James Mott (20 June 1788 – 26 January 1868) was a

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abili ...

leader, teacher, merchant, and anti-slavery activist. He was married to suffragist leader

Lucretia Mott Lucretia Mott (''née'' Coffin; January 3, 1793 – November 11, 1880) was an American Quaker, abolitionist, women's rights activist, and social reformer. She had formed the idea of reforming the position of women in society when she was amongs ...

Life and work

James was born in Cow Neck in

North Hempstead North Hempstead is one of three towns in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 237,639 at the 2020 census. History The area was first settled by Europeans around 1643 and became part of the town of Hemps ...

on Long Island, to a Quaker family. He was the second of seven children and the first son born to Adam Mott (1762-1839) and his wife and distant cousin, Anne Mott (1768-1852). James later taught for two years at the Nine Partners Boarding School in Millbrook, New York where his father was the superintendent. At Nine Partners, he also met his future wife Lucretia Coffin, a student and later a teacher's aide. He married her on 10 April 1811 in Philadelphia. They had six children, five of whom lived to adulthood, four daughters and a son. James then began work as a partner in Lucretia's father's nail business in Philadelphia. In 1822, James became a textile merchant dealing in cotton. His Hicksite Quaker opposition to slavery, combined with increasing calls to end slavery by boycotting slave goods, influenced James to switch to dealing in wool, produced without the labor of slaves. Like his wife, James was an active abolitionist, dedicated his life to abolition and the free produce movement. In 1833, he attended the founding meeting of the

American Anti-Slavery Society The American Anti-Slavery Society (AASS; 1833–1870) was an abolitionist society founded by William Lloyd Garrison and Arthur Tappan. Frederick Douglass, an escaped slave, had become a prominent abolitionist and was a key leader of this socie ...

in Philadelphia, and signed the convention's declaration. Later, he helped found the

Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society The Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society was established in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1838. Founders included James Mott, Lucretia Mott, Robert Purvis, and John C. Bowers. In August 1850, William Still while working as a clerk for the Society, ...

with Lucretia. Mott's sister, Abigail Lydia Mott, and brother-in-law,

Lindley Murray Moore Lindley Murray Moore (May 31, 1788 in Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia, Canada – August 14, 1871, in Rochester, New York, US) was a Canadian-American abolitionist, and educator. Early life Born into a Quaker family that had been forced to flee t ...

were instrumental in founding the Rochester Anti-Slavery Society in 1838. In 1841, he published Three Months in Great Britain, an account of the journey he took with Lucretia to attend the

World's Anti-Slavery Convention The World Anti-Slavery Convention met for the first time at Exeter Hall in London, on 12–23 June 1840. It was organised by the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society, largely on the initiative of the English Quaker Joseph Sturge. The excl ...

in London in 1840. Though both he and his wife traveled as official delegates, the convention voted to exclude the female delegates from the United States. James Mott participated as an official delegate. James chaired the

Seneca Falls Convention The Seneca Falls Convention was the first women's rights convention. It advertised itself as "a convention to discuss the social, civil, and religious condition and rights of woman".Wellman, 2004, p. 189 Held in the Wesleyan Chapel of the tow ...

, the first

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countri ...

convention, held in

Seneca Falls, New York Seneca Falls is a town in Seneca County, New York, United States. The population was 8,942 at the 2020 census. The Town of Seneca Falls contains the former village also called Seneca Falls. The town is east of Geneva, New York, in the nor ...

in 1848 on July 19 and 20 at which his wife was the main speaker. He and Lucretia signed the convention's

Declaration of Sentiments The Declaration of Sentiments, also known as the Declaration of Rights and Sentiments, is a document signed in 1848 by 68 women and 32 men—100 out of some 300 attendees at the first women's rights convention to be organized by women. Held in Sen ...

. His brother, Richard Mott, was elected as an Opposition Party candidate to the Thirty-fourth and reelected as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

to the Thirty-fifth Congresses (March 4, 1855 - March 3, 1859) In 1864, James helped start

Swarthmore College Swarthmore College ( , ) is a private liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the earliest coeducational colleges in the United States. It was established as ...

in Pennsylvania. He died of pneumonia in 1868 while visiting his daughter in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

References

1788 births 1868 deaths American abolitionists Quaker abolitionists Deaths from pneumonia in New York City Pennsylvania Republicans Pennsylvania Oppositionists Quaker feminists Male feminists {{US-activist-stub

Life and work

Further reading

References