Educator, suffragist, and community activist Sadie Adams of Chicago, Illinois.
Many hardworking educators dedicate their expertise and energy towards improving the lives of all Americans. One of these was Sadie Adams, a school teacher from Virginia who also worked towards securing the vote for women.
Sadie was born in Staunton, Augusta County, Virginia, on February 24, 1872, just seven years after the end of the Civil War. She was one of three children born to William and Fanny (Moseby) Lewis. Sadie attended public schools in Staunton. After her high school graduation, she enrolled in Hartshorn Memorial College located in Richmond, Virginia. She earned her teaching certificate at Hartshorn.
After her college graduation, Sadie inaugurated her career as an educator in the Staunton Public School system. Her work as a teacher continued until she married James P. Adams in 1892. The union produced three children.
Once her children were grown, the couple moved to Chicago in 1910. Once settled there, Sadie launched herself into community improvement activities. She served as the recording secretary for the Home Missionary Society, and did volunteer work at Provident Hospital, where she weighed and recorded vital statistics on infants. She served as the treasurer of Chicago’s Inter-Racial Cooperative Committee, an organization which conducted fundraising to support the Amanda Smith Industrial School for Girls located in Harvey, Illinois. In fact, Sadie was one of the founders of that school. Later she served as a trustee on that institution’s school board.
When World War I erupted, Sadie’s only son enlisted in the military. While her son was abroad fighting on the front lines, the former teacher volunteered at the State Council of Defense, an organization that enlisted women to aid in the war effort.
Once the war was over, Sadie threw her energy into earning the right to vote for women. She served on Chicago’s Election Board, and she was one of the founders of the Douglas League of Women Voters. In 1916, the Alpha Suffrage Club, the first African American suffrage organization in Chicago, selected her to serve as their delegate to the National Equal Rights League Conference. In addition, Sadie was elected president of the Chicago and Northern District Association of Colored Women’s Clubs in 1921. She served in this capacity until 1934. In April, 1922, Sadie was selected y the National League of Women Voters to be a delegate at the convention of the Pan-American Congress. When she attended the gathering in Baltimore, Maryland, she was the only African American delegate to represent Illinois.
This remarkable educator passed away on July 30, 1945, at the age of 73. She is interred at Lincoln Cemetery in Blue Island, Cook County, Illinois.
