The Remarkable History of Women's Suffrage
. . . Women's History Month is a fine time to learn of how the 19th Amendment was ratified.
by Robin Smith: In a letter penned by Abigail Adams to her husband John on March 31, 1776, she made the request for women’s suffrage. The future first lady petitioned her matrimonial mate, who served as a delegate to the Continental Congress, very directly: “In the new code of laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make, I desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors…”
It was not until 1920 — 144 years after Adams’s petition — that universal suffrage was included in the U.S. Constitution via the Nineteenth Amendment, which reads, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”
In the pre-1776 colonies, women cast their ballots for local leaders alongside the menfolk. But, by 1807, every state constitution had some limits on women voting, which fueled the Seneca Falls, New York, convention that served as the launch to the organized movement including leaders such as Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Carrie Chapman Catt, Alice Paul, Ida B. Wells, Lucy Stone, and so many more. These women had no partisan stripe and they were from different states. Some stood on religious grounds and others were more activist with hunger strikes and enduring arrest.
Originally hoping to be part of the Reconstruction Amendments of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments following the Civil War, the early Suffragists were defeated. The Fifteenth Amendment was the obvious home for the inclusion of women’s suffrage, but it was passed by Congress in 1869 to read, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” No mention of sex.
As America’s westward expansion occurred, the governing documents of most states west of the Mississippi River permitted some type of ballot access for women. In 1878, Sen. Aaron A. Sargent (R-CA) introduced the words that would later become the Nineteenth Amendment. For the next 40 years, his bill would be regularly reintroduced in some form.
It wasn’t until President Woodrow Wilson’s 1913 inaugural, however, that the Woman Suffrage Movement, with 5,000 women marching in a procession, had gained traction. The first World War interrupted but also served as a boost to the argument of women. The American economy was supported by the nontraditional roles filled by women who had previously remained in the home and unemployed. The talents, skills, and value of women were on display, aiding the push for what had then become known as the Susan B. Anthony Amendment. Between January 1918 and June 1919, votes to pass the historical language occurred five different times, with Southern Democrats successfully defeating the federal amendment until abandoning the filibuster. Then, the action turned to the 48 states to ratify the amendment.
By June 1920, the amendment had been ratified by 35 of the constitutionally required 36 states. All eyes turned to Tennessee, which appeared to be the last hope for the opposition.
Democrat Governor A.H. Roberts called a special session. The proposed legislation passed relatively easily in the Tennessee Senate with 25 ayes, four nays, and two not voting. McMinn County Senator H.M. Candler gave an earth-scorching speech opposing the “petticoat government” supported by the “low-neck, high-skirt” suffragists. He wore the red rose on his lapel representative of the Anti-Suffragist movement, while other Tennessee legislators supporting suffrage donned the yellow rose. This “War of the Roses” moved to the state House chamber, where opponents used procedural moves to avoid a vote.
By August 17, 1920, a motion to concur with the Senate’s adoption of the Joint Resolution was offered by Rep. T. K. Riddick (D-Memphis), with the chamber appearing to be in support of the yellow-rose vote. But the heavy-handedness ensued. House members were summoned home under the pretense of emergency to impact the outcome. Supporters were threatened with election challenges, while lucrative promises were made for votes to oppose suffrage.
When the morning of August 18 came, suffragist Anita Pollitzer had been told by the youngest legislator, Harry Burn (R-Niota), that his vote would never hurt the cause. Yet there he stood wearing a red rose on his suit’s lapel. Nevertheless, Burn’s college-educated, widowed mother, who ran the family’s farm, had written him a seven-page letter in which she voiced her suffrage support: “Hurrah and vote for suffrage.”
At 10:30 am, Speaker Seth Walker handed over his gavel to take to the House floor to make a tabling motion that, if passed, would end debate and doom the chances of the Nineteenth Amendment ratification. The vote was tied, 48-48. After procedural attempts, Speaker Walker returned to the original motion to pass the Senate version that would either ensure women’s right to vote or halt the forward movement of the Suffragists.
The roll was called with the red-rose-wearing Harry Burn declaring “Aye!” The amendment was ratified and pandemonium ensued. Burn later offered this explanation: “I know that a mother’s advice is always safest for her boy to follow, and my mother wanted me to vote for ratification.”
March is Women’s History Month. Find time to read about your own state’s role in ratifying the Nineteenth Amendment.
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Robin Smith has been writing for The Patriot Post since 2014 and currently serves in the TN General Assembly.
Tags: Robin Smith, The Patriot Post, Remarkable History, Women's Suffrage To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service and "Like" Facebook Page - Thanks!
It was not until 1920 — 144 years after Adams’s petition — that universal suffrage was included in the U.S. Constitution via the Nineteenth Amendment, which reads, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”
In the pre-1776 colonies, women cast their ballots for local leaders alongside the menfolk. But, by 1807, every state constitution had some limits on women voting, which fueled the Seneca Falls, New York, convention that served as the launch to the organized movement including leaders such as Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Carrie Chapman Catt, Alice Paul, Ida B. Wells, Lucy Stone, and so many more. These women had no partisan stripe and they were from different states. Some stood on religious grounds and others were more activist with hunger strikes and enduring arrest.
Originally hoping to be part of the Reconstruction Amendments of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments following the Civil War, the early Suffragists were defeated. The Fifteenth Amendment was the obvious home for the inclusion of women’s suffrage, but it was passed by Congress in 1869 to read, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” No mention of sex.
As America’s westward expansion occurred, the governing documents of most states west of the Mississippi River permitted some type of ballot access for women. In 1878, Sen. Aaron A. Sargent (R-CA) introduced the words that would later become the Nineteenth Amendment. For the next 40 years, his bill would be regularly reintroduced in some form.
It wasn’t until President Woodrow Wilson’s 1913 inaugural, however, that the Woman Suffrage Movement, with 5,000 women marching in a procession, had gained traction. The first World War interrupted but also served as a boost to the argument of women. The American economy was supported by the nontraditional roles filled by women who had previously remained in the home and unemployed. The talents, skills, and value of women were on display, aiding the push for what had then become known as the Susan B. Anthony Amendment. Between January 1918 and June 1919, votes to pass the historical language occurred five different times, with Southern Democrats successfully defeating the federal amendment until abandoning the filibuster. Then, the action turned to the 48 states to ratify the amendment.
By June 1920, the amendment had been ratified by 35 of the constitutionally required 36 states. All eyes turned to Tennessee, which appeared to be the last hope for the opposition.
Democrat Governor A.H. Roberts called a special session. The proposed legislation passed relatively easily in the Tennessee Senate with 25 ayes, four nays, and two not voting. McMinn County Senator H.M. Candler gave an earth-scorching speech opposing the “petticoat government” supported by the “low-neck, high-skirt” suffragists. He wore the red rose on his lapel representative of the Anti-Suffragist movement, while other Tennessee legislators supporting suffrage donned the yellow rose. This “War of the Roses” moved to the state House chamber, where opponents used procedural moves to avoid a vote.
By August 17, 1920, a motion to concur with the Senate’s adoption of the Joint Resolution was offered by Rep. T. K. Riddick (D-Memphis), with the chamber appearing to be in support of the yellow-rose vote. But the heavy-handedness ensued. House members were summoned home under the pretense of emergency to impact the outcome. Supporters were threatened with election challenges, while lucrative promises were made for votes to oppose suffrage.
When the morning of August 18 came, suffragist Anita Pollitzer had been told by the youngest legislator, Harry Burn (R-Niota), that his vote would never hurt the cause. Yet there he stood wearing a red rose on his suit’s lapel. Nevertheless, Burn’s college-educated, widowed mother, who ran the family’s farm, had written him a seven-page letter in which she voiced her suffrage support: “Hurrah and vote for suffrage.”
At 10:30 am, Speaker Seth Walker handed over his gavel to take to the House floor to make a tabling motion that, if passed, would end debate and doom the chances of the Nineteenth Amendment ratification. The vote was tied, 48-48. After procedural attempts, Speaker Walker returned to the original motion to pass the Senate version that would either ensure women’s right to vote or halt the forward movement of the Suffragists.
The roll was called with the red-rose-wearing Harry Burn declaring “Aye!” The amendment was ratified and pandemonium ensued. Burn later offered this explanation: “I know that a mother’s advice is always safest for her boy to follow, and my mother wanted me to vote for ratification.”
March is Women’s History Month. Find time to read about your own state’s role in ratifying the Nineteenth Amendment.
------------------
Robin Smith has been writing for The Patriot Post since 2014 and currently serves in the TN General Assembly.
Tags: Robin Smith, The Patriot Post, Remarkable History, Women's Suffrage To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service and "Like" Facebook Page - Thanks!
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