Guide to the Jennie Bradley Roessing Papers, 1887-1962 AIS.1964.24

Arrangement

Repository
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Title
Jennie Bradley Roessing Papers
Creator
Roessing, Jennie Bradley
Collection Number
AIS.1964.24
Extent
1.875 Linear Feet
Date
1887-1962
Abstract
Jennie Bradley Roessing was an active participant in the women's suffrage movement in the early 1900s and various Pittsburgh-area civic, labor, and community organizations through the late 1950s. This collection includes personal papers, correspondence, newspaper clippings, travel diaries, photographs, architectural drawings, pamphlets, speeches, and memorabilia.
Language
English .
Author
Archives Service Center Staff. Revisions occurred to the finding aid as a part of the encoding process in Spring 2001.
Publisher
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Address
University of Pittsburgh Library System
Archives & Special Collections
Website: library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections
Contact Us: www.library.pitt.edu/ask-archivist
URL: http://library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections

Biography

Born in Pittsburgh on May 11, 1881, Jennie Bradley was the daughter of John Bradley, a successful tailor and Anna Marie (Friedrich) Bradley. She married and later divorced Frank M. Roessing, a civil engineer. Although these events greatly influenced her later work for women's suffrage, little documentation exists on this period of her life. Roessing died in Pittsburgh on May 15, 1963.

Jennie Bradley Roessing's began campaining for women's suffrage in 1904 when Roessing organized the Allegheny County Equal Rights Association (ACERA) with Hannah Patterson, Mary Flinn, Lucy Kennedy, and Mary Bakewell. The Equal Rights Franchise Federation of Western Pennsylvania replaced ACERA in 1910, and Roessing served as vice-president. Lucy Kennedy, Mary Bakewell, and Hannah Patterson also gained leadership positions.

As a leader in the Equal Rights Franchise Federation, Roessing was elected president of the Pennsylvania Woman Suffrage Association (PWSA) in 1912. Due to health problems, she took a leave of absence from February to November 1914. Hannah Patterson served as the association's president during this time.

In order to increase the PWSA's efforts to pass a women's suffrage bill in the Pennsylvania legislature, Roessing and Patterson embarked on an intensive lobbying effort to gain votes in Harrisburg. They traveled the state extensively, giving lectures and attending public events. As an attempt to arouse public interest, the PWSA scheduled a four-month statewide tour of the Liberty Bell of Suffrage. Despite their efforts, the bill was narrowly defeated on November 2, 1915.

After the failure of the women's suffrage amendment, Roessing continued to pressure policy makers at the national level. She served as a chairperson of the National American Woman Suffrage Association under Carrie Chapman Catt. Women gained the right to vote in 1920.

Roessing was involved in various community organizations, including the English Speaking Union, the First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh, the Pittsburgh Symphony Society, the University of Pittsburgh, and the Audubon Society, among others. She served as the recording secretary for the Twentieth Century Club, a literary organization devoted to the social and intellectual improvement of its members. Roessing volunteered her time as treasurer of Pittsburgh Play Grounds, Vacation Schools, and Recreation Parks.

Scope and Content Notes

This collection includes personal papers, correspondence, newspaper clippings, travel diaries, photographs, architectural drawings, pamphlets, speeches, and memorabilia compiled by Jennie Bradley Roessing. Much of the material relates to Roessing's participation in the campaign for women's suffrage and a variety of other social and cultural organizations. Of particular note, besides the suffrage material, are the few folders documenting Roessing's Pittsburgh home, Dunrovin, her landscaping work at the First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh and at Waverly Park in England, her work with local and national unions, and the extensive newsclippings on the many community groups and social issues with which Roessing was involved.

Access Restrictions

No restrictions.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Mrs. Ann L. Park, March 11, 1964.

Previous Citation

Jennie Bradley Roessing Papers, 1887-1962, AIS.1964.24, Archives Service Center, University of Pittsburgh.

Preferred Citation

Jennie Bradley Roessing Papers, 1887-1962, AIS.1964.24, Archives & Special Collections, University of Pittsburgh Library System

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Rebecca Fultz-Wargo in Spring 2001 and reprocessed by David R. Lewis in 2017.

Copyright

Permission for publication is given on behalf of the University of Pittsburgh as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Arrangement

This series is arranged into the following series:

I. Allegheny Conference on Community Development

II. Audubon Society

III. Dunrovin (home)

IV. England

V. English-Speaking Union

VI. Federal Union, Inc.

VII. First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh

VIII. Judge Sara M. Soffel

IX. Other Civic Engagement

X. Personal

XI. Pittsburgh History and Development

XII. Pittsburgh Pirates

XIII. Pittsburgh Symphony and Musical Interests

XIV. Suffrage and Women's Issues

XV. University of Pittsburgh

XVI. Photographic Material

Subjects

    Corporate Names

    • Pittsburgh Regional Planning Association
    • United Nations
    • University of Pittsburgh
    • Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania
    • English-Speaking Union
    • Federal Union (U.S.)
    • Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
    • First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Pittsburgh Symphony Society
    • Kenyon College
    • Allegheny Conference on Community Development (Pa.)

    Personal Names

    • McCormick, Katherine Dexter
    • McCormick, Stanley
    • Patterson, Hannah
    • Roessing, Jennie Bradley
    • Soffel, Sara M.
    • Beversdorf, Norma
    • Beversdorf, Thomas
    • Bradley, John
    • Catt, Carrie Chapman

    Geographic Names

    • England
    • Pittsburgh (Pa.)

    Other Subjects

    • Personal papers
    • Social action
    • Women
    • Women -- Suffrage -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh
    • Women -- Suffrage

Container List