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127 Chapter Six Pennybacker’s term as gfwc president ended in the summer of 1916. In the ensuing years, no longer representing the gfwc as its president, Pennybacker felt less restrained and was more able and willing to engage in outwardly political struggles. Having attained national prominence leading the gfwc early in the decade, in the later teens Pennybacker used her recognition and public appeal to urge women toward her own progressive vision. Although she had planned to spend time relaxing after her years of work and travel, at the end of her gfwc presidency she found herself as busy as ever. One activity that filled her time was the presidency of the Chautauqua Women’s Club. She accepted this position almost immediately after leaving the gfwc presidency and became a trustee for the Chautauqua Institute as well. Most women’s clubs’ seasons ran through the fall and winter but left the summer for a break. By contrast, the season of the Chautauqua Women’s Club ran throughout the summer months. Women from across the country who stayed at Chautauqua, New York, for at least a part of the summer season comprised the membership of this group.1 The presidency of the Chautauqua Women’s Club required (and enabled) Pennybacker to spend summer months in Chautauqua managing club events. In addition, she devoted time to the institute during other times of the year in order to arrange speakers for following summer. Pennybacker’s strength as an organizer and her national acclaim enabled her to double the membership of the Chautauqua Women’s Club from 583 to 1,150 during the first year of her presidency.2 By selling life memberships for $100 each, she also increased the club’s funds. In addition to her Chautauqua work, Pennybacker undertook an effort to have her Texas history textbook readopted in 1916–1920 World War and Women’s Suffrage call her a citizen 128 Texas in 1919. Given her other obligations at the time, she could not spend the time needed on the textbook adoption process. However, she did engage Helen Knox to promote the book to influential people within the state. As she had in the past, Pennybacker also contacted clubwomen in Texas to assist this cause. Nevertheless, her effort failed. Her discussions with Helen Knox indicate that the textbook adoption process was highly politicized and Pennybacker did not have the means to compete for adoption against larger publishing concerns.3 Even as Pennybacker devoted her energy during this time to her work with Chautauqua and the promotion of her textbook, two larger defining struggles occupied much of her time during the years 1916 to 1920. The first was the struggle for women’s suffrage in the United States. After a series of setbacks in the earlier part of the century, the suffrage movement was regenerated, as advocates changed strategies and recruited new members. Pennybacker had deferred participation with suffrage organizations during her gfwc presidency in order to keep the organization from being either co-opted by suffrage concerns or rent by political and ideological differences on the subject. With her gfwc responsibilities lifted, Pennybacker felt free to ally with the suffrage forces. At the same time, a second struggle, the war in Europe which had begun in 1914, continued. In the latter part of 1916, U.S. involvement began to seem inevitable. Although Pennybacker had pressed peace work during her gfwc presidency, initiating a peace crusade among federated clubwomen, like many women leaders of the time she determined to support the country’s war efforts from the home front. That her sons Percy and Bonner both enlisted in the U.S. military may have influenced the emphasis of her wartime work at home.4 Like those of many women at the time, Pennybacker’s war efforts focused on support of the country’s soldiers. By January of 1917, Pennybacker had taken on important public roles in both the suffrage movement and in the domestic war work. PENNYBACKER JOINS THE WOMAN SUFFRAGE MOVEMENT Although Pennybacker had alienated some in the suffrage movement, particularly in her home state of Texas, her wide renown among women across the United States made her a desirable figure to suffrage organizations . The National American Woman Suffrage Association (nawsa), which had attempted to recruit her during her presidency, now redoubled its efforts.5 nawsa leaders had spent the early years of the twentieth century recasting the organization’s image and strategies in ways [3.17.6.75] Project...

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