the delegates that the international WCTU "was the largest society ever composed exclusively of women and conducted by them." She proclaims that the goals were to educate youth, to transform "by the power of divine grace those who are enslaved by alcohol," and to remove the saloon from the streets by law (Annual Report).

The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), founded in 1874 by Frances Willard (1839-1898) in Cleveland, Ohio, was an important predecessor of contemporary organizations concerned with the misuse of drugs and alcohol. The WCTU's primary goal was the prohibition of alcoholic beverage by law.


Sources:

Woman's Christian Temperance Union, Western Washington, Annual Meeting Reports, 1884, 1888, University of Washington Libraries, Archives, University Manuscripts and Special Collections, Seattle.


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