Women’s Suffrage Movement THE WYOMING HOUSE FOR HISTORIC WOMEN Laramie Open June–September and by appointment from October–December 7 PLACES TO CELEBRATE THE On Sept. 6, 1870, Louisa Gardner Swain became the first woman in the world to cast a ballot in Wyoming under laws giving women full equality to men. See a life-size statue of Swain in front of the Wyoming House for Historic Women, just one block from where she cast her ballot. The museum also features exhibits on Swain and 12 other Wyoming women who have impacted the world, including Martha Symon Boies, the nation’s first woman bailiff, and Nellie Tayloe Ross, the first woman elected governor in the U.S. thelouisaswainfoundation.com ESTHER HOBART MORRIS STATUE Cheyenne Open year-round which resembles the statue of her in the U.S. Capitol’s National Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C. While the Wyoming State Capitol is closed for renovations until late 2018, you can still view Morris’ statue in front and visit the Wyoming State Museum to explore the Capitol’s history and architecture. THE AMERICAN HERITAGE CENTER AT UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING Laramie Open year-round While Morris only served as South Pass City’s justice of the peace for about eight-and-a-half months (the term she was appointed to serve expired), she handled 26 cases and was also honored as a suffrage pioneer during the Wyoming statehood celebration in 1890. Visit a statue of Morris in front of the Wyoming State Capitol, Step into the American Heritage Center in the University of Wyoming’s cone-shaped Centennial Complex to browse an extensive archive of manuscripts, rare books and other original materials highlighting the history of the West — a collection started by Dr. Grace Raymond Hebard, who served as the university’s librarian in the early 1900s. Hebard identi-fied important topics in the state’s history, including Native American (particularly Shoshone) life, the pioneer experience and the roots of women’s suffrage, and worked tirelessly to document, preserve and promote the history of Wyoming and the West. The American Heritage Center also houses papers authored by other pioneering women, including Nellie Tayloe Ross. uwyo.edu/ahc 74 Wyoming Official Travelers Journal FROM TOP: LOUISA GARDNER SWAIN STATUE, WYOMING HISTORIC HOUSE FOR WOMEN; ESTHER HOBART MORRIS STATUE, CITY OF CHEYENNE. When the nation rings in the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment in 2019, Wyoming will celebrate the 150th anniversary of women voting. In fact, the Wyoming Territory approved the first law in U.S. history granting women the right to vote in 1869 — more than 20 years before it became the 44th state. Aptly named the “Equality State,” Wyoming history is full of pioneering ladies. Here’s where you can dig into their legacies.
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