Timeline of women's suffrage in Florida facts for kids

This is a timeline of women's suffrage in Florida. It tells the story of how women in Florida worked to get the right to vote. The journey began in 1892 with Ella C. Chamberlain. She was one of the first people to start working for women's voting rights in the state. However, after Chamberlain left Florida in 1897, the movement slowed down for a while.

In the 1900s, new groups formed to push for women's suffrage (the right to vote). The first of these was the Equal Franchise League in Jacksonville, Florida in 1912. More groups popped up across Florida, including a Men's Equal Suffrage League! These groups worked hard. They talked to the Florida Legislature (the state's lawmakers), held big meetings, and taught people why women should vote.

Some cities in Florida even allowed women to vote in local elections before it was a statewide right. Fellsmere was the first in 1915. On June 19, 1915, Zena Dreier made history by becoming the first woman to legally vote in the Southern U.S.. Later, on May 26, 1919, women in Orlando also got to vote for the first time.

After the Nineteenth Amendment was passed, giving women across the entire country the right to vote, Helen Hunt West became the first woman in Florida to officially register to vote under these new rules on September 7, 1920. Interestingly, Florida didn't officially approve the Nineteenth Amendment until much later, on May 13, 1969.

The Fight for the Vote: 19th Century

Early Efforts: The 1890s

1892

• Fall: Ella C. Chamberlain starts writing a newspaper column in Tampa. Her column was all about women getting the right to vote.

1893

• January: The Florida Woman Suffrage Association (FWSA) is created. This was an important group dedicated to helping women gain voting rights.

1894

• Ella C. Chamberlain spoke to the Carpenters' Union in Florida twice. She also handed out flyers and books about women's suffrage.
• The FWSA held a successful "suffrage bazaar" (a type of fundraising fair) to collect money for their cause.

1895

• January: A statewide meeting for women's suffrage was held in Tampa.

1897

• Ella C. Chamberlain leaves Florida. After she left, the work for women's voting rights became quiet for a while.

The Movement Grows: 20th Century

New Beginnings: The 1900s

This letter from 1913 shows how people communicated about the Equal Franchise League in Florida.

1907

• John Schnarr from Orlando gathered signatures for a petition. This petition asked for a federal amendment (a change to the U.S. Constitution) to give women the right to vote everywhere.

Making Progress: The 1910s

1912

• June 15: The Equal Franchise League of Jacksonville is formed. This group became a strong voice for women's voting rights.

1913

• February 13: The Political Equality Club of Lake Helen is started.
• February 27: The Equal Suffrage Club of Orlando is formed.
• March 3: Women from Florida join a big march in Washington D.C. called the Woman Suffrage Procession. They walked to show their support for women's voting rights.
• April: The Equal Franchise League of Jacksonville asks the Florida Legislature to pass a state law allowing women to vote. The bill (proposed law) did not pass this time.
• October: Several women in Orlando try to register to vote, even though it wasn't yet legal for them to do so.
• November: A statewide meeting for women's suffrage happens at the same time as another big meeting for women's clubs. The Florida Equal Suffrage Association (FESA) is created.

1914

• The Men's Equal Suffrage League of Florida is formed. This showed that men also supported women's right to vote.
• The Pensacola Equal Suffrage League and the Milton Equal Suffrage League are formed, adding more local groups to the movement.
• December 8–10: A big meeting for equal suffrage is held in Pensacola. Pattie Ruffner Jacobs, a famous speaker for women's rights, gives a speech there.
• July 3: The Equal Franchise League of Jacksonville helps create a special newspaper edition of the State newspaper, focusing on women's suffrage.
• September: The Pensacola Equal Suffrage League helps create a special edition of the Pensacola Journal newspaper, also about women's voting rights.

1915

• February 3: Another important equal suffrage meeting is held in Orlando.
• March: Anna Howard Shaw, a very important leader in the national suffrage movement, visits Winter Haven and Pensacola. She gives several talks about why women should vote.
• June 19: Zena Dreier in Fellsmere becomes the first woman in the South to vote in an election. This was a huge moment!
• The Florida Federation of Women's Clubs (FFWC) officially supports women's suffrage.
• The State Legislature considers a bill to give women the right to vote, but it does not pass this year.

1916

• March 15–16: An equal suffrage meeting is held in Miami.

1917

• April: Another attempt is made to pass a women's suffrage bill in the State Legislature, but it fails again.
• May: A Florida chapter of the National Woman's Party (NWP) is started after Alice Paul, another national suffrage leader, visits the state.
• November 10: Mary A. Nolan from Jacksonville is arrested for peacefully protesting outside the White House.
• November 15: Mary A. Nolan is present during the "Night of Terror." This was when suffragists who were protesting were treated very roughly in prison.
• November 20: A women's suffrage meeting is held in Tampa. Pattie Ruffner Jacobs speaks at this meeting again.

1918

• November: A special meeting of the Florida Legislature considers supporting a federal amendment for women's suffrage. It does not pass. However, bills that allow women to vote in local city elections pass in Aurantia, Daytona, Daytona Beach, DeLand, and Orange City.
• November 19: A state suffrage meeting is held in Daytona.

1919

This photo from 1917 shows a demonstration, likely against women getting the right to vote, in De Leon Springs, Florida.

• January: James L. Giles, the mayor of Orlando, asks for a change to the city's rules to let women vote. The City Council approves it.
• January: Anna Howard Shaw visits Florida again and helps raise money for the suffrage movement.
• February 18–19: The "Prison Special" train visits Jacksonville. This train carried suffragists who had been arrested for protesting, and they spoke about their experiences.
• March: City leaders in Winter Park, Florida, ask for women to be allowed to vote in their city.
• April: A "Primary Suffrage bill" is discussed in the Florida Legislature. This bill would have allowed women to vote in primary elections (where parties choose their candidates).
• May 26: Women in Orlando vote for the first time in a city election.
• July: Women in Winter Park vote for the first time.
• October: The Florida women's suffrage meeting takes place in Tampa.

After the 19th Amendment: The 1920s

1920

• September 7: Helen Hunt West becomes the first woman in Florida to register to vote with full suffrage rights, meaning she could vote in all elections.

1921

• The Florida Equal Franchise League changes its name and becomes the League of Women Voters of Florida. This new group continued to work for voter education and participation.

1924

• The Indian Citizenship Act is passed. This important law gives Native Americans citizenship in the United States, which also meant they gained the right to vote.

Expanding Voting Rights: The 1960s

1965

• The Voting Rights Act is passed. This very important law helped make sure that all citizens, including African-American and Native-American women, could vote without unfair barriers.

1969

• May 13: Florida officially approves the Nineteenth Amendment. This happened many years after the amendment was passed nationally, but it was still an important step for the state.