It is widely recognized that the campaign for the 19th amendment — “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex” — 聽began on July 19, 1848, on the first day of the first women鈥檚 rights convention, which took place in Seneca Falls, about one hour from Rochester. Written by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the Declaration of Sentiments signed at that convention included the grievance, 鈥淗e has never permitted her to exercise her inalienable right to the elective franchise.鈥� What began at the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, eventually spread throughout the country as the issue of women鈥檚 rights continued to permeate the nation鈥檚 consciousness. The activism and activity culminated in the ratification of the 19th amendment, some seventy-two years later.
The collections of the give voice to this rich history. One of the key collection strengths in the library relates to women鈥檚 rights and suffrage. Through letters, photographs, newspaper clippings, pamphlets, broadsides, and banners, the history of women鈥檚 suffrage is preserved and made available for research to the University 聽community as well as the community at large.
Several items stand out within these collections, including a banner used in the later years of the suffrage campaign that reads 鈥淰otes for Women.鈥� Yellow was a frequently used color in the campaigns on the twentieth century, immediately preceding the passage of the 19th amendment. (University photo / J. Adam Fenster)
River 人妻少妇专区 Libraries is home to one of the largest repositories of Susan B. Anthony Papers. Letters like this one, where Anthony wrote 鈥淵es you shall have the autograph of the first woman who legally registered and voted in the state of New York鈥� which lifts the franchise of the citizen above the power of the states to deny,鈥� offer a palpable sense of the magnitude of Anthony鈥檚 act of voting. 聽(University photo / J. Adam Fenster)
Anthony believed that the enfranchisement of all men and women was a guaranteed right, which she bravely tested in this act of civil disobedience in 1872. Her autographed sentiment: 鈥淓qual rights for women, civil and political, is the demand of yours sincerely, Susan B. Anthony. Rochester, NY Aug. 14, 1882,” confirms her commitment to the right to vote, despite obstacles in Congress and the courts. (University photo / J. Adam Fenster)
Taken in 1888, this photograph of Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton represents a fifty-year partnership in the fight for women鈥檚 rights. Together they galvanized women across the country to support the cause. (University photo / J. Adam Fenster)
The campaign for suffrage demanded wide-spread participation, at national, state, and local level. In this broadside, Carrie Chapman Catt put out a call: 鈥淥ne Thousand Women Wanted鈥� as part of a state-wide canvass throughout New York. (University photo / J. Adam Fenster)
