Waite, Catherine (1829–1913)

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Waite, Catherine (1829–1913)

American writer, suffragist, and lawyer. Born Catherine Van Valkenburg, Jan 30, 1829, in Dumfries, Ontario, Canada; died in Park Ridge, Illinois, Nov 9, 1913; dau. of Joseph and Margaret (Page) Van Valkenburg; attended Knox College; graduate of Oberlin College, 1853; attended Union College of Law (later Northwestern University Law School), 1885; admitted to the bar, June 1886; m. Charles B. Waite (Chicago lawyer), 1854; children: Lucy, Jessie, Margaret, Joseph, and Charles.

For four years, lived with husband in Utah Territory, following his appointment to the Utah Territory Supreme Court by Abraham Lincoln; upon return to Chicago, wrote of her experiences in The Mormon Prophet and His Harem (1867), protesting the practice of polygamy; for 3 years, published the Chicago Law Times; also served as president of the International Woman's Bar Association.