By Sarah Morgan Smith
One hundred years ago, on June 4, 1919, the U.S. Congress passed a joint resolution in support of a 19th Amendment to the Constitution, which would give women the right to vote.
The resolution was sent to the states and eventually was ratified in August 1920.
The quiz below, from the Ashbrook Center at Ashland University, Ashland, Ohio, provides an opportunity for you to test your knowledge of women’s suffrage.
1. Although women would not win the vote nationally until the 20th century, from 1776-1807 single women who met property qualifications were eligible to vote under the constitution of which state?
The framers of New Jersey's first constitution in 1776 gave the vote to "all inhabitants of this colony, of full age, who are worth fifty pounds ... and have resided within the county ... for twelve months." (National Park Service)
2. The first national convention for women’s rights was held in 1848. In what city was it held?
In 1848, at Stanton’s home near Seneca Falls, the two women, working with Martha Wright, Mary Ann McClintock, and Jane Hunt, sent out a call for a women’s conference to be held at Seneca Falls. (History)
3. Who was president of the United States when the 19th Amendment was ratified?
The work of both organizations began to sway public opinion and prompted President Woodrow Wilson to announce his support of the suffrage amendment in 1918. (Wikipedia)
4. How many states had granted women the right to vote in all state elections prior to ratification of the 19th Amendment?
According to the National Constitution Center, by 1919 there were 15 states in which women had full voting rights, and only two of them were east of the Mississippi River. (History)
5. How many states allowed women to vote in some, but not all, elections prior to the 19th Amendment’s ratification?
6. Which state was the 36th state to vote in favor of the 19th Amendment, providing the three-fourths’ majority necessary for the amendment to become part of the Constitution?
On August 18, 1920, Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify the amendment, giving it the two-thirds majority of state ratification necessary to make it the law of the land. Eight days later, the 19th Amendment took effect. (History)
7. Which famous suffragette said: “It was we, the people; not we, the white male citizens; nor yet we, the male citizens; but we, the whole people, who formed the Union”?
In the 1800s, women in the United States had few legal rights and did not have the right to vote. This speech was given by Susan B. Anthony after her arrest for casting an illegal vote in the presidential election of 1872. (History Place)
8. Which of the following women ran for president of the United States 48 years before the 19th Amendment was ratified?
Victoria Woodhull was politically active in the early 1870s, when she was nominated as the first woman candidate for the United States presidency. Woodhull was the candidate in 1872 from the Equal Rights Party, supporting women's suffrage and equal rights. (Wikipedia)
9. In 1917, members of the National Woman’s Party began protesting outside the White House in support of the 19th Amendment. What was the nickname of this group of women protesters?
The Silent Sentinels were a group of women in favor of women's suffrage organized by Alice Paul and the National Woman's Party. They protested in front of the White House during Woodrow Wilson's presidency starting on January 10, 1917. (Wikipedia)
10. Women were able to vote in many other countries before they were granted the franchise here. Which of the following countries had not granted women this right before the 19th Amendment was ratified?
The French Union for Women's Suffrage was a French feminist organization formed in 1909 that fought for the right of women to vote, which was eventually granted in 1945. (Wikipedia)
About the Writer
Sarah Morgan Smith is director of faculty at the Ashbrook Center at Ashland University and general editor of Ashbrook’s Core Documents curriculum for middle and high school teachers. She wrote this for InsideSources.com.
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