Born in Wetumpka, Frances Griffin dedicated her life to the causes of temperance and women’s suffrage. A graduate of Judson College, Griffin taught in public and private schools in Montgomery for many years. In 1885, she became an organizer for the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. A popular southern-circuit speaker, she addressed the Texas legislature on the topic in 1890. Griffin later shifted her advocacy to the cause of women’s suffrage, organizing an early branch of the Alabama Equal Suffrage Association. In 1901, Griffin addressed the delegates to Alabama’s constitutional convention, urging them to extend the franchise to women. Though her rousing speech failed to sway the delegates, Griffin remained an ardent suffragist, speaking to groups throughout the country. She died in Jefferson County in 1917.     

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