This historic marker commemorates the work and dedication of Ella Hawley Crossett as a Pioneer for Women's Rights. The marker reads:
1853-1925
Ella Hawley Crossett
1890 founder of Warsaw Political Equality Club, 1902 Pres., New York State Suffrage Association.
George E. Pataki, Governor
This plaque was placed here by the Governor's Commission to honor the achievements of women throughout the State. According to State of New York Website:
"The Governor's Commission Honoring the Achievements of Women has expanded the New York State historical marker program, started in 1926, to more accurately reflect women's contributions to history. Each county was asked to participate by nominating three historic local women who contributed to the community and deserved recognition. From these nominations, the Commission sponsored the creation and installation of a historical marker for every participating county.
The markers are cast iron painted with the colors of the suffrage movement, purple and gold. The markers were dedicated and installed throughout the state during the fall of 1998."
According to Western New York Suffragists Website:
Crossett's prominence in the suffrage movement can be traced to her attendance at the National American Woman Suffrage Association convention in Washington, D.C. in 1890, where she was a national delegate. In September of 1891 she organized a convention in Warsaw, at which Reverend Anna Howard Shaw and Susan B. Anthony spoke. At that convention, the Wyoming County Suffrage Association was formed, with Crossett named as president, a position that she held for many years. Shortly thereafter the Warsaw Political Equality Club was formed. Crossett was named president of this group as well, a position she retained until national women's suffrage was enacted into law.
By the end of the decade, Crossett had achieved statewide prominence, rising to the rank of Vice-President of the New York State Suffrage Association. In 1902 she was elected as President of the Association, a position that she held until 1910. Fanny Garrison Villard, also a suffragist and the daughter of William Lloyd Garrison (a gentleman known for his work to eliminate slavery), remembered that Crossett "attended 20 National Conventions....was present at every annual State Convention, with the exception of four....[and] was a member of the State Executive Board for over twenty years....In 1909 and 1910 she was in charge of the Suffrage Headquarters...and lived in New York [City], paying her own expenses as a contribution to the cause." Crossett also appeared before legislators in Albany in 1907, and submitted testimony to a Hearing before the United States Senate's Select Committee on Woman Suffrage, which took place in March of 1908.
Crossett's activities were not limited to fighting for the vote for women. Under her leadership, the Warsaw Political Equality Club was instrumental in seeing that women held positions on the local school board by 1893. She herself served as a school trustee for three years. Crossett was also instrumental in organizing the Warsaw Chapter of the Red Cross during the First World War. There, she chaired the committee that provided for a public town nurse. She later organized and was made honorary chair of the Women's Auxiliary of the Wyoming County Community Hospital. She was a member of the Buffalo chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Warsaw W.C.T.U., the Warsaw Grange, and the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom in Boston. She also served as a member of the County Republican Committee once the vote was won.
Ella Hawley Crossett died on December 2, 1925, shortly after suffering a stroke while visiting her daughter Carolyn in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Ella Hawley Crossett Memorial Nurses' Home of the Wyoming County Community Hospital was dedicated to her memory. Her name also appears among the eighty-one women's suffrage pioneers listed on a bronze memorial that was placed in the New York State Capitol in 1931.
This historic marker is located in front of the Warsaw Public Library. The Library houses an autographed copy of the History of Woman Suffrage by Susan B. Anthony presented by Ms. Anthony to the Women of Warsaw for their devoted service to the cause.