The State convention of 1903 met in Golden Gate Hall, San Francisco, November 18, 19. Among the addresses of welcome was one by the Rev. Bradford Leavitt of the Unitarian church and one by President Benham of the city Labor Council. Mrs. Sargent and Mrs. E. O. Smith paid tributes to the memory of the association's honorary president, Mrs. Sarah Knox Goodrich, a devoted supporter of the cause for the past thirty-five years. Greetings were read from Miss Anthony, Henry B. and Alice Stone Blackwell, Mrs. Upton and Mrs. L. F. Darling, president of the State Federation of Women's Clubs. Miss Gail Laughlin, a young lawyer from the East, who was now State organizer, was among the speakers, and Albert H. Elliott, a San Francisco lawyer, gave an instructive talk on California Laws for Women. The executive board made the excellent appointment of Dr. Alida C. Avery of San Jose as historian. One hundred dollars were sent to the national board for use in the New Hampshire campaign. The State association endorsed Mrs. Sargent's protest against a referendum vote on the issuing of San Francisco's city bonds in which women were not allowed to take part.
A question considered at many board meetings had been the advisability of trying to obtain from the Legislature another submission of an amendment. The Los Angeles Suffrage League was waiting to know what action would be taken. Mrs. Catt had written that it might be well to make the effort and so a resolution was unanimously adopted to ask this of the session of 1905. A letter had been sent by Mrs. Catt suggesting plans of work to this end for the coming year and one was received from Miss Anthony asking that Mrs. Stanton's birthday be celebrated on November 12.
The Los Angeles Equal Suffrage Society had not affiliated with the State Association because of the long distance to San Francisco and the announcement by Mrs. Sperry that the affiliation had now been made was enthusiastically received. The movement had been active in Southern California, where federations, parliaments and societies of many kinds flourished, and the Woman Suffrage League had held monthly meetings. Besides Mrs. Severance, another pioneer suffragist had come there from the East many years ago, Mrs. Rebecca Spring, now past 90 and still alert and interested. Mrs. Clara Shortridge Foltz, Mrs. Alice Moore McComas and Mrs. Almeda B. Grey were still among the capable and valued workers.
In answer to an invitation from the Los Angeles city and county suffrage leagues the State convention of 1904 was held in the Woman's Club House, October 6, 7, with three sessions daily. Articles of incorporation had been drawn by George C. Sargent of San Francisco and filed with the Secretary of State, and the State organization had been incorporated under the name of the California Equal Suffrage Association. The convention was welcomed by Mrs. Ada J. Lingley and Mrs. Mabel V. Osborne, county and city presidents. Mrs. Sperry in responding expressed her great pleasure that Northern and Southern California would now work together for woman suffrage. The report of Miss Laughlin, State organizer, showed that fifty-two new clubs had been formed and that the membership had more than doubled in the past year, and the treasurer, Miss Schlingheyde, told of $2,063 contributed for organization work. Subscriptions to the amount of $1,110 were made, Mrs. Keith leading with $500. Miss Amanda Way, an Indiana pioneer, now of Whittier, made her offering. Mayor M. P. Snyder, Judge Waldo M. Yorke, the Rev. Eliza Tupper Wilkes and a long list of able speakers addressed the evening meetings. Strong resolutions presented by the chairman of the committee, Mrs. Nellie Holbrook Blinn, were adopted. Mrs. Severance and Mrs. Spring were made honorary presidents.
The work for the coming months was to secure a large petition to the Legislature for the submission of a woman suffrage amendment and Mrs. Osborne was appointed chairman of the committee. Heading the 15,000 names which were eventually obtained were those of Governor George C. Pardee, President David Starr Jordan, U. S. Senator George C. Perkins, W. S. Goodfellow, T. C. Coogan, Fred S. Stratton, A. A. Moore, George A. Knight, Henry J. Crocker, William H. Mills, Lovell White, M. B. Woodworth, Congressman James G. Maguire, Judge Carrol Cook and F. J. Murasky, all men of influence. The amendment was endorsed by the State association of 1,000 teachers. With the aid of the National Association 10,000 copies of Mrs. Catt's leaflet, Do You Know? were circulated.
The suffrage leaders made a vigorous effort at Sacramento at the next legislative session in 1905 but the measure was defeated in both Houses. California's full delegation of fourteen was in attendance at the annual convention of the National American Suffrage Association in Portland, Ore., in June. On the way from Portland Miss Anthony, Dr. Anna Howard Shaw and several other eastern delegates stopped at Chico, the home of Mrs. Bidwell, vice-president of the State association, where Miss Anthony spoke at the dedication of a magnificent park of 2,200 acres which she was presenting to the town. They were royally entertained in California, beginning with a public reception at the Sequoia Hotel in San Francisco. This was followed by others in Oakland, East Oakland and Berkeley, attended by hundreds. A mass meeting of 1,500 was arranged by the Equal Suffrage League in the Alhambra Theater, San Francisco.[12] Similar meetings and receptions awaited them in Southern California and they addressed an audience of 10,000 at Venice, the noted seaside resort.
The State convention met in Wheeler's Auditorium, San Francisco, in October. Deep interest had been felt in the campaign for a woman suffrage amendment carried on in Oregon during the summer and the association had wished to assist with money, organizers and speakers. For this purpose the entire contents of the treasury, about $500, were contributed and clubs and individuals sent more than that amount. Mrs. Keith gave $1,000 in the name of the State the following year.
The year 1906 opened auspiciously. In all parts of the State the clubs were holding public meetings, supplying columns of suffrage matter to the newspapers, now largely willing to publish them, and preparing for a siege of the next Legislature. In April the city was almost destroyed by fire and earthquake. One month afterwards the State board of officers met with a full quorum, ready to begin the effort to obtain woman suffrage planks in the platforms of the political parties at the approaching State conventions. This was accomplished in all but that of the dominant Republican party. The work was continued throughout the State of securing resolutions of endorsement from various kinds of organizations and by the end of the year these included a dozen State associations, and with societies other than suffrage in the different cities the list filled two pages of a leaflet sent out from the headquarters. The annual convention was held in Calvary Presbyterian Church, San Francisco, October 5, 6, with an attractive program of men and women speakers. The initial number of The Yellow Ribbon, a monthly magazine edited by Mrs. Katharine Reed Balentine in the interest of woman suffrage on the Pacific coast, was distributed among the delegates.
The State convention of 1907 met in October in the Ebell Club House of Oakland, where excellent arrangements had been made by the various committees, and it was the most satisfactory yet held. There was a program of very good speakers, well-known men among them, and Mrs. Maud Wood Park of Boston was a guest of the convention. The chairman of the Press Committee, Mrs. Mabel Craft Deering, reported that 203 newspapers were using all the suffrage matter sent them. The chairman of the State Central Committee, Mrs. Lillian Harris Coffin, said that all the labor leaders were standing for woman suffrage. It was announced that headquarters for pushing the submission of an amendment would be established in Sacramento as soon as the Legislature opened in January. There was a resolution on the death of Mrs. Laura de Force Gordon, the pioneer lawyer and suffragist. The work conference conducted by Mrs. Coffin was a valuable feature of the convention. Over 5,000 clubwomen outside of the suffrage clubs had now declared for suffrage.
In January, 1908, Mrs. Maud Wood Park was invited to address the students of the State University in Berkeley at the Friday morning meeting and Professor Morse Stephens said he never heard as able a presentation of any subject in so short a time. She organized branches of the National College Equal Suffrage League here and at Leland Stanford University. All conventions during the year were asked through Mrs. Keith's committee to adopt woman suffrage resolutions and many of them did so. Steps were taken through the State Central and Legislative Committees to interview candidates for the Legislature and pledge them after they were elected. The convention was held at the California Club House, San Francisco, October 2, 3. The work conference was conducted by Mrs. Keith.