Carry
Moore, the daughter of a prosperous plantation owner, was born in
Kentucky on 25th November, 1846. She married Dr. Charles Gloyd in
1867 but left him because of his drinking. After his death she married
the lawyer David Nation.
Carry
Nation ran a small hotel in Columbia, Texas. Later
the family moved to Medicine Lodge, Kansas, where David Nation became
pastor of the local church.
A
supporter
of women's suffrage, Nation became an
active member of the Women's Christian Temperance
Union (WCTU). The main objective of the WCTU was to persuade all
states to prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages.
In
1880 Kansas adopted a constitutional amendment prohibiting the manufacture
and sale of intoxicating beverages, except for medicinal purposes.
When saloon owners violated the law, Nation went to the bar and used
to sing hymns and pray for the souls of the patrons.
On
1st June, 1900 Nation began to take direct action against people violating
the law by attacking three illegal saloons in Kiowa. At first she
used stones and brickbats but later employed a hatchet to destroy
furniture and mirrors in these saloons. At Wichita
she
attacked a picture of a nude woman in a saloon and as a result was
kept in jail for five weeks.
Between
1900 and 1910 Nation was arrested 30 times and spent a great deal
of time in prison. Her
autobiography, The Use and Need of the Life
of Carry A. Nation, helped to publicize her campaign. One
New York saloon put up a sign: "All
Nations Welcome Except Carry!"
Carry
Nation
died on 9th June, 1911.
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