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Wintersville Woman’s Club having membership promotion theme at October meeting

MEETING MOMENTS — The September meeting of the Wintersville Woman’s Club at St. Florian Event Center included a local history program presentation given by Susan Adams, right, secretary/treasurer of the Harrison County Genealogical Society. She was introduced by Iris Craig, first vice president. -- Janice Kiaski

WINTERSVILLE — The Wintersville Woman’s Club will hear about membership promotion from one of its own when the club holds its October meeting and embraces as its project, a “Bushel Basket of New Members,” this month.

Robbie Young, recording secretary, is listed as the program presenter for the organization’s Oct. 15 noon luncheon and business meeting at St. Florian Event Center where members have been encouraged to bring a guest/prospective member and a tea cup and to wear hats and gloves. Prizes for the hat and tea cup contest will be awarded in addition to a door prize.

Mary Beth Allan will give the meditation and grace and also serve as a meeting hostess along with Iris Craig, Pat Ketzell, Aimee Jaros and Marjean Sizemore.

The question “What is your favorite tea?” will be used to conduct roll call.

The meeting is the second in the group’s 2020-21 club year with the Sept. 17 gathering presided over by club President Pat Ketzell.

The program presenter, introduced by Iris Craig, first vice president, was local historian Susan Adams, secretary/treasurer of the Harrison County Genealogical Society. Her topic was Melinda Louise “Linda” Warfel Slaughter, who was born in Harrison County in 1843.

A daughter, sister, wife, mother, poet, postmaster, educator, lawyer, author and activist, Slaughter made an impact in Kentucky and Tennessee for the freed slaves after the Civil War, going on to become the “First Lady of the Dakota Territory,” according to Adams, who provided the club with a bulletin listing points of interest about Slaughter. They included:

¯ Slaughter founded the Historical Society of Bismarck and was its president. In 1889, she negotiated a merger with the state historical society that preserved a place for women to vote and hold office in the new organization. She became the first vice president and served on the board until 1907.

¯ Slaughter supported and organized for the Knights of Labor, one of the nation’s early labor unions.

¯ Slaughter was a charter member of the Daughters of the American Revolution Society.

¯ In the 1890s, Slaughter was active in the Women’s Christian Temperance Union in Bismarck as its press superintendent.

¯ In 1888, she was the state vice president of the National Women’s Suffrage Association and was elected a member of its executive committee a year later. She became friends with Susan B. Anthony and spent time in Washington, D.C., because of her involvement with the organization.

¯ Slaughter also spent time in Washington beause of her writing for the Bismarck Tribune. She began by contributing articles for publication and eventually became a Washington correspondent for Dakota Territory newspapers. She served as vice president of the Women’s National Press Association.

¯ In Omaha, Neb., in 1892, Slaughter was the first woman to vote for a presidential candidate in a national convention when she was a delegate for the People’s Party.

¯ She was admitted to the bar in Washington in 1895.

¯ She sent the first telegram ever transmitted from Bismarck to the outside world.

¯ Slaughter wrote, sometimes using the name Zezula, the squaw who helps, which had been given to her by an Indian friend she knew at Fort Rice. She published a series of letters and pamphlets describing life in North Dakota. In 1902 she wrote the words to North Dakota’s state song. She also wrote articles about history for publication. Her last articles were about Sitting Bull published by Sports Afield (1903-04). In 1906, she wrote a lengthy piece for the state historical society about the early settlement of the state, military activity and Indian resistance.

In club business, Ketzell called the meeting to order and led in the Pledge of Allegiance and club collect. Young read the minutes of the June meeting; Jaros, corresponding secretary, read thank-you notes and organizations’ requests for assistance, financial and otherwise; and Karen Hill, treasurer, gave the financial report.

Reports included one on the RADA cutlery fundraiser with Mary Lucille Smith reminding members to turn in orders at the October meeting.

Ketzell told members that it was voted at the summer board meeting to not hold the Holiday Splendor fundraiser in December. “It was with a very heavy heart that we did that, but we did that out of precaution over COVID, people not wanting to be in close proximity, and we feared that relying on our merchants for gifts and they’re all struggling very hard right now,” Ketzell commented. “We thought it would be hard for them to donate to us,” she added, challenging members to “put on your thinking caps” and consider some smaller, doable fundraisers the club might pursue.

Allan reported Information Day was held in August with five Wintersville club members attending and six Southeast District clubs represented overall. The fall conference meeting in October will be conducted through Zoom.

Marjean Sizemore, state president and local club member, shared how representatives of the club acknowledged the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment that gave women the right to vote by donning period attire and carrying signs in August, walking along a section of Main Street. Participants included Wintersville Mayor Bob Gale.

The September meeting included the presentation of a scrapbook to Allan for her service as club president for two terms. The scrapbook was created and presented by Carol Yaich and Young.

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