Cynthia Leonard
Encyclopedia
Cynthia Leonard was a suffragist, aid worker and writer, notable for her pioneering efforts toward social reform in the 19th Century. Born Cynthia Hicks Van Name, in Buffalo, New York
, she married Charles E. Leonard in 1852. They had eight children, the most famous of whom was the entertainer Helen Louise Leonard (later known as Lillian Russell
).
While a young woman in Buffalo, Leonard became the first woman to stand behind a counter as a salesperson and later became a member of Buffalo's first Woman's Social and Literary Club. Four years after her marriage, in 1856, the couple moved from Detroit, Michigan
to Clinton, Iowa
, where Charles Leonard founded the Clinton Herald
, that community's newspaper, still in existence today. Cynthia was on the executive committee of the Soldiers' Relief Association which established the first soldiers' home in the State of Iowa, attending to the housing needs of Union soldiers recently released from the 18th Regimental Hospital, then quartered in Clinton.
In 1863, Charles Leonard sold the Herald, and the couple moved to Chicago
. There Cynthia organized a fair to benefit the Freedman's Aid Society
, helped found the Chicago branch of Sorosis and was its editor for a time, and was a member of the Chicago Philosophical Society. In 1869, she led the spiritualist faction of the women's suffrage
movement at the Music Hall, one of the first women's suffrage meetings ever held in Chicago. Susan B. Anthony
was a frequent visitor in the Leonard home.
Cynthia organized the Good Samaritan Society, and after the great Chicago fire
, she established a homeless shelter for the "unfortunate" women of the city. She was instrumental in the decision to place matrons in Chicago prisons, and she authored two novels: Adventures of Lena Rouden, or the Rebel Spy and Fading Footprints, or the Last of the Iroquois.
After she separated from her husband, Cynthia took their two youngest daughters, "Nellie" (Helen, aka Lillian Russell
) and Suzanne, to New York City
to launch the girls' musical careers and to broaden her own political horizons. There she organized the Science of Life Club and in 1880 managed a benefit for starving women and children in Ireland. In 1888, she became the first woman to run for mayor
of New York City. She died in New Jersey in 1908.
In a May 3, 1914 interview with Djuna Barnes
, Lillian Russell
said: "To be a great woman, a great person, one must have suffered, even... suffered in great crises. What have I done that I should be famous--nothing but powdered a bit gently the cheeks that God gave me and smoothed the hair that I was born with, laughed and proven a faultless set of teeth. Any grinning idol, well painted, can do as well, but the real women, the big women, are those who toil and never write of it, those who labor and never cry of it, those who forfeit all and never seek reward. Begin this article with the name Lillian Russell
, but end it with the name of such as was Cynthia Leonard."
After the benefit for the Irish Famine, Cynthia Leonard was accused of mismanaging (keeping for herself) some of the funds raised at that event. See NY Times article from January 27, 1880.
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, she married Charles E. Leonard in 1852. They had eight children, the most famous of whom was the entertainer Helen Louise Leonard (later known as Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th century and early 20th century, known for her beauty and style, as well as for her voice and stage presence.Russell was born in Iowa but raised in Chicago...
).
While a young woman in Buffalo, Leonard became the first woman to stand behind a counter as a salesperson and later became a member of Buffalo's first Woman's Social and Literary Club. Four years after her marriage, in 1856, the couple moved from Detroit, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
to Clinton, Iowa
Clinton, Iowa
Clinton is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 26231as of 2010. Clinton, along with DeWitt, Iowa , was named in honor of the seventh governor of New York, DeWitt Clinton. Clinton is the principal city of the Clinton Micropolitan Statistical...
, where Charles Leonard founded the Clinton Herald
Clinton Herald
The Clinton Herald is a six-day daily newspaper published in Clinton, Iowa, and covering Clinton and Jackson counties in Iowa, and Carroll and Whiteside counties in Illinois.-Overview:...
, that community's newspaper, still in existence today. Cynthia was on the executive committee of the Soldiers' Relief Association which established the first soldiers' home in the State of Iowa, attending to the housing needs of Union soldiers recently released from the 18th Regimental Hospital, then quartered in Clinton.
In 1863, Charles Leonard sold the Herald, and the couple moved to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. There Cynthia organized a fair to benefit the Freedman's Aid Society
Freedman's Aid Society
The Freedmen’s Aid Society was founded in 1861 during the American Civil War by the American Missionary Association , a group supported chiefly by the Congregational, Presbyterian and Methodist churches in the North. It organized a supply of teachers from the North and provided housing for them,...
, helped found the Chicago branch of Sorosis and was its editor for a time, and was a member of the Chicago Philosophical Society. In 1869, she led the spiritualist faction of the women's suffrage
Women's suffrage
Women's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...
movement at the Music Hall, one of the first women's suffrage meetings ever held in Chicago. Susan B. Anthony
Susan B. Anthony
Susan Brownell Anthony was a prominent American civil rights leader who played a pivotal role in the 19th century women's rights movement to introduce women's suffrage into the United States. She was co-founder of the first Women's Temperance Movement with Elizabeth Cady Stanton as President...
was a frequent visitor in the Leonard home.
Cynthia organized the Good Samaritan Society, and after the great Chicago fire
Great Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
, she established a homeless shelter for the "unfortunate" women of the city. She was instrumental in the decision to place matrons in Chicago prisons, and she authored two novels: Adventures of Lena Rouden, or the Rebel Spy and Fading Footprints, or the Last of the Iroquois.
After she separated from her husband, Cynthia took their two youngest daughters, "Nellie" (Helen, aka Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th century and early 20th century, known for her beauty and style, as well as for her voice and stage presence.Russell was born in Iowa but raised in Chicago...
) and Suzanne, to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to launch the girls' musical careers and to broaden her own political horizons. There she organized the Science of Life Club and in 1880 managed a benefit for starving women and children in Ireland. In 1888, she became the first woman to run for mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of New York City. She died in New Jersey in 1908.
In a May 3, 1914 interview with Djuna Barnes
Djuna Barnes
Djuna Barnes was an American writer who played an important part in the development of 20th century English language modernist writing and was one of the key figures in 1920s and '30s bohemian Paris after filling a similar role in the Greenwich Village of the teens...
, Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th century and early 20th century, known for her beauty and style, as well as for her voice and stage presence.Russell was born in Iowa but raised in Chicago...
said: "To be a great woman, a great person, one must have suffered, even... suffered in great crises. What have I done that I should be famous--nothing but powdered a bit gently the cheeks that God gave me and smoothed the hair that I was born with, laughed and proven a faultless set of teeth. Any grinning idol, well painted, can do as well, but the real women, the big women, are those who toil and never write of it, those who labor and never cry of it, those who forfeit all and never seek reward. Begin this article with the name Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell
Lillian Russell was an American actress and singer. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th century and early 20th century, known for her beauty and style, as well as for her voice and stage presence.Russell was born in Iowa but raised in Chicago...
, but end it with the name of such as was Cynthia Leonard."
After the benefit for the Irish Famine, Cynthia Leonard was accused of mismanaging (keeping for herself) some of the funds raised at that event. See NY Times article from January 27, 1880.