Coven - Season 2, Episode 8: Matilda Joslyn Gage

For our next episode, we're welcoming Matilda Electa Joslyn Gage, the forgotten proto-feminist of the 19th century, into our Coven. We explore how this radical suffragist, abolitionist, and Indigenous rights advocate challenged patriarchal power by exposing the church's role in women's oppression through her groundbreaking 1893 book "Woman, Church and State." Join us as we uncover how Gage's belief in "mental manifestation" and fascination with witchcraft influenced her son-in-law L. Frank Baum's creation of Glinda the Good Witch in The Wizard of Oz, and how her adoption into the Wolf Clan of the Mohawk Nation as "Karonienhawi" (she who holds the sky) informed her revolutionary understanding of gender equality.Coven is a Stars, Etc ProductionWritten & Hosted by Jenna Scott and Socorro Erekani Carrillo-LopezExecutive Producer: Jenna ScottProduced and Directed by Sierra BarterAudio Engineer: Josh BrumleyAudio Assistant: Christopher Bryan AmaralGraphic Design: Jacob ScottMusic by Jeffrey Boyle and Jenna ScottCreated by Jenna Scott and Reilly HailSources:Angelucci, Ashley, and National Women's History Museum. 2021.“Matilda Joslyn Gage.”https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/matilda-joslyn-gage#:~:text=As%20a%20child%2C%20Gage%20handed,prepare%20her%20for%20medical%20school. Paquet, Laura B. 2023. “Matilda Joslyn Gage: The suffragist who defied the US government.” BBC.https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20230703-matilda-joslyn-gage-the-suffragist-who-defied-the-us-government.15Schwartz, Evan I. 2024.“The Feminist Who Inspired the Witches of Oz.”Smithsonian Magazine.https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-feminist-inspired-witches-of-oz180985334/.Wikipedia. 2025.“Matilda Joslyn Gage.” Wikipedia.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matilda_Joslyn_Gage.