Spotlight on...
The true story of Mother's Day
In 1870 American poet and women's leader Julia Ward Howe (pictured top right) called for the establishment of Mother's Day 
holiday in the USA. It was a call for women to wage a general strike to end war.
But she wasn't the first. Even earlier, in 1850, Anna Reeves Jarvis of West Virginia, spent many years mobilising mothers in Mothers' Day Work Clubs to combat the high infant mortality rates caused largely by disease. Five of her own 9 children died during the Civil War. She wanted recognition for the work of mothers in a memorial mother's day.
Mrs Jarvis' daughter, also Anna, continued the campaign and the first Mother's Day, was held on the 2nd Sunday in May to be close to the date of her mother's death.
More than 150 years later, awareness of these political campaigns has been submerged in the 21st century commercial juggernaut.
Read about Julia Ward Howe and Anna Reeves Jarvis and remember the real origins of Mother's Day.
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FamilyHistoryWA will be commencing a Bicentennial Project on Ghost Towns of WA shortly.
A dedicated project team is required to enable this project to be completed by 2029. The project team will include a Project Coordinator, Researchers, Indexers and Proofreaders. The Management Committee is seeking volunteers who are interested in being a part of the project and filling the above roles. The initial task of the project team will be scoping the project and developing a project plan.
If you are interested in being a part of the Bicentennial Project or are interested in any of the roles please contact the Volunteer Liaison Coordinator
