A Woman’s City:
The Dynamic of Women’s Social Reform within Rochester, NY between 1820-1920
Abstract:
The history of women in the city of Rochester, NY stretches far beyond the efforts of Susan B. Anthony. As a result of the urban development of America’s first ‘Boom-Town’, the city and the surrounding areas became known as the Burned-Over District. This is one of the most well-known areas to have, as well as document, women’s social history. This was because of the specific advancements which were brought about through the many different fields of reform in this area. This first started with many new religious ideas, but then progressed into the abolitionist and then the women’s equality movement. This then pushed more women into the public spheres of life rather than the more historically perceived private spheres of life. Women’s social activism has been recorded ever since the founding of the city in the 1820s until the passage of women’s suffrage in 1920, and is still A Woman’s City today.