Mormon Matriarchs: LDS Women, the World’s Congress of Representative Women, and the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago

Mormon women were not only involved in the Territory of Utah’s exhibitions and the Tabernacle Choir; they also were active participants in a variety of Columbian Exposition events, most notably the 1893 World’s Congress of Representative Women. In Chicago LDS women represented their religion and their gender, both of which had been struggling for an improved position in America throughout the late nineteenth century. Two years earlier, female leaders of the LDS Relief Society and the Young Ladies’ Mutual Improvement Association successfully petitioned for membership in the feminist National Council of Women during its inaugural meeting. These Mormon women were delighted when Susan B. Anthony welcomed them to stand shoulder to shoulder with their fellow American women, despite anti-Mormon opposition to their application. Thereafter, LDS women served as energetic delegates at national feminist gatherings, proving both to themselves and to the male-dominated LDS hierarchy that they had a voice and that it would be heard beyond the borders of Utah.

Nevertheless, most historians are surprised to learn that Mormon women helped plan the first International Council of Women, held in conjunction with the Chicago World’s Fair of 1893. While in the White City, LDS women not only attended the week-long World’s Congress of Representative Women, they also presented several papers, chaired sessions, and voted on resolutions impacting their gender. Through this event, Mormon women were able to reunite with their national and international counterparts. The World’s Congress of Representative Women was an empowering turning point for how LDS women saw themselves and how they were viewed.  In turn, it was one of the first efforts at exhibiting Mormon belief and practice to broader American society and to the world.