Biographical Database of NAWSA Suffragists, 1890-1920
Biography of Catherine Campbell Kilduff, 1869-1936
By Justyce Beagle and Katherine Orr, student researchers, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana
Clubwoman, suffragist
Catherine Campbell was born on June 5, 1869, in Litchfield, Minnesota. Her parents were Edward and Catherine Campbell from Ireland. She married her husband, James Frances Kilduff, in St. Paul, Missouri, in 1895, and they moved to Malta, Montana, in 1902. The couple had two sons, John Francis (August 9, 1903) and Edward Campbell (April 5, 1905), both born in Montana.
Catherine Campbell Kilduff was a clubwoman and suffragist. She hosted many gatherings in her home, such as a meeting of the Altar Society for Corpus Christi Church in 1912. The History of Woman Suffrage listed her as one of the women “especially active in the campaign” for woman suffrage in Montana in 1914. She subsequently served as the President of the Fifth District of the State Federation of Women's Clubs (1916) and as the President of the Malta's Women's Club (1919-1920), the local affiliate of the state federation. She was an advocate for improving the educational system in Montana. In 1920, she endorsed an Educational Mill Levy that would help provide more opportunities for education in Montana. She died on March 18, 1936, in Kansas City, Missouri, at the age of 66.
SOURCES:
“About Montana Federation of Women's Clubs,” The Ekalaka Eagle. (Ekalaka, Mont.), 01 Dec. 1916, p. 4. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress.
“Additional Local,” The Enterprise. (Harlem, Mont.), 30 June 1910, p. 4. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress.
“Catherine Campbell Kilduff (1869-1936) - Find A...” (1869-1936) - Find A Grave Memorial, www.findagrave.com/memorial/5098891/catherine-kilduff.
“Educational Issues Are Endorsed by 18 Prominent Citizens,” Great Falls Daily Tribune. (Great Falls, Mont.), 25 Oct. 1920, p. 10. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress.
Harper, Ida Husted, ed., “Montana,” chapter XXV in History of Woman Suffrage, vol. 6: 1900-1920 (New York, NY: National American Woman Suffrage Association, 1922), pp. 360-367. [LINK]
Monthly Record of Current Educational Publications. Bulletin, Issues 25-36. (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1920).
Untitled, The Enterprise. (Harlem, Mont.), 08 Aug. 1912, p. 1. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress.