For the historically ignorant,
The truth of the matter is, the progressives of that time, that era, were people of Abe Lincoln, John Adams, Susan B. Anthony....
You have heard of Susan B. Anthony, haven't you, Bfgrn ?
She was a prominent American civil rights leader who played a pivotal role in the 19th century women's rights movement to introduce women's suffrage into the United States.
She published a weekly journal called The Revolution, whose main thrust was to promote women’s and African-Americans’ right to suffrage, but it also discussed issues of equal pay for equal work, more liberal divorce laws and the church’s position on women’s issues.
Quite a lady she was....Susan B. Anthony...
She was co-founder of the National Woman's Suffrage Association.
She was arrested for voting in the 1872 Presidential Election.
She had written to Stanton on the night of the election that she had "positively voted the Republican ticket—straight...".
Does that surprise you?
Another prominent supporter of womens sufferage,
Jane Addams...her father, John Adams was a founding member of the Illinois Republican Party.
You may refer to them as progressive, but don't even dream they supported the Democrats of the day....the anti-civil rights, pro-slavery, anti-women bigots of the era....