Kate sheppard biography

In 1885 Mary Leavitt, an evangelist delegate from the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union of the United States of America, commenced her uppdrag in New Zealand and Kate Sheppard became a founding member of the New Zealand Women’s Christian Temperance Union. It was quickly realised by the union that proposed social and legislative reforms concerning temperance and the welfare of women and children would be more effectively carried out if women possessed the right to vote and the right to representation in Parliament. In 1887 franchise departments were formed within the local unions and Sheppard was appointed national chef of the franchise and legislation department.

In this position she was responsible for co-ordinating and encouraging the local unions: she prepared and distributed pamphlets, wrote letters to the press and stimulated debate within the WCTU, church meetings, and temperance and political societies. An accomplished public speaker and

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Kate Sheppard - A Biography - The Fight for Women's Votes in New Zealand - The Life of the Woman Who Led the Struggle

Penguin, 1992. Spine faded, otherwise good secondhand condition.

In this remarkable biography of Kate Sheppard, Devaliant paints a fascinating picture of the woman who led the campaign to win the vote for New Zealand women in the 1890s. When in 1893 New Zeaalnd became the first country in the world to grant women the vote, Kate Sheppard was the acknowledged leader of the women's franchise campaign, a tireless battler for women's rights. She was a founder member of the Women's Christian Temperance Union in 1885, and led the franchise campaign for several years. Later she helped establish the National Council of Women, and travelled widely overseasa. Here Devaliant traces Kate's life from her British childhood and her time as a young married woman in Christchurch through to her years of maturity as an astute and effective political campaigner