100th Anniversary!

100th Anniversary!

Decorated cake with message "Women Power the Vote!"

Celebrate with us as we commemorate the 100th anniversary of passing the Nineteenth Amendment, and the 100th birthday of the League of Women Voters on February 14, 2020.

Our special year began with a 19th Amendment party on August 24, 2019. In addition to the the lovely cake (photo above), we had an informative talk on the diverse group of women who fought for the vote, sometimes well after the passage of the 19th Amendment. Some of presenter Shawn Gilbert's group of courageous women are featured on our “Suffragists You Need to Meet”  page. The list will grow as we add photos and biographies of many lesser-known heroines!

Here is an album of photos from our trip to Sacramento to celebrate California ratifying the 19th Amendment. 

Below you'll find information and links for activities related to women's equality, women's suffrage, and the anniversaries of the 19th Amendment and the founding of the League of Women Voters.

  • Enjoy this wonderful PBS video (about 12 minutes long) that is punchy, informative, and very timely in its inclusion of the racial issues involved in women's suffrage. 
  • The National Park Service has a wonderful page on California women winning the vote. It links to other National Park pages related to women's suffrage and history.
  • The National Archives has an exhibit called Rightfully Hers that features the 19thAmendment document. The League is also featured in this very high-profile exhibit with historical documents that will be on display to the public until January 2021. We are also proud to have Virginia Kase included on their honorary committee and are in conversation with the Archives about other opportunities for collaboration. There will be a traveling exhibit and LWVUS is working with the Archives to make some materials available to Leagues in the coming months. 
  • National Archives traveling exhibit in Martinez: On January 23, 2020, a new exhibit will open at the Contra Costa County History Center, 724 Escobar, Martinez.  Titled “Women Win the Vote, In California, Contra Costa and the Nation,” it features the 72-year battle for America’s woman suffrage which culminated on Aug. 26, 1920.  The exhibit includes a display from the National Archives “Rightfully Hers”, suffrage banners, a history of the movement and stories of County woman leaders beginning in the 1920s. See the historical society website for more information. Open hours are 9 am - 4 pm Tuesday-Thursday, and 10 am - 2 pm on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays. The exhibit will be open through May 28th.
  • The Women's Vote Centennial Initiative (WVCI) is a collaborative of organizations and individuals committed to preserving and honoring women's suffrage history. The League of Women Voters is a WVCI Taskforce partner, meaning that our League is too. This organization has a lot of resources for suffrage celebration,including an interactive toolkit. WVCI is looking to feature events and activities in all 50 states.
  • The 2020 ONE WOMAN, ONE VOTE Festival is a collaboration with national organizations and cultural institutions to present films, concerts, exhibitions, and public events leading into the centennial of the passage of the 19th amendment guaranteeing U.S women the right to vote. Named for the 1995 film "One Woman, One Vote", the festival is based in Washington DC but the blog posts and film recommendations can be used by all.
  • Find the stories of California suffragists, including many from the Bay Area, in the interactive map of burials and memorials to them on this site. (Look for our newly-added Contra Costa suffragist. Abigail Norton Bush, in Martinez!)
  • More suffragist information and inspiration is at the website for the new memorial planned to commemorate women getting the right to vote. Under the Education tab, check out the various groups that participated, like AAUW, as well as looking at suffragists by state (they need to add some of our California women!)
  • It took 35 states to ratify the 19th Amendment. Follow this art project as it creates a flag to commemorate each of those states. (Scroll down on the HerFlag website to see the road trips, including California in November 2019! LWVDV participated -- see the link to some of our photos below)
  • Book recommendation: Historical fiction based on the lives of two sisters involved in the abolitionist movement as well as the suffrage movement, The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd, has also been made into a Lifetime movie. Click here to read a review.  

 Upcoming Events on Women's Suffrage: