Constitution of the State of Montana, as Adopted by the Constitutional Convention Held at Helena, Montana, July 4, A.D. 1889, and Ending August 17, A.D. 1889, and also an Address to the People.
Helena, Montana: Independent Publishing Co., 1889. First edition. Article IX, sections ten and twelve, are crucial to the history of women’s suffrage in the United States. Section ten states, “Women shall be eligible to hold the office of county superintendent of schools or any school district election.” Section twelve stated, “Women who are tax-payers and possessed of the qualifications for the right of suffrage required of men by this constitution shall equally, with men, have the right to vote.” A general public election approved the constitution on October 1, 1889. Montana became a state on November 8, 1889. White women in Montana did not gain full voting rights until 1914 (Native women were denied the right to vote until the passage of the Indian Citizenship Act in 1924). Chipping to spine. Wrappers sunned, most significantly on back cover. Ink smudges to two pages. A very good copy of an important women’s suffrage item that granted Montana women the right to vote in school district elections and to hold office in school district positions. Original pink paper wrappers titled in black. Octavo. 76 pp. Item #17355
US Women’s Suffrage Timeline, 1648 to 2016 (webpage). National Parks Service.
Price: $200.00