Freda Ameringer

Summary

Freda Hogan Ameringer (November 17, 1892 – October 4, 1988) was a socialist organizer in Arkansas and Oklahoma. She founded the Oklahoma Urban League in 1946. She was also involved in fighting for women's suffrage in Arkansas.

Freda Ameringer
Freda Hogan in the 1910s
Born(1892-11-17)November 17, 1892
DiedOctober 4, 1988(1988-10-04) (aged 95)
SpouseOscar Ameringer

Biography edit

Ameringer was born in Huntington, Arkansas on November 17, 1892.[1] Her parents were members of the Socialist Party in Arkansas.[1] When her father ran for office in 1910, Ameringer took over the daily operations of the Huntington Herald newspaper.[1] In 1914, she was heavily involved with the Socialist Party of Arkansas, serving as secretary.[1] During the 1914 conflict with the United Mine Workers (UMWA) and the management at Prairie Creek Mine No. 4, Ameringer publicized the events.[2] She wrote about how guards associated with management intimidated workers and their families.[3]

By 1912, she was well-known as an active suffragist in Arkansas.[4] In 1915, Ameringer joined the Socialist Party's Woman's National Committee (WNC) to work on equal suffrage and organizing women.[5] When women were granted partial suffrage in Arkansas in 1917, she worked to organize women in Huntington on voting issues.[6] Ameringer organized women in Huntington to pay poll taxes in order to vote in the 1918 primary elections.[7]

Ameringer was opposed to the United States entry in World War I.[6] Around 1917, Ameringer moved to Oklahoma City where she worked as an organizer and journalist.[1] She was one of the founders of the Oklahoma Daily Leader.[8] In 1930, she married Oscar Ameringer.[8] Frieda went on to organize community centers and organizations in Oklahoma City.[8] She fought against segregation and "right to work" rules.[8]

She died in Oklahoma City on October 4, 1988.[8]

Further reading edit

  • Joyce, Davis (1998). Oklahoma I Had Never Seen Before: Alternative Views of Oklahoma History. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 0-8061-2945-X.
  • Whitman, Alden (1985). American reformers: an H.W. Wilson biographical dictionary. H.W. Wilson Co. ISBN 0-8242-0705-X.

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e Pierce, Michael (10 May 2018). "Freda Hogan Ameringer (1892–1988)". Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Retrieved 2020-12-31.
  2. ^ Pierce 2010, p. 293, 301.
  3. ^ Pierce 2010, p. 302.
  4. ^ Pierce 2010, p. 301.
  5. ^ Pierce 2010, p. 303.
  6. ^ a b Pierce 2010, p. 304.
  7. ^ "Arkansas Women's Suffrage Timeline". Arkansas Heritage. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  8. ^ a b c d e Thompson, John. "Ameringer, Frieda". The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. Retrieved 2020-12-31.

Sources edit

  • Pierce, Michael (Winter 2010). "Great Women All, Serving a Glorious Cause: Freda Hogan Ameringer's Reminiscences of Socialism in Arkansas". Arkansas Historical Quarterly. 69 (4): 293–324. JSTOR 23046603 – via JSTOR.

External links edit

  • Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Ameringer, Freda