Mary Church Terrell
19th Amendment Outdoor Museum
An African American suffragist who helped found the National Association of Colored Women in 1986 and served as its first national president. In addition, she was a founding member of the National Association of College Women.
In 1950, she started what would be a successful fight to integrate eating places in the District of Columbia. In the 1890s the District of Columbia had formalized segregation, as did states in the South. Before then, local integration laws dating to the 1870s had required all eating-place proprietors to serve any respectable, well-behaved person regardless of color, or face a $1,000 fine and forfeiture of their license. In 1949, Terrell and her colleagues entered the segregated Thompson Restaurant. When refused service, they promptly filed a lawsuit and won her case.
Erected 2020 by Maren Conrad.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Women. A significant historical year for this entry is 1986.
Location. 38° 34.529′ N, 121° 28.904′ W. Marker is in Sacramento, California, in Sacramento County. It is in Midtown. Marker is on 19th Street near K Street, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1900 K Street, Sacramento CA 95811, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8
More about this marker. The "1986" date provided on the marker is an error - Ms. Terrell became president of the NACW in 1896.
Regarding Mary Church Terrell. This is one of nineteen markers erected in 2020 as part of the "I Vote" project, honoring suffragettes and their work, and thus forming the 19th Amendment Outdoor Museum.
Also see . . .
1. Mary Church Terrell (Wikipedia). "Mary Church Terrell (born Mary Eliza Church; September 23, 1863 – July 24, 1954) was one of the first African-American women to earn a college degree, and became known as a national activist for civil rights and suffrage. She taught in the Latin Department at the M Street school (now known as Paul Laurence Dunbar High School)—the first African American public high school in the nation—in Washington, DC. In 1896, she was the first African-American woman in the United States to be appointed to the school board of a major city, serving in the District of Columbia until 1906. Terrell was a charter member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (1909) and the Colored Women's League of Washington (1894). She helped found the National Association of Colored Women (1896) and served as its first national president, and she was a founding member of the National Association of College Women (1910)." (Submitted on April 20, 2021.)
2. Mary Church Terrell (1863-1954) (BlackPast.org). (Submitted on April 20, 2021.)
3. Mary Church Terrell: Co-Founder of the NAACP | Unladylike2020 | PBS (YouTube, 12 min.). "Mary Church Terrell (1863-1954) became a national leader as founder of the National Association of Colored Women, coining its motto “Lifting As We Climb,” while also serving as a founding member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and actively wrote and spoke out about lynching and segregation throughout her life. " (Submitted on April 20, 2021.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on April 20, 2021, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. This page has been viewed 147 times since then and 8 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on April 20, 2021, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California.