Susan B. Anthony Family Origins: Massachusetts

Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum kitchen. Photo by Jeanne Gehret

The Anthony story begins in Adams, Massachusetts at the family homestead and Friends’ Cemetery. That home represents a fairly stable period in the relationship between the Anthonys and the Quakers.

Four of Lucy and Daniel’s six children were born there, including Susan and D.R., who will figure prominently on this blog. My visit to Adams brought about the renascence of my personal quest for all things Anthony, after a research break of several years.

The Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum looks out onto Mount Greylock, which inspired Susan her entire life. Behind the home, which Susan’s father Daniel built, runs Tophet Brook that powered Daniel’s cotton mill. Here Lucy, Susan’s mother, cooked, laundered and cleaned for more than a dozen people at an open hearth without any household help. The museum has dedicated the front of the house to a birthing room and Daniel’s prosperous store.

Jeanne Gehret portraying Susan B. Anthony at Quaker Meetinghouse, Adams, MA

The Anthonys worshipped at the Quaker Meeting House. Although the Quakers were ahead of their time in allowing women to speak in the Meeting, nevertheless the two sexes entered through different doors, as in this photo at right. (One of the advantages of this division is that the women sat closer to the fireplace!)