After the Civil War, Americans experienced change on a massive scale. They lived through emancipation, the rise and fall of Reconstruction reforms, technological advancements, rapid urbanization, an industrial boom unlike any other in the nation’s history, and an influx of immigrants from countries all over the world. By the end of the nineteenth century, during the Progressive Era (approximately 1890-1920), new opportunities emerged for women in the professional world and in society.
With the massive flow of people into cities and factory towns, issues associated with industrialization, urbanization and systemic racism came to the fore--like public health and safety, and dangerous working conditions in factories--issues that overwhelmingly impacted women and children. Women took up the baton to address them--working, middle and upper class women mobilized to combat these issues. Many thought it was natural for women to focus on problems in domestic spaces considered to be the realm of women--like the health and wellbeing of children.
As women around the country mobilized to pursue reform to protect those in need, they utilized local chapters of women’s organizations like the National Association of Colored Women (NACW) and the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA). It was within these spheres that the Women’s Suffrage movement grew.