NH and the 2020 Women's Suffrage Centennial

Left to Right: Lori Gould (Deputy City Clerk); Kristin Kenniston (City Clerk); Jill Potwin, Darlene Cook, Alesia Williams (Assistant City Clerks). 

Ratification of the 19th Amendment, 100 Years Ago

To celebrate the centennial of the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that guaranteed the right to vote for all American women, the Lebanon Heritage Commission compiled a list of resources on the topic and the Lebanon City Clerk’s Office dressed up for the occasion (see above photo). 

The 19th Amendment was formally ratified on August 18, 1920 (a century ago from this Tuesday, August 18, 2020), and adopted on August 26, 1920.

XIX Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
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.
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

It was the hard work of leaders like Susan B. Anthony that achieved this important step in history. For example, the motto of a weekly women’s rights newspaper called The Revolution, which Ms. Anthony helped to publish in the 18060s-1870’s, was “Men their rights and nothing more; women their rights and nothing less.” 

New Hampshire had its own role as the first New England State, in 1878, to approve school suffrage for women, according to the National Park Service.

To learn more, please review the following resources. 

• Transcript of the 19th Amendment
• National Event Details 
• Fascinating History Channel Background
• NH Bar Association Voter Information and School Lesson Plans
• Women’s Vote Programming in NH
• NH Stories and Educational Opportunities
• National Park Service Podcasts and Resources including “NH and the 19th Amendment”
• U.S. Senate Highlights on the Centennial
• List of Suffragists and Rights Leaders in NH
• Armenia White, a NH suffrage pioneer and her letter from Elizabeth Cady Stanton, 1881
• 100 years later – Staying Engaged in NH
• August 18^th Suffrage Trivia

Learn more about the Lebanon Heritage Commission by visiting LebanonNH.gov/HeritageCommission.