Mary T. Jeffries (1863–1930) was an American temperance advocate and

Prohibitionist Prohibitionism is a legal philosophy and political theory often used in lobbying which holds that citizens will abstain from actions if the actions are typed as unlawful (i.e. prohibited) and the prohibitions are enforced by law enforcement.C Canty ...

. For 12 years, she served as President of the

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

Woman's Christian Temperance Union The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) is an international temperance organization. It was among the first organizations of women devoted to social reform with a program that "linked the religious and the secular through concerted and far ...

(WCTU). From 1927 to 1928, she was an appointive member of the

Alabama State Board of Education The Alabama State Board of Education is an administrative agency created by the Constitution of Alabama that is responsible for supervising the state's public school system. The Board consists of eight members who are elected from districts and th ...

under

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Bibb Graves David Bibb Graves (April 1, 1873 – March 14, 1942) was an American United States Democratic Party, Democratic politician and the List of governors of Alabama, 38th governor of Alabama 1927–1931 and 1935–1939, the first Alabama governor to ...

Biography

Mary (

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

, "Mamie") Thomas was born at

Clinton, Alabama Clinton is an unincorporated community in Greene County, Alabama, United States. Located at the junction of Alabama State Routes 14 and 39, it lies approximately 7.9 miles (12.7 km) northwest of the county seat, Eutaw. Clinton maintains a po ...

, December 22, 1863. Her parents were George Lane Thomas (b. 1831) and Mary C. (McMillian) Thomas (1838–1866). She was educated in the public schools of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

. In 1884, she married Walter Henry Jeffries (b. 1862), of

Canton, Mississippi The city of Canton is the county seat of Madison County, Mississippi, United States, and is situated in the northern part of the Jackson, Mississippi metropolitan area, metropolitan area surrounding the state capital, Jackson, Mississippi, Jackso ...

, and removed to Birmingham, where her husband was connected with the '' Birmingham Age Herald''. Jeffries joined the WCTU in 1887, and since that time has been an active worker in Alabama, serving in many official positions in the local and State organizations. She was State corresponding secretary, 1894–1903; and president, 1903–06, resigning in the latter year after the State

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

campaign. She then served for five years as vice-president, after which she was again made president (1917). She was, also, for eight years, editor of the ''Alabama White Ribbon''. During the time she was not in office in the State Union, she served as president of the Birmingham central organization, and took the lead in all the Prohibition campaigns in that city. Mary T. Jeffries died in Birmingham on September 3, 1930; burial was in that city's Oak Hill Cemetery.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jeffries, Mary T. 1863 births 1930 deaths Temperance activists from Alabama Presidents of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union School board members in Alabama 20th-century American newspaper editors People from Greene County, Alabama