Maud Nathan

Maud Nathan was born in New York into a wealthy family. However, because of economic troubles following the financial crash of 1873, the family moved to Wisconsin, where Nathan finished her high school studies. She later returned to New York, where she married her cousin, Frederick Nathan, in 1880. Initially, as a “society wife,” Nathan devoted her time to charities and social events. But following the death of her only daughter in 1895, she threw herself into the battle for social reform and political activism. She served as vice president of the Women’s Municipal League of New York and was president of the New York Consumers’ League for almost three decades, endeavoring to educate consumers about the reality of laborers’ abysmal working conditions. Dedicated to freedom, social justice, and mutual respect, Nathan was a staunch supporter of the movement for women’s suffrage. Indeed, Theodore Roosevelt placed her at the head of his party’s suffrage committee. This issue caused a rift with her siblings, all of whom, including the writer Annie Nathan Meyer, opposed women’s suffrage. Following Frederick’s death in 1919, Nathan traveled internationally and continued to battle for women’s rights and consumer education.