Women's History Month 2020: A Timeline

Votes for Women pin. Gena Philibert-Ortega

Before we start looking at history and records, let's start with a timeline so that we can get a sense of what was going on in terms of women and the vote. I've added some links to the timeline in case you want to explore a specific topic further. 

Timeline

1776 
New Jersey state constitution gives all free inhabitants, including widows and spinsters who own property, the right to vote.

1807    
New Jersey election reform disenfranchises women.

1848
Seneca Falls Convention.

1861
Kansas women are able to vote in school elections.

1867
Nebraska women may vote in school elections.

1869   
Wyoming Territory grants women’s suffrage.

1870   
Utah women receive the right to vote.

1887  
Utah women lost the right to vote via the Edmunds-Tucker Act. 
Women in Kansas may vote in city and bond elections.

1893   
Colorado women receive complete suffrage.

1895   
Utah women regain their right to vote.

1896    
Idaho women are granted complete suffrage.

1907    
Expatriation Act states that women’s citizenship is that of her husband’s.

1909 
Women in Illinois are eligible to vote in presidential elections.

1910  
Washington grants female suffrage.

1911  
California grants women complete suffrage.

1912  
Arizona, Kansas and Oregon grant women complete suffrage.

1913 
Territorial legislature gives non-native Alaska women complete suffrage. 
Indiana women are eligible to vote in presidential elections.

1914  
Montana and Nevada grants women’s suffrage.

1917 
Arkansas women become eligible to vote in primary elections. 
Congress provides the Hawaii territorial legislature with the power to grant female suffrage. 
New York and Rhode Island women receive complete suffrage. 
North Dakota women are eligible to vote in presidential elections.

1918    
Women in Nebraska may vote in presidential elections. 
Oklahoma and South Dakota women receive complete suffrage. 
Texas women may vote in primary elections.

1919    
Women in Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee, and Wisconsin are eligible to vote in presidential elections.

1920    
The 19th amendment is ratified giving women the vote in the United States.

1922    
Married Women’s Independent Nationality Act (Cable Act) is passed.

1929    
Literate women in Puerto Rico are granted the right to vote.

1935    
All adult women in Puerto Rico are granted suffrage.

(Adapted from Schaefer, Christina K., The Hidden Half of the Family: A Sourcebook for Women’s Genealogy. MD: Genealogical Publishing, 1999).

Resources
Wikipedia - Timeline of women's suffrage in the United States