A Very Dangerous Woman: Martha Wright and Women's Rights

by Sherry H. Penney and James D. Livingston

Book Overview

"A very dangerous woman" is what Martha Coffin Wright's conservative neighbors considered her, because of her work in the women's rights and abolition movements. In 1848, Wright and her older sister Lucretia Mott were among the five brave women who organized the historic Seneca Falls Women's Rights Convention. Wright remained a prominent figure in the women's movement until her death in 1875 at age sixty-eight, when she was president of the National...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1558494472
• ISBN13: 9781558494473
• Release Date: July 2004
• Publisher: University of Massachusetts Press
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 8.9"
• Age Range: 19 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

Very well done indeed

This book is a model for a relatively concise but thorough biography of an under-appreciated historical figure. The writing is skillful, and the text benefits immensely from extensive quotations from Wright's voluminous letters. Wright's voice is lively and witty and she makes very good company for the 7 or 8 hours required to read this book. In the eyes of history, Wright has been overshadowed by her older sister Lucretia Mott and her contemporaries Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony. But her central participation in both the woman's rights and anti-slavery causes secures her a place as one of the giants of the mid-19th century. Wright believed strongly in the benefits of free expression and complete tolerance even of shocking views expressed by others. She thus anticipated many intellectual currents of the late 20th century. This book is very much worth reading.

Interesting History

I am a descendent of Martha Coffin Wright and I had not know about her illustrious history before I read this book. I felt compelled to educate myself about her and her daughter Ellen who is my great grandmother. I had received a call from the National Park Service to ask me how I felt about being a relative of Martha Coffin Wright and did I know about the National Monument at Seneca Falls, New York and that then Mrs. Clinton would speak at the official celebration of the signing of the Women's Rights Manefesto. I was ignorant of the association of my family with the signers of the Document as I had been blinded by the weight of my patriarchal lineage from the Garrison side. I was thrilled to learn of the depth of the involvement of Martha Wright and Lucretia Coffin Mott, her older sister, and her daughter Ellen and their many adventures with the Underground Railway, especially through their deep connection with Sojourner Truth. I have since met James Livingston and connected with him about our relationship and I enjoy being open to a whole new aspect of my family history.