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Marguerite Kearns is editor of SuffrageCentennials.com that has been publishing since 2013. She is the granddaughter of Edna and Wilmer Kearns, suffrage activists at the turn of the 20th century.
February 1, 2014 · 2:35 pm

Suffrage centennials are hot!

The word is just getting around about how hot suffrage centennials can be. A great example is the aftermath of the 2013 suffrage centennial honoring English suffragette and martyr Emily Davison. The 2013 centennial of her dramatic death received considerable attention. And the observance isn’t over yet, now that’s there’s a wider audience. Suffrage centennials honor the past, and they are opportunities to weave in the present day and a vision for the future. On February 13, 2014 at 6 p.m. in the Jubilee Room, Houses of Parliament in London, the play “To Freedom’s Cause” will be performed, along with a debate about the influence of Davison’s legacy on feminism today.

Supporters will be invited to sign a petition to erect a statue in Parliament and the debate will be opened on Twitter, using the hashtag #Emilymatters.

“To Freedom’s Cause,” was premiered in 2013 at the time of the Davison centennial. For more information, check with play creator Kate Willoughby who calls herself “a temporary suffragette,” and someone who has fallen in love with Emily Davison’s story. The play lays out the powerful tale of the people who came into contact with Emily, those who changed her life and whose lives she changed. Music and song are important elements. The suffragettes were known for their singing. It helped to keep their spirits up during the long spells of imprisonment.

Notes Kate Willoughby: “Emily’s final, iconic act involved the King’s jockey, Herbert Jones. A celebrated sportsman at the peak of his career, Herbert’s life would decades afterwards end in tragedy. However, Herbert’s later life has often been misrepresented and so in “To Freedom’s Cuase’ I seek to redress this.

“Over the years there has been a great deal of speculation about Emily’s motivation for stopping Anmer, the King’s horse: Was it suicide?  Was it naïve?  Or was it just an accident?  ‘To Freedom’s Cause’ offers some insight into the exact truth of the situation.

“Working on ‘To Freedom’s Cause’ has been a labour of love and I would like to thank everyone who has helped me develop this fresh retelling of Emily Wilding Davison’s story. A fun-loving, vivacious woman, whose courage, in the face of adversity, can inspire us all.”

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January 19, 2014 · 3:11 pm

Noteworthy suffrage centennial approach in Montana

The Montana Historical Society has grabbed the reigns in terms of the celebration of its suffrage centennial during 2014. Their campaign slogan, the Year of Women in History, is upfront about coming at the subject matter as an underdog. Women have been left out of Montana history is the statement entering the year-long celebration and the goal is to spark a wider recognition of women in history, not only educated women who have been high achievers, but also women from all walks of life who have left a trail behind them.

Montana women's suffrage website project

“Women have not been at the center of power, so when we tell  history from the perspective of people in power, we often leave women out,” said MHS Historical Specialist Martha Kohl in an article for the Sidney Herald. Native American women were not included in Montana’s 1914 victory, something the suffrage centennial celebrants are determined to do something about. African-American women are highlighted, as well as a wide variety of the many activists it took to make it possible for Montana women to vote.

The website has already been launched and it’s a fine example of possibilities for other states as well as the upcoming U.S. suffrage centennial in 2020. Funding for the website and other aspects of the project are provided, in part, by Montana’s Cultural Trust. Pay a visit. It’s worth it. Subscribe. The diversity of the articles so far is a stunning example of possibilities. Photo: Montana Historical Society.

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January 15, 2014 · 1:49 pm

100-year English suffrage collection is now personal and public

Boff Whalley, contemporary musician, has written a musical about an English suffragette that was inspired after seeing a friend’s collection of her grandmother’s suffrage memorabilia that’s now 100 years old. “Wrong ‘Un” will open in mid January 2014 and tell the story of Annie Wilde, a mill worker who campaigned for women’s right to vote. The friend’s grandmother went to Holloway prison and served time for the crime of women demanding democratic participation in the affairs of government. The persistent resistance pushed some English activists to take bold steps to win their cause. The UK has had numerous events and celebrations about their suffrage movement during the past year. There a telly suffrage sit-com underway, “Up the Women,” and a major motion picture in production. Hurray for suffrage celebrants in the UK. They take their suffrage movement history seriously. For more information about “Wrong ‘UN,” see: #1. #2. 

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January 3, 2014 · 1:49 pm

Montana is raring to go with its suffrage centennial celebration in 2014!

The Montana women are calling their suffrage centennial, “Women’s History Matters.” And with photos from the Montana Historical Society, they’ve come roaring around the bend with a great web site and a year’s program for all of us to look forward to. Martha Kohl, who’s heading up the year-long observance, said that an experience at several recent conferences really turned her head aorund. She asked audience members to write down the names of five Montana women in the 19th and 20th century. This was a challnge. Is it because there were no Montana women who could be distinguished for anything? Hardly. And this is precisely what “Women’s History Matters” will be setting out to correct. For more information.

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December 22, 2013 · 3:18 pm

Youth plant tree to honor suffrage centennial of suffragette Emily Davison

Teignbridge youth parliament members have planted a tree to honor the suffrage centennial of activist Emily Davison’s death. The controversial act of Davison throwing herself in front of the King’s horse to draw attention to an injustice has fascinated people in the UK, especially in this 100th year since Davison’s death. There have been numerous womens suffrage exhibits, performances, demonstrations, books and films associated with this suffrage centennial. This tree planting is yet another example of the attention being showered on this important part of English history. Tree planting was an important part of the suffrage movement. The women who served hard prison time for the cause were encouraged to plant a fir tree at Eagle House near Bath. Only one of these trees remain. For more information: #1. #2.

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December 14, 2013 · 1:51 pm

Nevada ready for its 2014 suffrage centennial

Nevada’s suffrage centennial officially started on October 31, 2013 and it will continue through 2014. Women’s right to vote was a long process beginning in 1869 when the Nevada State Legislature approved a constitutional amendment allowing women the vote.  The 1871 legislature failed to ratify the amendment as did the subsequent 12 legislatures.

For the next 40 years, women were as politically active as they could be by lobbying their male representatives and in some instances running for various school boards. In 1911, Nevada native Anne Martin, home from recent suffrage activities in Great Britain and Bird Wilson, a lawyer practicing in Goldfield spearheaded the campaign to get Nevada women the vote. Their dedication and hard work paid off when the 1914 legislature ratified the amendment and the voters approved that amendment in a general vote on November 3, 1914.  Women voted in Nevada for the very first time in 1915. Stay up to date with the Nevada Women’s History Project’s web site.

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December 1, 2013 · 5:02 pm

Suffrage celebrants in New Zealand, please move over!

As New Zealand celebrates its 120th anniversary of women voting, the awareness of a contender is putting suffrage centennials on notice. Those in New Zealand’s government take the 120th anniversary seriously with special events and programming. However, the Pacific island of Pitcairn claims the position of the first country granting women the right to vote 175 years ago in 1838. So women’s suffrage fans, take note. It boils down to the definition of “country,” as to which nation holds the distinction of being the first. Pitcairn claims that being a territory of the UK still entitles it to be called a country. And on November 29th they held their suffrage celebration with the men of the island preparing a feast for the women while greetings and best wishes poured in from all over the world. Pitcairn has 19 women and 17 men of voting age. Most of the island’s inhabitants are descendants of sailors who staged a mutiny on a British ship in 1789.

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November 16, 2013 · 2:04 pm

Centennial of suffrage “Better Babies” campaign inspires descendants!

Find out the entire story here.

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November 13, 2013 · 7:21 pm

Suffragist and abolitionist Harriet Tubman still center of attention in centennial of her death

Harriet Tubman historic site, Auburn, NYThe politics of the Harriet Tubman historic site in Auburn, New York becoming a national park is very much in the news. Since 2013 is the centennial year of Tubman’s death, there is considerable interest in this subject that was compounded when U.S. President Obama visited Seneca Falls, NY in August and then stayed overnight only a few miles from the Tubman home and museum without visiting it. The no-show ruffled some feathers, while others were more philosophical about the event. The Auburn, NY Harriet Tubman historic site is located in the “Cradle” of the women’s rights movement in the U.S. which is located in the Finger Lakes region of New York. A bill is in the U.S. Congress to make Tubman historic sites in NYS and Maryland one national park. The politics of this possibility are highlighted in these two accounts by Marguerite Kearns and Olivia Twine in New York History: Article #1. Article #2. Kearns and Twine can be found on LetsRockTheCradle.com

Photo: Hospital building on the Harriet Tubman historic site in Auburn, NY. 

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November 4, 2013 · 1:19 pm

Indiana and its centennial in 2013!

Play about Chicago women in suffrage movementThe state of Indiana was the first state east of the Mississippi to grant women the right to vote. That was back in 1913, so there isn’t much time before the big centennial baton moves on. The actual news items from the state itself give a flavor of what people there are saying about this occasion. There has been a play about Chicago women: #1. #2. Chicago historian Cecille Gerber who presented a special program. In this piece, she speaks about the importance of this centennial occasion. #1. #2. And the Illinois League of Women Voters turned out for a special celebration.

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