We all remember the actress Katharine Hepburn as a remarkably strong woman — both on-screen and off. Beyond her trademark pantsuits, she refused to play the traditional roles being offered to Hollywood women in the 1930s and ‘40s and even negotiated the rights to some of her own movies.
But did you know that the actress’s mother, Katharine Martha Houghton Hepburn (1878–1952), was a member of the Association of Collegiate Alumnae, the organization that eventually became AAUW? Both mother and daughter graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 1899 and 1928, respectively.
After graduation, Katharine Houghton — or Kit, as she was called — married Thomas Hepburn, who was a physician. They moved to Hartford, Connecticut. In addition to raising six children, both devoted their lives to progressive causes — Thomas to the prevention of venereal disease through the formation of the New England Social Hygiene Association and his wife to equal rights for women.
The elder Katharine Hepburn was an ardent suffragist and head of the Connecticut Woman Suffrage Association. In 1913, she led her state’s delegation to Washington, D.C., to meet with President Woodrow Wilson to discuss the issue of women’s right to vote. Inspired by the arrests of picketing suffragists, Hepburn joined the National Woman’s Party to further the cause. Her famous daughter recalled accompanying her mother to suffragist demonstrations.
In addition to being a member of the Association of Collegiate Alumnae’s Connecticut Branch, Hepburn also spoke at the 1914 ACA convention in Philadelphia. Following the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920, Hepburn, along with her friend Margaret Sanger, focused on advocating for women’s access to birth control. Together they founded the American Birth Control League, which is considered to be the forerunner of Planned Parenthood.
For the elder Hepburn, the ACA was a natural fit. A strong believer in the power of education for women, her own mother’s last words to her were, “Get an education!” Hepburn was orphaned at an early age, but she followed her mother’s advice and earned both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. This was no easy feat for a woman in the early 20th century! In addition, she lived this mandate through how she raised her own daughters.
This post was written by AAUW Archivist and Records Manager Suzanne Gould.
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