The Know Nothings were a nativist political party and movement in the United States in the mid-1850s. The party was officially known as the "Native American Party" prior to 1855 and thereafter, it was simply known as the "American Party".
Though the Know Nothings were originally a secret society of men who opposed Roman Catholicism, Irish and other Roman Catholic immigration, in many respects, they were a populist and xenophobic movement. The party was progressive in its stances on "issues of labor rights and the need for more government spending.
The woman mentioned in the lesson was an advocate for women’s health who increased access to information about birth control is that "<span>The NWSA believed that suffrage was inevitable; the AWSA believed actively working for suffrage."</span>
