‘A splendid opportunity’: The WCTU at the 1906 Exhibition

Discover how the Women's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) made waves at Christchurch’s 1906 International Exhibition. ‘A splendid opportunity’: The WCTU at the 1906 Exhibition Christchurch’s 1906 International Exhibition was a huge undertaking, where Government Departments, South Island farming regions, British colonies, and hundreds of commercial businesses all promoted their achievements in order to show off ‘God’s own country’. So why and how did the Women’s Christian Temperance Union get involved? Margaret Lovell-Smith has a long-standing interest in the ‘first wave’ 19th-century women’s movement. Her publications include The Woman Question: Writings by the Women who Won the Vote, and the connections between the suffrage movement and the WCTU’s 1906 exhibition bay will be included in her presentation. This is a fascinating opportunity to learn more about Kate Sheppard, the women’s suffrage movement, and the significant role played by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, both in New Zealand and beyond.