Rhoda Fox Graves (July 2, 1877 – January 25, 1950) was a

suffragist Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to vo ...

, women's rights activist, and early female Republican party politician from

St. Lawrence County, New York St. Lawrence County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 108,505. The county seat is Canton. The county is named for the Saint Lawrence River. This was as named by early French explorer Ja ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Graves was the first woman to serve in the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

, the first woman to hold office in both the upper and lower legislative houses in New York State, and the first woman to chair a New York Senate Committee.

Early life and education

Rhoda Fox Graves was born on July 2, 1877, to Leander and Rhoda Martha (Burt) Austin in

Fowler, New York Fowler is a town in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The population was 2,202 at the 2010 census. The Town of Fowler is located on the southwestern border of the county and is southwest of Canton and southeast of Gouverneur. ...

. Her mother died from medical complications from childbirth, and her father placed her with his friends, LaFayette and Rhoda Ann (Shippee) Fox. The Foxes formally adopted her at age two. Rhoda Fox grew up on the Fox family farm in Fowler, a small town southeast of

Gouverneur, New York Gouverneur ( ) is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in St. Lawrence County, New York, St. Lawrence County, New York (state), New York, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 6,551. Th ...

. She went to local public schools, the District School at Fowler, the Gouverneur High School, and Wesleyan Seminary in Gouverneur. Prior to her marriage, Graves was a school teacher in rural public schools in the Gouverneur area. On April 26, 1905, Fox married Perle Atwell Graves, the son of Daniel and Helen Graves. They had two sons, Mark and Paul.

Political career

Graves began her political career by working with suffrage organizations in St. Lawrence County, distinguishing herself as an activist and gaining respect in the community. She remained politically active after women gained the right to vote and established herself as a successful voice for the Republican Party in an area of New York State that was slow to accept women in politics. From 1920 until 1935, Graves was Vice President of the St. Lawrence County Republican Committee, the first woman to hold the position. According to former New York assemblyman Grant Daniels, "because of her conquest of the initial resistance to women in politics, the cause of women's rights had been greatly advanced." Graves was a member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

(St. Lawrence Co., 1st D.) in

1925 Events January * January 1 – The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus having been replaced by the State of Syria (1925–1930), State of Syria. * January 3 – Benito Mussolini m ...

1926 In Turkey, the year technically contained only 352 days. As Friday, December 18, 1926 ''(Julian Calendar)'' was followed by Saturday, January 1, 1927 '' (Gregorian Calendar)''. 13 days were dropped to make the switch. Turkey thus became the ...

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the BBC, British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith, 1st Baron Reith, John Reith becomes the first ...

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly demonstrating that DNA is the genetic material. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris B ...

1929 This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholic ...

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be on J ...

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

and

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

. On the first day of the 1925 session of the New York State Assembly, she started her career as a legislator by introducing a bill that would allow youths who lived in rural areas and were less than 18 years of age to operate motor vehicles. She was unsuccessful in her first attempt to attain a seat in the

in 1932, but was elected in 1934. She was a member of the State Senate from 1935 to 1948, sitting in the 158th, 159th,

160th Sixteen or 16 may refer to: *16 (number) *one of the years 16 BC, AD 16, 1916, 2016 Films * ''Pathinaaru'' or ''Sixteen'', a 2010 Tamil film * ''Sixteen'' (1943 film), a 1943 Argentine film directed by Carlos Hugo Christensen * ''Sixteen'' (20 ...

, 161st, 162nd, 163rd, 164th, 165th and

166th New York State Legislature The 166th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 8, 1947, to March 13, 1948, during the fifth and sixth years of Thomas E. Dewey's governorship, in Albany. Backgro ...

s. Graves was a trailblazer with her accomplishments as a female legislator in New York in the 1920s. She was the first woman to serve in the

, the first woman to hold office in both the upper and lower legislative houses in New York State, and the first woman to chair a New York Senate Committee. During her time as a New York legislator, she advocated for increased rights for females, including the right to serve on a jury. Graves was founding member and vice chairman of a Republican State Committee council of women formed in 1929 to educate women voters about the upcoming election. After her election to the State Senate, Graves founded the Organized Women Legislators of New York State and was its first president. After Graves's re-election in January 1939, she became chair of the high-profile Senate Agricultural Committee. In 1948, Graves announced that she would not seek re-election and that her son Paul D. Graves would be a candidate to succeed her for her seat. Paul Graves had a sizable win and took office in 1949. In 1953, he was appointed to the New York State Supreme Court, where he served until his death at age 64 in 1972. Rhoda Fox Graves died on January 25, 1950, while at her winter home with her husband in

Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. It is a suburb in the Miami metropolitan area. The population of Hollywood was 153,067 as of 2020, making it the Broward County#Communities, third-largest city in Broward County, th ...

, of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

. She was buried at the Riverside Cemetery in Gouverneur.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graves, Rhoda Fox Suffragists from New York (state) Republican Party members of the New York State Assembly Republican Party New York (state) state senators People from St. Lawrence County, New York 1877 births 1950 deaths Women state legislators in New York (state) People from Gouverneur, New York 20th-century members of the New York State Legislature 20th-century American women politicians