Description: Portrait of Miss Harriet Keeler of Cleveland, Ohio. Keeler (1846-1921) was included on the "Ohio State Honor Roll" from the League of Women Voters of Ohio, ca. 1930, which listed prominent Ohio women involved in the suffrage movement. Her brief biography from the Honor Roll reads: "Harriet L. Keeler was born in New York State and was a pupil of Betsy M, Cowles. Miss Cowles so fired the imagination of Miss Keeler for a higher education that she prepared herself for Oberlin College, and graduated from there. For thirty years Miss Keeler was a brilliant and inspiring teacher of English at Central High School. For a short time she was Superintendent of Schools of the city of Cleveland. Miss Keeler was a famous botanist, and among the widely known books she has written, are: Our Garden Flowers , Our Northern Shrubs, and Our Native Trees, all of which are classics. Because of her outstanding distinction in this field, the Metropolitan Park Board has set aside 300 acres in the Brecksville woods and dedicated them as the Harriet Keeler Memorial Woods. Miss Keeler was devoted to the cause of woman's suffrage. As one of the presidents of the Cuyahoga County Woman's Suffrage party, she did much to bring credit and respect to the movement in Cleveland. She was also a member of the National American Woman's Suffrage Association." This photograph comes from the League of Women Voters of Ohio Collection. The League of Women Voters was first formed at the national level in early 1920 by Carrie Chapman Catt, President of the National Woman Suffrage Association. Soon, additional leagues began to form at the state and local level, with the League of Women Voters of Ohio being organized in May 1920 in Columbus. The League was first formed to empower women to use their newfound right to vote, and today its primary purpose remains citizen education. To this goal, it supports voter registration efforts, provides information on candidates and issues, sponsors debates and offers publications on public policy and voter engagement topics. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: MSS354_B10_LWVO_HarrietKeeler
Subjects: Women--Suffrage; Social movements; League of Women Voters of Ohio; Suffragists; Activism; Educators; Botanists
Places: Cleveland (Ohio); Cuyahoga County (Ohio)