Millions of American women were granted the right to vote with the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which marks its centennial in 2020. But more than a century earlier, women and free people of color legally held the vote in New Jersey for more than thirty years.
In the groundbreaking new exhibition When Women Lost the Vote: A Revolutionary Story, 1776 – 1807, the Museum of the American Revolution explores – as no book, exhibit, or other medium has before – the little-known history of the nation’s first women voters and examines the political conflicts that led to their voting rights being stripped away.
Although New Jersey ultimately restricted the vote to propertied white men in 1807, women’s fight for equality did not end there. Rather, that earlier Revolutionary fight became a rallying cry as another generation of women took up the mantle of the suffrage movement decades later.
When Women Lost the Vote is an inspiring story that explores how the American Revolution shaped women’s political opportunities and activism and will encourage visitors to reconsider their understanding of the timeline of women’s history in America. It is also a cautionary tale about one of America’s first voting rights crises.
Featuring original objects including textiles, manuscripts, and works of art, the exhibition will bring to life the forgotten stories of the women who first pioneered the vote.
Also featured in the exhibition will be several recently discovered poll lists including the names of women voters, tracked down by the Museum’s curatorial team during an extensive examination of voter records. To date, the team has located nine poll lists featuring the names of 163 women at local institutions and state archives. Prior to this, little proof of women voting during this period was known to exist.
Thu - Sun 10am - 5pm
Included with regular Museum admission
Museum of American Revolution
101 South Third Street
Philadelphia, PA
39.948212, -75.1455516
When Women Lost the Vote: A Revolutionary Story, 1776 – 1807
