Timeline of women's suffrage in Utah facts for kids

Women working for the right to vote in Utah, 1915

This is a timeline showing when women in Utah gained the right to vote. This important right is called women's suffrage. Utah was one of the first places where women could vote. They earned this right on February 12, 1870. At that time, Utah was not yet a state; it was a territory.

Just two days later, on February 14, 1870, a woman named Seraph Young became the first woman to vote under these new laws. Women who supported voting rights were called suffragists. Utah suffragists worked with women across the country to help all women get the right to vote.

However, in 1887, a law called the Edmunds-Tucker Act took away Utah women's voting rights. But when Utah became a state in 1896, women got their voting rights back! Later, on September 30, 1919, Utah officially approved the Nineteenth Amendment. This amendment gave all women across the United States the right to vote. Still, Native American women in Utah did not have full voting rights until 1957.

Women's Voting Rights in the 19th Century

Important women leaders in Utah, 1897. From left to right: Zina D. H Young, Bathsheba W. Smith, Emily Dow Partridge Young, and Eliza R. Snow.

Early Steps for Women's Rights: 1840s

1842

• The Female Relief Society of Nauvoo is formed. This group helped women work together for good causes.

Discussing Women's Votes: 1860s

1868

• A newspaper called The New York Times wrote an article. It talked about giving Utah women equal voting rights. People in Utah liked this idea.
• The Deseret News, another newspaper, also wrote about how fair it would be for women to vote.

Women Gain and Lose the Vote: 1870s

1870

• February 12: Utah gives women the right to vote!
• February 14: Seraph Young becomes the first woman in the United States to vote under equal voting laws. This happened in Salt Lake City.

1871

• Famous women's rights leaders, Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, visit Salt Lake City.

1872

• A newspaper for women, Woman's Exponent, is started.

1879

• Emmeline B. Wells represents Utah at a big meeting. It was the National Woman's Suffrage Convention.

Fighting for the Vote: 1880s

1880

• Some people tried to remove women's names from voter lists. But the Supreme Court of the Territory said no, and women kept their right to vote.

1882

• In Salt Lake City, an official refused to add women to the voter list. The problem was fixed, and women continued to vote.

1887

• A new law, the Edmunds-Tucker Act, is passed. This law takes away Utah women's right to vote.

1888

• Mrs. Arthur Brown and Emily S. Richards represent Utah. They go to the National Suffrage Convention in Washington, D.C.
• September: Clara Bewick Colby and Elizabeth Lyle Saxon visit Salt Lake City. They give talks about women's right to vote.

1889

• The Utah Woman Suffrage Association is created. This group worked to get women's voting rights back.

Getting the Vote Back: 1890s

1890

• Maria Y. Dougall and Sarah M. Kimball are chosen to go to the National Suffrage Convention. It is held in Washington, D.C.

1891

The Utah Woman Suffrage Song Book, first printed in 1891.

• February 15: Suffragists in Salt Lake City celebrate the birthday of Susan B. Anthony.
• The Utah Woman Suffrage Song Book is published. It has songs about women's right to vote.

1892

• July 29: Suffragists hold a big meeting in American Fork.
• Emmeline B. Wells travels through California and Idaho. She gives speeches about women's suffrage.

1893

• Suffragists have a fun garden party in Salt Lake City.

1895

• February 18: Suffragists hold a convention. It takes place in the Salt Lake City and County building.

1896

• Great news! Utah women get the right to vote again.
• Martha Hughes Cannon becomes the first woman elected to a state senate. This is a big step for women in politics.

1897

• January: Emmeline B. Wells goes to the National Suffrage Convention in Des Moines, Iowa. She shares stories about how Utah women fought for their rights.

1899

• Carrie Chapman Catt and Mary Garrett Hay, two important suffrage leaders, visit Salt Lake City.

Women's Voting Rights in the 20th Century

Governor William Spry of Utah meets with suffrage leaders, including Emmeline Wells, in 1915.

Continuing the Fight: 1900s

• Utah suffragists collect 40,000 names for a petition. They send it to the United States Congress, asking for women's voting rights.
• Utah suffragists send representatives to big political meetings called National Presidential Conventions.

National Voting Rights: 1910s

1919

• September 30: Utah officially approves the Nineteenth Amendment. This amendment makes women's voting rights legal across the whole United States.

Celebrating and Expanding Rights: 1920s

1920

• February 12: Utah celebrates 50 years since women first got the right to vote in the territory.

1924

• The Indian Citizenship Act is passed. This law gives more voting rights to Native American women.

Full Voting Rights for All: 1950s

1957

• Utah changes old laws. Now, Native American women living on reservations in Utah can fully vote.