In addition to her standing as an early and important collector of Impressionist art, Louisine Havemeyer was an advocate of women's rights. in 1919.
Suffrage activist After her husband's death in 1907, Mrs. Havemeyer focused her attention on the
women's suffrage movement. In 1912 she lent her artistic collection to
Knoedler's Gallery in New York to raise money for the cause. With the financial backing of Mrs. Havemeyer and others like her, Ms. Paul launched an increasingly confrontational series of protests that agitated for the right to vote. Paul's most famous efforts were the
1913 National Suffrage Parade, which produced a riot on the eve of President
Woodrow Wilson's first inauguration and, as a member of the
Silent Sentinels, the wartime picketing of the White House. During the latter, Paul used portions of the President's speeches heralding the defense of democracy in Europe which she masterfully contrasted with the denial of liberty to American women. When jailed for obstructing traffic in 1917, she hunger struck, bringing tremendous pressure to bear on the Congress and Wilson Administration. The
Nineteenth Amendment, which extended voting rights to women, was debated by Congress, gained the necessary 2/3 votes in 1919, was sent to the states for ratification, and gained the necessary 3/4 of states ratifying in 1920. Louisine Havemeyer became a well-known suffragist, publishing two articles about her work for the cause in ''
Scribner's Magazine''. The first, entitled "The Prison Special: Memories of a Militant", appeared in May 1922, and the other, "The Suffrage Torch: Memories of a Militant" appeared in June the same year. In 1912 and 1915, Mrs. Havemeyer organized exhibitions of art works from her collection at
Knoedler Gallery to raise funds to support suffrage efforts. She participated in marches, much to the dismay of her children , down New York's famed Fifth Avenue and addressed a standing room only audience at
Carnegie Hall upon the completion of a nationwide speaking tour. A famous photograph of Mrs. Havemeyer shows her with an electric torch, similar in design to that of the
Statue of Liberty, among other prominent suffragists. Her attempt to burn an effigy of President Wilson outside the White House in 1919 drew national attention. After a period of failing health, Mrs. Havemeyer died in 1929. Mrs. Havemeyer is interred at
Green-Wood Cemetery in
Brooklyn,
New York. The terms of her will left a few choice paintings to the
Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. The final bequest, made possible by the generosity of her children, included nearly two-thousand works that enrich nearly every segment of the museum's collections. Many Tiffany pieces from her Fifth Avenue home, including a magnificent peacock mantelpiece decoration, and a chandelier are on permanent display at the
University of Michigan Museum of Art. A portion of the Music Room furniture suite is on view at the
Shelburne Museum.
Family legacy Louisine's children would continue to build upon their family's legacy as art collectors. Louisine's daughter
Electra Havemeyer Webb collected American fine and folk paintings and sculpture that helped to found the
Shelburne Museum. The museum showcases a "collection of collections" in fine examples of early American homes and public buildings; a general store, meeting house, log cabin, and even a steamship dot the grounds. Her great-grandson,
John Wilmerding, is a well known professor of art, collector, and
curator, and is best known as a prolific author of books on American art. Her daughter Adaline and son Horace Havemeyer, and grandsons Horace Havemeyer, Jr. and Harry W. Havemeyer bequeathed several works from
Vermeer,
Goya,
Corot,
Manet, and others to the
National Gallery of Art.
Paintings bequeathed to the Metropolitan Museum of Art ==See also==