Kimberly Mansion
The Kimberly Mansion is a historic house at 1625 Main Street in Glastonbury, Connecticut. It was the home of Abby and Julia Evelina Smith, political activists involved in causes including abolitionism and women's suffrage. By contesting the assessment on their property and protesting against "taxation without representation," they brought international attention to the cause of women's rights.
History
The Smith family hosted abolitionist meetings and lectures in their home and on their lawn. They collected signatures for an anti-slavery petition and sent it to former president John Quincy Adams to present to Congress.
In 1873, late in their lives, they became tax resisters when they began a two-year fight with local authorities over an inequitable property tax assessment on their property, Kimberly Farm. They owned the most valuable property in town and believed they were being exploited by the town tax collector. In Connecticut at the time, women had no vote and therefore no voice in the disposition of their taxes. They refused to pay their tax until they were given representation. Abby took their concerns to the town council where she said:
