Sadie Griffin
Sadie Griffin | |
|---|---|
.png) Griffin in 1950 | |
| Member of the Connecticut House of Representatives from Bridgeport | |
| In office January 4, 1939 – January 8, 1941 | |
| Member of the Bridgeport City Council | |
| In office November 10, 1935 – November 10, 1949 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Sarah Katherine Dempsey February 18, 1877 North Baltimore, Ohio |
| Died | February 2, 1958 (aged 80) Bridgeport, Connecticut |
Sarah Katherine "Sadie" Griffin (née Dempsey; February 18, 1877 – February 2, 1958) was an American politician who served as a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives from 1939 until 1941, having lost her bid for re-election. Griffin had also served as a member of the Bridgeport City Council after her election in 1935 and until her defeat in 1949.
Biography
[edit]Sadie K. Griffin was born in North Baltimore, Ohio, on February 18, 1877, to Robert and Mary O'Leary Dempsey.[1][2] She spent much of her early life being raised in upstate New York.[1] It wasn't until 1918 at the age of forty-one that she moved to Bridgeport, Connecticut, in order to take a job at a grocery store.[3][4] It was while in Bridgeport she married Harry Griffin.[1]
During the 1935 Bridgeport municipal elections, Griffin and fifteen other members of the Socialist Party won seats on the Bridgeport City Council.[1][5] The first woman to serve on the council,[1][6] she would serve for fourteen years before losing re-election in 1949,[7] an election which marked a substantial decline in support for the Socialists.[8] She also served a single term in the Connecticut House of Representatives representing the city of Bridgeport.[9] A close ally of mayor Jasper McLevy, Griffin was appointed to several city and county offices. She was chairwoman of the Bridgeport Tax Review Unit from 1948 until her death.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e "Woman Socialist in Bridgeport Council Says Sex Can Rule as Well as Men". The Journal. Meridan, Connecticut. Associated Press. 1935-11-09. p. 1. Retrieved 2024-11-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "'Sadie' Griffin Rites Signal End of an Era". Sunday Herald. Bridgeport, Connecticut. 1958-02-09. p. 36. Retrieved 2024-11-10 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ a b "Sadie Griffin, 81, Dies in Her Home (cont.)". The Bridgeport Post (Obituary). Bridgeport, Connecticut: Hearst Communications. 1958-01-03. p. 37. Retrieved 2024-11-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Bucki 2001, p. 150.
- ^ "Sadie Elected Councilwoman". Sunday Herald. Bridgeport, Connecticut. 1957-10-20. p. 14. Retrieved 2024-11-10 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "Woman Wins Office in Socialist Sweep". Reading Eagle. Reading, Pennsylvania. Associated Press. 1935-11-10. p. 1. Retrieved 2024-11-10 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "Sadie Griffin, 81, Dies in Her Home". The Bridgeport Post (Obituary). Bridgeport, Connecticut: Hearst Communications. 1958-01-03. p. 1. Retrieved 2024-11-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Connecticut Cities Re-Elect Five Mayors". The New York Times. New York City, New York. 1949-10-09. p. 12. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-11-10.
- ^ Ross 2015, p. 610.
Sources
[edit]- Ross, Jack (April 15, 2015). "Socialist Elected Officeholders, 1897– 1960". The Socialist Party of America: A Complete History. Lincoln, Nebraska: Potomac Books. University of Nebraska Press. pp. 609–638. doi:10.2307/j.ctt1d98c2g. ISBN 978-1612344904. JSTOR j.ctt1d98c2g. OL 29260092M.
- Bucki, Cecelia (2001). Bridgeport's Socialist New Deal, 1915-36. Chicago, Illinois: University of Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0-252-02687-4.