Ohio

Historical Highlights of Ohio Motherhood

The history of motherhood in Ohio parallels the national history of motherhood, and American history at large. Ohio became a state in 1803, and prior to that time was part of the Western Reserve, land designated for Revolutionary War veterans and refugees, and the Northwest Territory. Many of Ohio's first mothers were frontier women, raising families and establishing homesteads throughout the state. As opportunities for mothers grew nationally, so did opportunities for Ohio mothers. In some cases, however, Ohio mothers started national trends. The Temperance Movement, with Frances Willard and Elizabeth Jane Trimble “Mother” Thompson, started in Ohio prior to the Civil War, as women crusaded to protect their families from alcoholism and the domestic abuse often associated with excessive drinking. The Women's Christian Temperance Union was established in Westerville, Ohio, in 1874, gained national support, and eventually succeeded in prohibiting the consumption of alcohol in the United States with the ratification of the Eighteenth Amendment to the constitution.

As the home of the most presidents, Ohio was dubbed “The Mother of Presidents” during the 1912 presidential race.

Not everyone embraced new opportunities for Ohio mothers in the early part of the 20th century. Ohio was one of a handful of states to create a Mothers Pension law out of concerns of women entering the industrializing workforce. In an effort to discourage mothers from leaving their homes [Page 942]to work, the Mothers Pension was established in 1913, and authorized payments to Ohio mothers—$15 for the first child, followed by $7 for each additional child. Decades later, Ohio legislators introduced the Dunn Bill, which would have prohibited Ohio employers from hiring married women. The bill was pushed aside with the American entrance into World War II.

Famous Ohio mothers include Halle Berry, actress; Erma Bombeck, humor columnist; Cassie Chadwick, notorious con artist; Doris Day, actress and animal rights activist; Nancy Matthews Elliott Edison, mother of Thomas Edison; Toni Morrison, Nobel prize-winning author, editor, and professor; and Victoria Woodhull, the first woman to run for U.S. president.

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