In August of 2020, the Animas Museum was proud to commemorate the 100th anniversary of one of the milestones in voting rights, the ratification of the 19th Amendment.
- On August 18, we held a socially distant event to toast the vote and the suffragists. You can see pictures and read the speeches here.
- We have also put together a timeline of events and dates in the history of the struggle for suffrage you can see here.
- Women in Colorado got the vote in 1893. Learn more about that here.
- Learn more about the colors and symbols of the suffrage movement here.
- We have compiled a list of online resources to learn more about women's suffrage here.
- Download the junior curator sheet for this online exhibit here.
- We are honored to host an exhibit organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) called Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence. This was originally to be a poster exhibit at the Animas Museum, but due to the COVID-19 outbreak and Museum closures, we have moved the exhibit online. Click on the logo below to see this online exhibit.
The story of women's suffrage is a story of voting rights, of inclusion in and exclusion from the franchise, and of our civic development as a nation. Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence, a poster exhibition from the Smithsonian, celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment and explores the complexity of the women's suffrage movement and the relevance of this history to Americans' lives today.
The crusade for women's suffrage is one of the longest reform movements in American history. Between 1832 and 1920, women citizens organized for the right to vote, agitating first in their states or territories and also, simultaneously, through petitioning for a federal amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Based on the National Portrait Gallery exhibition of the same name, Votes for Women seeks to expand visitors’ understanding of the suffrage movement in the United States. The poster exhibition addresses women's political activism, explores the racism that challenged universal suffrage, and documents the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment which prohibits the government from denying U.S. citizens the right to vote on the basis of gender. It also touches upon the suffrage movement's relevance to current conversations on voting and voting rights across America.
Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence is organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery. This project received support from the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative.
The Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative, Because of Her Story, is one of the country’s most ambitious undertakings to research, collect, document display and share the compelling story of women. It will deepen our understanding of women’s contributions to the nation and the world. More information about the initiative is available at womenshistory.si.edu. Learn more about the Smithsonian Institute Traveling Exhibit Service (SITES) at sites.si.edu.
