Abigail Hoge
One of the most famous milestones in women’s suffrage was the convention in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848. However, it wasn’t until 1915 that Pennsylvania’s legislature even attempted to grant women in the state the right to vote. The initiative failed statewide, and men in Greene County voted 1,694 “For” vs. 2,070 “Against”
Four years later, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the 19th Amendment. Two weeks later, the Senate also passed it. On June 24, 1919, Pennsylvania became the 7th state to ratify the 19th Amendment, which would ultimately give women the right to vote.
On Tuesday, November 2, 1920, Greene County women joined women across the country at the polls. One of the first women in line was Mrs. Abigail Hoge, who was 93 years old.
Women like Abigail Hoge showed exactly why the fight mattered. She represented decades of determination and hope.
Other Women’s Suffrage Pioneers
Dr. Phoebe Jane “Dr. Jane” Teagarden was born in Greene County in 1841. She was the first female physician in the county. She graduated from Women’s Medical College in Philadelphia and established a medical practice in Waynesburg. She helped found the Greene County Children’s Aid Society and served as its president for many years. She attended Waynesburg College, graduating with honors, and pursued a teaching career for a few years.
However, during the Civil War, Teagarden reportedly lost a beloved who died on the battlefield because of inattention. This alleged incident is thought to have influenced her choice to become a doctor.
During her time at medical school, Sarah met women’s rights activist Susan B. Anthony. She invited Anthony to speak at Waynesburg College. Anthony gave two lectures there and one in Carmichaels the following spring. Teagarden crossed paths with Anthony again in 1890 at the famous National American Woman’s Suffrage Association convention. Teagarden was the first woman to vote in Greene County.
“Aunt Betsy” Workman, who was once a slave in Virginia, joined Dr. Jane Teagarden, Abigail Hoge, and Mary Denny in Waynesburg’s Ward II district, to be among the first women to vote in the 1920 election.
The Waynesburg Republican newspaper was a champion of Women’s Suffrage and celebrated the victory of the 19th Amendment. Immediately after the amendment’s adoption, the newspaper began encouraging Greene County women to register and participate in the fall election. Local women took up the opportunity eagerly. They literally had just days to register if they wanted to vote in November.
Between the amendment’s adoption on August 26 and the registration deadline on September 1, 7,074 women in Greene County registered to vote, compared to 8,082 men who were already on the rolls.
From “New Voters Show Interest in Election” article, Waynesburg Republican, Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, 4 November 1920, page 1, column 2. Transcribed by Candice Buchanan.
We would like to credit Candice Buchanan (Greene Connections) and Joanne Marshall (Greene County Tourism) for much of the research and information available on these historical women.
Other Female Icons
Mary Temple Bayard (Mary Bayard Jamison) was born in Waynesburg in 1853. After briefly attending Waynesburg College, she married and put her writing dreams on hold.
However, her career began after writing an editorial published in a Waynesburg newspaper and subsequently copied in the Pittsburgh Post. Eventually, the Pittsburgh Dispatch, after having read some of her work under her pen name Meg, printed a request in their publication for her to make herself known.
This led to her employment with the Dispatch. From that point forward her work was in heavy demand. Later she would write for the Philadelphia Times. In 1893, Mary would present a paper entitled “Women in Journalism” at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. She was also a member of the Women’s National Press League, The Women’s Press Club of Pittsburgh, and The League of American Pen Women.
Bayard later returned to complete her degree at Waynesburg College and attended at the same time as her son.
Margaret (Bell) Miller (1826 – 1874) was an important educator and early advocate for coeducation in the mid-19th century. In 1849, when Waynesburg College was chartered, Margaret Bell was hired as one of its first professors, and she served as principal of the female education department.
Under her leadership, by 1851 the college began coed classrooms, marking a crucial early step toward educational equality. By 1852, the college graduated its first women with diplomas, and by 1857 women earned bachelor’s degrees.
In 1855 she married Alfred Brashear Miller, a mathematics professor who later became president of Waynesburg College. She continued teaching, advising students, and managing both academic and family responsibilities while raising eight children.
The former Margaret Bell Miller Middle School in Waynesburg was named for her and served the community for decades.
The First Female Graduates of Waynesburg College
In 1857, Waynesburg College was one of the first higher education institutions to graduate women with degrees. Prior to that, women that attended followed a shorter educational program than the men. Women’s diplomas did not receive the same significance as the men’s degrees. Reverend Jonathan Weethee became President of the college in 1855 and began advocating for equal education for all.
Laura Weethee Jennings, Lydia Ann Weethee Sparrow, and Margret Needham Still were the first women to complete degrees at the college. These women were pioneers in equal education, not just in the county or the state, but the country.
Greene County Women Sports Champions and Pioneers
Individual State Champions
Track
Jocelyn Lindsay (WCHS, Pole Vault, 1999 & 2002)
Marissa Kalsey (WCHS, Pole Vault, 2012)
Peyton Hampson (WCHS, Indoor 800M)
Taylor Shriver (WCHS, Pole Vault, 2021)
Swimming
Ella Menear (Mapletown, 100M Back /2021, 200M IM/2022 & 2023)
Golf
Rachel Rohanna (WCHS, 2005 & 2007)
PIAA Players of the Year
Madison and McKeena Lampe (West Greene, Softball, 2017)
Madison Renner (West Greene, Softball, 2018)
State Team Champions
Carmichaels Softball (1998)
West Greene Softball (2017 & 2018)
Historical Firsts
First Woman to Letter in Athletics at Waynesburg College
Linda Smith (Tennis, 1962)
First Greene County Girl to Score 1,000 Points in Basketball Career
Sally Walker (WCHS, 1978)
First Girl to Wrestle in a Boys PIAA Varsity Match
Terri Harding (WCHS, 1985)
First Girl to Play in a Boys’ WPIAL Golf Qualifier
Remmy Lohr (Carmichaels, 2019)
