Eliza D. Stewart
1816 - 1908
"Mother Stewart" as she is affectionately called, is the pioneering spirit behind the local and statewide temperance movement. In 1858 she lectures on and promotes temperance for the "Good Templars Society". During the Civil War she serves the wounded soldiers as well as standing guard while on picket duty protecting against the threat of Morgan's Raiders in 1863. She successfully joins and leads the 1873 "Women's Whiskey War" against the Springfield saloon owners being the first women ever to speak publicly for the cause of temperance. Stewart's persistence in persuading the men of the city council to pass the law to close Springfield's saloons on Sunday brings national attention. Because of her commitment to the early temperance movement in 1874, Mother Stewart becomes the first president of Ohio of the Women's Christian Temperance Union. She later travels to Great Britain becoming instrumental in founding the British WCTU. She also wholeheartedly campaigns for women's suffrage. Her house still stands at 215 South Yellow Springs Street, Springfield Ohio.
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Location. 39° 56.271′ N, 83° 49.375′ W. Marker is in Springfield, Ohio, in Clark County. It can be reached from West McCreight Avenue. Marker is in Section L of Ferncliff Cemetery. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 501 West McCreight Avenue, Springfield OH 45504, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Ohio’s Dayton Metro and in the Miami Valley. It is also in the American Midwest and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, and the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Asa Smith Bushnell (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); United States Colored Troops (about 400 feet away); Union Soldiers Monument (about 400 feet away); James Leffel (about 600 feet
Also see . . .
1. Eliza Daniel Stewart. Wikipedia entry (Submitted on November 29, 2024, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)
2. Woman's Crusade of 1873-74. Ohio State University website (Submitted on March 25, 2015, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.)
Credits. This page was last revised on November 29, 2024. It was originally submitted on March 25, 2015, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. This page has been viewed 955 times since then and 37 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on March 25, 2015, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. 2. submitted on November 29, 2024, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. 3, 4. submitted on March 25, 2015, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.
