On her death in 1914, she left in excess of two million dollars to the women's cause. Unfortunately, most of the money was lost to legal and administrative actions. My Thanks to Jen Phelps, Charlotte, NC for the suggestion for this column. The purpose of Printing's Past is to preserve the motivating spirit of pride in the printing heritage, the ethic of work and craftsmanship, and the appreciation of the contributions of a free press. Free reprints and information on other Printing's Past stories in book form is available.
Correspondence is welcome and appreciated.
When death claimed her in 1914, her extraordinary will flabbergasted the world. Mrs. Catt was the president of the National-American Woman's Suffrage Association. After legal battles that seemed to go on forever and caused Catt to remark that the money seemed to be more of a curse than a boon, Catt received slightly less than a million, the other half eaten up by legal fees as family members tried to break the will. However, there is MUCH more on the internet than just stuff for sale. Berghaus work for Frank Leslie's and after the Civil War traveled west, collaborating with Frederic Remington in the late 1870s.