In 1913, Mabel Vernon gladly gave up teaching to join her college friend, Alice Paul, in working full time for the Congressional Union.  From that day on, she devoted her life to suffrage and other causes.

A native of Wilmington, Mabel Vernon graduated from Friends School in 1901 and Swarthmore College in 1906.  She then taught German and Latin at Radnor High School in Wayne, Pennsylvania.

Ms. Vernon's first task was to organize the Congressional Union headquarters in Wilmington, which opened in September 1913.  She spoke for suffrage wherever she could, both at formal meetings and at impromptu street rallies.  Her speaking, organizational, and fundraising skills quickly made her a national leader in the suffrage fight.  In 1914 she left Delaware to promote the cause to other areas.

Mabel Vernon was among the most militant suffragists.  In 1916, she stood up in a full auditorium and heckled President Wilson as he spoke about democracy.  She picketed the White House and was the among the first suffragists to go to jail.