Ruth May Fox

Ruth Fox ( May; November 16, 1853 – April 12, 1958) was a 19th-century English-born American women's rights activist in the Territory of Utah. Fox was a poet, hymn writer, and a leader of youth in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).

Early life Ruth May was born in Westbury, Wiltshire, England to James May and Mary Ann ( Harding) May. Her father worked in a mine and a factory. Though they were not educated, May's parents were religious. They converted to Mormonism when May was five months old. May's mother then died in childbirth when she was 16 months old. Saxton had a daughter May's age named Clara, and the two became friends. As an older child, May enjoyed reciting poetry and telling stories and working alongside Clara Saxton. After her father refused to give her permission to work in a factory, May assisted the Saxtons in performing various chores around the boarding house.

In 1865, James May emigrated to the United States and shortly thereafter sent for Ruth, Mrs. Saxton, and Clara. On their arrival in Philadelphia, James May married Mrs. Saxton, and he and the two girls found work in a textile mill to save money to go to Utah Territory. In 1867 the May family traveled by covered wagon and on foot to Salt Lake City with Leonard Rice's company. After settling in the Ogden area, Ruth attended John Morgan's College in Salt Lake City for four months. He worked as a surveyor, and the family enjoyed financial security. She also lived with her children and worked as a housekeeper during this time.

Women's suffrage and civil service Fox continued her education through observation and personal study. She composed poetry, which first appeared in print in 1891, at which time she joined the Press Club, a women's literary organization. Fox and Emmeline B. Wells met with Susan B. Anthony and Anna Howard Shaw when they visited Salt Lake City on May 12, 1895. Fox also published a few poems in newspapers. During World War I, she served as lieutenant of canteens in Salt Lake City.

Fox served until 1937, when she was succeeded by her own first counselor, Lucy Grant Cannon. She was almost 84 years old.

Later life, death, and legacy Fox's 85th, 90th, 95th, and 100th birthday parties were held in the Beehive House. Members of the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of the LDS Church, as well as city and state leaders attended.

Fox died in Salt Lake City on April 12, 1958, at the age of 104. Fox said: "Life brings some hard lessons. The sturdiest plants are not grown under glass, and strength of character is not derived from the avoidance of problems." Her descendant Brittany A. Chapman, a historian with the LDS Church History Department, gave a lecture on Fox's life in 2010 at the Church History Library.

Publications Articles

Dialogue "Our Girls: A Parable of the Ten Talents". Young Women's Journal. 17 (4). 172. April 1906.

Poetry