Part of a series of articles titled The M'Clintock House & Women's Rights: Opportunities for Learning .
Article
The M'Clintock House & Women's Rights: Opportunities for Learning (4: Present-Day M'Clintock House)
Built in 1836, the M'Clintock House (located at 14 E. Williams Street) was home to Thomas and Mary Ann M’Clintock and their children. They lived there for 20 years. The house saw many reform movements discussed and debated under its roof, including women's rights, abolition, and temperance.
In 1848, Mary Ann M’Clintock, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, Martha C. Wright, and Jane Hunt planned the Seneca Falls Convention at M’Clintock’s home. There, the women wrote the famous Declaration of Sentiments. The document outlined their views on the role of women in society.
Other people lived in the house at between 1856 and 1875. For most of the next 100 years it served as the parsonage for the Baptist Church that was built next door, though other people lived there at various times as well. In 1980, the house became part of Women's Rights National Historical Park.
1. If you walked past this building without knowing its history, would you suspect that it is important? Why or why not? What is ordinary about it and what might be a clue to its significance?
2. Why do you think the M’Clintock House is part of a National Park? How is it an important place in American history?
3. Why do you think one family was involved in activism for three different issues: abolition (anti-slavery), temperance (anti-alcohol), and women’s rights? What do you think these things have in common?
Activities
Below you’ll find more structured activities that prompt you to explore the significance of social movements and civil rights history. These projects can be done in a classroom setting, with a group of people, or on your own. Curriculum standards are included for classroom use. The activities are intended to spark curiosity about American social and cultural history, deepening understanding about the long quest for civil rights over the centuries.
This learning opportunity meets Common Core Curriculum Standards.
It relates to the following National Standards for History:
- Standard 3A- The student understands the changing character of American political life in "the age of the common man."
- Standard 4B- The student understands how Americans strived to reform society and create a distinct culture.
- Standard 4C- The student understands changing gender roles and the ideas and activities of women reformers.
The lesson plan relates to the following Social Studies Standards:
Theme I: Culture
- Standard D- The student explains why individuals and groups respond differently to their physical and social environments and/or changes to them on the basis of shared assumptions, values, and beliefs.
- Standard B - The student identifies and uses key concepts such as chronology, causality, change, conflict, and complexity to explain, analyze, and show connections among patterns of historical change and continuity.
- Standard C - The student identifies and describes selected historical periods and patterns of change within and across cultures, such as the rise of civilizations, the development of transportation systems, the growth and breakdown of colonial systems, and others.
- Standard E - The student develops critical sensitivities such as empathy and skepticism regarding attitudes, values, and behaviors of people in different historical contexts.
- Standard D - The student estimates distance, calculates scale, and distinguishes other geographic relationships such as population density and spatial distribution patterns.
- Standard H - The student examines, interprets, and analyzes physical and cultural patterns and their interactions, such as land use, settlement patterns, cultural transmission of customs and ideas, and ecosystem changes.
- Standard C - The student describes the ways family, gender, ethnicity, nationality, and institutional affiliations contribute to personal identity.
- Standard D - The student relates such factors as physical endowment and capabilities, learning, motivation, personality, perception, and behavior to individual development.
- Standard F - The student identifies and describes the influence of perception, attitudes, values, and beliefs on personal identity.
- Standard G - The student identifies and interprets examples of stereotyping, conformity, and altruism.
- Standard A - The student demonstrates an understanding of concepts such as role, status, and social class in describing the interactions of individuals and social groups.
- Standard B - The student analyzes groups and institutional influences on people, events, and elements of culture.
- Standard D - The student identifies and analyzes examples of tensions between expressions of individuality and group or institutional efforts to promote social conformity
- Standard E - The student identifies and describes examples of tensions between belief systems and government policies and laws.
- Standard f - The student describes the role of institutions in furthering both continuity and change.
- Standard G - The student applies knowledge of how groups and institutions work to meet individual needs and promote the common good.
- Standard A - The student examines persistent issues involving the rights, roles, and status of the individual in relation to the general welfare.
- Standard H - The student explains and applies concepts such as power, role, status, justice, and influence to the examination of persistent issues and social problems.
- Standard A - The student gives and explains examples of ways that economic systems structure choices about how goods and services are to be produced and distributed
- Standard B - The student describes the role that supply and demand, prices, incentives, and profits play in determining what is produced and distributed in a competitive market system.
- Standard E -The student describes the role of specialization and exchange in the economic process.
- Standard F - The student explains and illustrates how values and beliefs influence different economic decisions.
- Standard G - The student differentiates among various forms of exchange and money.
- Standard I - The student uses economic concepts to help explain historical and current developments and issues in local, national, or global contexts.
- Standard A - The student examines the origins and continuing influence of key ideals of the democratic republican form of government, such as individual human dignity, liberty, justice, equality, and the rule of law.
- Standard C - The student locates, accesses, analyzes, organizes, and applies information about selected public issues - recognizing and explaining multiple points of view.
The M'Clintocks were involved in a number of reform movements. Use books, textbooks, and/or other resources to list some of the social problems that Americans faced in the 19th century.
Choose the one you are most interested in and research how reformers tried to improve conditions. Citing evidence, prepare a report that addresses who led the reform, their background, solutions proposed, methods used to promote change, degree of success, and what affected their efforts.
This activity can be broadened to include other classrooms, groups, or individuals with others choosing a reformation topic from the 19th century.
Resources
Abolition of Slavery
1. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History provides several primary and secondary resources on abolition. (https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-now/2005-09/abolition)
2. The New York Public Primary library provides an overview on abolition. (http://abolition.nypl.org/print/abolition/)
Alcohol Prohibition
1. The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) provides information on the alcohol prohibition movement including the Temperance Movement. (http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/prohibition/roots-of-prohibition/)
2. The Ohio History Connection provides information on the Temperance Movement. (http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Temperance_Movement)
Labor Reform
1. The University of Albany provides a brief history on labor in the United States. (https://www.albany.edu/history/history316/LaborMovementHistory1.html)
2. The Library of Congress provide primary source pictures on child labor (http://www.loc.gov/pictures/search/?st=grid&co=nclc).
3. U.S. History provides a history on the labor reform movement in the United States (http://www.ushistory.org/us/37.asp).
Education Reform
1. University of Houston provides an overview of education reform in the 19th century (http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3535).
Choose the one you are most interested in and research how reformers tried to improve conditions. Citing evidence, prepare a report that addresses who led the reform, their background, solutions proposed, methods used to promote change, degree of success, and what affected their efforts.
This activity can be broadened to include other classrooms, groups, or individuals with others choosing a reformation topic from the 19th century.
Resources
Abolition of Slavery
1. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History provides several primary and secondary resources on abolition. (https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-now/2005-09/abolition)
2. The New York Public Primary library provides an overview on abolition. (http://abolition.nypl.org/print/abolition/)
Alcohol Prohibition
1. The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) provides information on the alcohol prohibition movement including the Temperance Movement. (http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/prohibition/roots-of-prohibition/)
2. The Ohio History Connection provides information on the Temperance Movement. (http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Temperance_Movement)
Labor Reform
1. The University of Albany provides a brief history on labor in the United States. (https://www.albany.edu/history/history316/LaborMovementHistory1.html)
2. The Library of Congress provide primary source pictures on child labor (http://www.loc.gov/pictures/search/?st=grid&co=nclc).
3. U.S. History provides a history on the labor reform movement in the United States (http://www.ushistory.org/us/37.asp).
Education Reform
1. University of Houston provides an overview of education reform in the 19th century (http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3535).
The people who met in Seneca Falls were not the only ones trying to increase the rights of women. In many other places across the U.S., both before and since 1848, women and men worked to give women the chance to achieve equal standing in politics, business, law, and other aspects of society.
Use old newspapers, information from the local historical society, and other sources to research an important event in their community that reflected the battle over women's rights. As you investigate, keep the following questions in mind:
What was the issue?
Who were the main participants?
What were the primary arguments on both sides?
Who ultimately triumphed? Why?
Citing evidence from your readings and sources, present your findings to the community, in a journal article, in an oral report, or another format that effectively tells their audience what happened and why.
Use old newspapers, information from the local historical society, and other sources to research an important event in their community that reflected the battle over women's rights. As you investigate, keep the following questions in mind:
What was the issue?
Who were the main participants?
What were the primary arguments on both sides?
Who ultimately triumphed? Why?
Citing evidence from your readings and sources, present your findings to the community, in a journal article, in an oral report, or another format that effectively tells their audience what happened and why.
Still curious about women's rights? Check out the following resources:
-Learn more about the Declaration of Sentiments.
-Explore more women’s rights lesson plans.
-Find more educational resources on the M’Clintock Family.
Other Resources:
Women’s Rights National Historical Park
The M'Clintock House is one part of this unit of the National Park Service. The park's web pages offer an in-depth look at what occurred in Waterloo and Seneca Falls including:
-A summary of the First Women's Rights Convention;
-A listing of those who attended the convention and biographies of the important leaders, such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott;
-A time line of the major reform movements of the 19th century.
Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument
The Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument is the home of the National Woman’s Party. Its website contains information on the Equal Rights Movement and on the Suffrage Movement.
Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site
Eleanor Roosevelt was a champion of Universal Human Rights. This site is dedicated to her and contains information about her life including during World War II along with suggested readings on human rights.
Mary McLeod Bethune Council House
Mary McLeod Bethune fought for racial and gender equality. The national historic site and its website includes information about her personal life along with information on civil rights and women’s rights.
National Park Service Women's History Website
The National Park Service and the National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers created the Women's History and Travel Where Women Made History websites.
-Learn more about the Declaration of Sentiments.
-Explore more women’s rights lesson plans.
-Find more educational resources on the M’Clintock Family.
Other Resources:
Women’s Rights National Historical Park
The M'Clintock House is one part of this unit of the National Park Service. The park's web pages offer an in-depth look at what occurred in Waterloo and Seneca Falls including:
-A summary of the First Women's Rights Convention;
-A listing of those who attended the convention and biographies of the important leaders, such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott;
-A time line of the major reform movements of the 19th century.
Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument
The Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument is the home of the National Woman’s Party. Its website contains information on the Equal Rights Movement and on the Suffrage Movement.
Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site
Eleanor Roosevelt was a champion of Universal Human Rights. This site is dedicated to her and contains information about her life including during World War II along with suggested readings on human rights.
Mary McLeod Bethune Council House
Mary McLeod Bethune fought for racial and gender equality. The national historic site and its website includes information about her personal life along with information on civil rights and women’s rights.
National Park Service Women's History Website
The National Park Service and the National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers created the Women's History and Travel Where Women Made History websites.
Last updated: August 29, 2019