Virginia women first organized associations to fight for their voting rights in the years after the Civil War, but they were short-lived. The women who founded the Equal Suffrage League of Virginia in 1909 and the Virginia branch of the Congressional Union for Woman Suffrage in 1915 were more successful and achieved the right to vote in 1920 with the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment. Follow our timeline to learn more about the campaign for woman suffrage in Virginia.
We’ve been blogging about the fight for woman suffrage at The UncommonWealth: Voices from the Library of Virginia. Check out our ongoing posts below.
The Equal Suffrage League of Virginia was founded in 1909 to “secure the suffrage for women on equal terms with men.” Read about the League’s work HERE.
African American women weren’t welcomed by suffrage organizations in Virginia, but they still advocated for voting rights. Read more about their experiences HERE.
Virginia politicians did not approve of a suffrage amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which they feared would allow federal interference in the state’s elections. Read about the resolution they passed in 1919 against the proposed amendment HERE.
Virginia’s General Assembly voted against ratifying the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920. Read why HERE.
Virginia suffragists achieved a victory when the General Assembly approved a bill that allowed them to register to vote even if the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified after the registration deadline had passed in Virginia. Read about their success HERE.
The Library of Virginia holds records of the Equal Suffrage League. Learn more about the records and how to transcribe documents to make them keyword searchable HERE.
The Equal Suffrage League of Virginia briefly published its own monthly newspaper. Read all about the Virginia Suffrage News HERE.