AUBURN -- To many people, abolitionist and women's rights activist Martha Coffin Wright was considered a dangerous woman.

Wright's efforts in the mid-19th century to abolish slavery and promote women's suffrage led her down some tumultuous paths. During the Civil War, she presided over several anti-slavery meetings, some of which were attacked by angry anti-abolitionist mobs, and she was elected president of the controversial National Women's Suffrage Association before her death in 1875.

On Sunday, Wright, who will soon be inducted into Seneca Falls' National Women's Hall of Fame alongside Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, was the subject of a special presentation at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Auburn.

James D. Livingston, a descendant of Wright's, spoke about her life and political activism during the church's morning service, much of the information taken from "Martha Wright: A Very Dangerous Woman," a biography recently co-authored by Livingston and his wife, Sherry Penney.

Sunday's lecture was the culmination of a weekend celebration titled "Martha Coffin Wright: Her Friends and Her Legacy," which church pastor Ken Mochel and his wife, Audrey, organized earlier this year.

"We decided to hold this conference for two reasons," Audrey Mochel said prior to Sunday's presentation. "One is because of the introduction of the National Women's Rights History Project Act, which will be a 'trail' linking some of the museums and exhibits dedicated to women's rights," she explained. "The other is her induction into the Women's Hall of Fame."

The induction is set to take place Sunday, Oct. 7.

The conference kicked off Friday night at Auburn Public Theater with a play about Thomas Mott Osborne, noted prison reform leader, who was also Wright's grandson.

Saturday's activities, also at the theater, included discussions by representatives from local museums like Auburn's Tubman Home and Seward House, along with a presentation on the Women's Rights History Project Act, a bill currently before Congress, by the office of Rep. Louise M. Slaughter (D-Fairport).

Livingston spoke toward the end of Sunday's service, which began at 10:30 a.m.

"Martha Wright's life never lacked for drama," he told the congregation, noting that she survived a shipwreck, the deaths of several family members and threats by numerous people who opposed her controversial views.

"Even so, she used a lot of humor to help overcome all the challenges she faced," he said.