Ada L. James to Lucy B. Johnston
Creator: James, Ada L.
Date: November 6, 1912
Ada James, President of the Political Equality League of Wisconsin, sent this telegram to Lucy Johnston, President of the Kansas Equal Suffrage Association in Topeka, Shawnee County. James congratulated Johnston on the successful passage of a full suffrage amendment to the state constitution.

Address to the Voters of Kansas
Creator: Pomeroy, S. C. (Samuel Clarke), 1816-1891
Date: September 25, 1867
The numerous authors of this pamphlet (Republicans) support the constitutional amendments to approve voting rights for blacks, for women, and to restrict voting rights to "loyal persons." They offer arguments for their position as well as criticizing the Democratic Party in Kansas for their opposition to these amendments. Forty five men signed the document, which was the result of a meeting in Lawrence. The following signed the document S. C. Pomeroy, Atchison; E. G. Ross, Lawrence; S. J. Crawford, Topeka; N. Green, Manhattan; Chas. Robinson, Lawrence; Geo T. Anthony, Leavenworth; Lewis Bodwell, Topeka; R. B. Taylor, editor Wyandotte Gazette; J. P. Root, Whandotte; James Rogers, Burlingame; S. Weaver, Editor Lecompton New Era; L. R. Elliott, Editor Atchison Daily Free Press; W. A. Starrett, Lawrence; Wm. Larimer, Jr., Leavenworth; John Ritchie, Topeka; John Ekin, Topeka; Sol. Miller, Editor White Cloud Chief; A. H. Foote, Lawrence; C. B. Lines, Wabaunsee; R. G. Elliott, Jefferson county; G. A. Crawford, Bourbon county; John Speer, Kansas Tribune; A. Low, Doniphan; R. W. Jenkins, Pottawatomie county; Ed. Russell, Leavenworth; J. H. Pillsbury, Editor Manhattan Independent; S. D. Houston, Manhattan; W. K. Marshall, Atchison; F. G. Adams, Kennekuk; P. L. Hubbard, Atchison; A. Hunting, Manhattan; J. B. Abbott, De Soto; Joseph Denison, Manhattan; T. H. Baker, Manhattan, H. W. Farnsworth, Topeka; I. H. Smith, Topeka; D. R. Anthony, Leavenworth; G. W. Higginbotham, Manhattan; John Pipher, Manhattan, R. L. Harford, Manhattan; Jas. Humphrey, Manhattan; Wm McKay, Manhattan; R. P. Duvall, Manhattan; Pardee Butler, Pardee; and L. F. Green, Baldwin City. Only the language restricting voting to "loyal" persons was passed in the election on November 5, 1867. Blacks and women were not given voting rights as a result of the 1867 election.

A Man's Reasons Against Woman Suffrage
Date: March 9, 1910
Frank Foxcroft of Boston, Massachusetts, presented these remarks against woman's suffrage before the Judiciary Committee of the New York Legislature. He argues that most women do not want the ballot and that women already have too many burdens. He continues by discussing various other arguments opposed to woman's suffrage. He mentions Kansas on page 4 of the pamphlet. His remarks were printed by the Massachusetts Association Opposed to the Further Extension of Suffrage to Women.

American woman and her political peers
Creator: Briggs-Wall, Henrietta
Date: 1893
This cabinet card shows a painting titled American Woman and Her Political Peers by Henrietta Briggs-Wall. On the reverse, is a description of the painting's representation.

American Woman and Her Political Peers
Creator: Ford, W. A.
Date: between 1892 and 1893
This 58" x 48" pastel is titled American Woman and her Political Peers. Pictured at the center is Frances E. Willard, American educator and reformer. Portrayed around Miss Willard (clockwise from upper left) are a mentally disabled man, a convict, a madman, and a disenfranchised Native American. Henrietta Briggs-Wall of Hutchinson, Reno County, Kansas, designed the picture and commissioned Mr. W. A. Ford, also of Hutchinson, to execute it. Mrs. Briggs-Wall was active with the Kansas Equal Suffrage Association and with national and state chapters of the Women's Christian Temperance Union.

An act conferring upon women the right to vote
Creator: Kansas Legislature.
Date: 1893
In 1893, state senator Michael Senn sponsored Senate Bill 94, An Act conferring upon Women the Right to Vote, before the Kansas Legislature. The Judiciary Committee, chaired by A. W. Dennison, recommended to the Senate that the bill not be passed. Kansas women gained the right to vote in municipal elections in 1887, but it was not until 1912 that the state approved full female suffrage.

An act making appropriation to pay for per diem and milage...
Creator: Kansas Senate Ways and Means Committee
Date: 1919
The Senate Ways and Means Committee, Kansas Legislature, drafts legislation for payment of individual reimbursement for listed Senate members during the Kansas special special legislative session 1919. The governor had called a special session to ratify an amendment to the United States constitution giving women the right to vote.

An act to repeal all poll tax laws in the state of Kansas
Creator: House of Representatives
Date: January 1913
This act was created by the Kansas House of Representatives in an attempt to do away with any poll taxing which required Kansas voters to pay a small fee before being able to cast their ballot. Poll taxing affected people of all races in Kansas. This act was not passed. Poll taxing continued in Kansas until the early 1960s when a federal amendment was passed which made poll taxing unconstitutional in all states.

Anna Howard Shaw to Lucy B. Johnston
Creator: Shaw, Anna Howard, 1847-1919
Date: November 6, 1912
Anna Shaw, president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association, sent this telegram to Lucy Johnston, president of the Kansas Equal Suffrage Association, announcing that women in Kansas had gained the vote.

Anna Margaret (Watson) Randolph
Date: Between 1858 and 1868
This photograph is of Anna Margaret (Watson) Randolph, who moved from Ohio to Emporia in 1858. Shortly after her arrival, she married Joseph Vance Randolph with whom she had seven children. Anna was a passionate advocate of the abolition of slavery, and in the years following the Civil War, she also supported prohibition and women's suffrage.

Annie (Le Porte) Diggs
Creator: Snyder
Date: Between 1890 and 1899
A portrait of Annie (Le Porte) Diggs, who was born in 1848 in Canada to an American mother and French father. Two years later the family moved to New Jersey, where she attended school. Diggs moved to Lawrence, Kansas, in 1873 and married Alvin S. Diggs shortly thereafter. While in Kansas, Diggs began to attend the local Unitarian Church and developed a strong sense of moral responsibility that prompted her to work for temperance and women's suffrage. During 1882, Diggs and her husband published the newspaper Kansas Liberal, and beginning in 1890 she was the associate editor of the Alliance Advocate. As a radical reformer seeking to wipe out injustice, Diggs also allied herself with the Farmer's Alliance, aiding in the creation of the People's (Populist) Party, serving on the Populist National Committee, and supporting the fusion of the Populist and Democratic parties in the 1898 election. Throughout this time she continued to work actively for women's voting rights and served in the Kansas Equal Suffrage Association. In 1898, she was appointed the state librarian of Kansas, and she was also elected president of Kansas Press Women in 1905. Diggs moved to New York City in 1906, where she worked on two publications: The Story of Jerry Simpson (1908) and Bedrock (1912). She relocated to Detroit, Michigan, in 1912 and died there on September 7, 1916.

Annual Convention of the Kansas League of Women Voters
Creator: League of Women Voters of Kansas
Date: March 1, 1923-March 2, 1923
One page program lists the speakers for the Fourth Annual Convention of the Kansas League of Women Voters. The convention was held at the Hotel Lassen in Wichita, Kansas, March 1-2, 1923. The heading includes the names of the directors, officers and committee chairs.

A petition on Negro suffrage
Date: 1867
This petition by an unknown group of Kansas residents asks the state legislature to support suffrage for black males. The petitioners support removing the word "white" from articles five and eight of the state constitution. At that time the Kansas constitution limited suffrage to white males. The petition outlines six reasons why suffrage should be extended to black males. In 1867, the state legislature approved an amendment supporting black male suffrage but white male voters defeated the amendment in a public referendum. Voters also defeated a similar amendment supporting white, female suffrage. These proposed amendments followed the Kansas legislature's ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U. S. Constitution, which defined who were citizens, including Negroes.

Blanche Ketene Bruce for auditor
Creator: Topeka Daily Capital
Date: October 26, 1892
According to this article from the Topeka Daily Capital, B. K. (Blanche Ketene) Bruce Jr. was given a place on the Republican ticket and ran for state auditor in 1892. Bruce, a black man from Leavenworth, became the first African American to graduate from Kansas State University in 1885. One important reason Bruce was considered to be such a good candidate for the position of state auditor, was because he was a black Republican in every sense of the word. Between the years of 1880-1900 blacks felt their political interests did not differ too greatly from white political interest or well being. African American males were placed on political party tickets and ran successfully for elective offices in Kansas during this time.

Carrie Chapman Catt correspondence
Creator: Catt, Carrie Chapman
Date: 1903
Letters and correspondence from Carrie Chapman Catt, primarily to Laura Gregg. Carrie Clinton Lane Chapman Catt was a suffragist and peace activist who helped secure the right to vote for American women. She directed the National American Woman Suffrage Association and founded the League of Women Voters. Laura Gregg, born in Garnett, Kansas, was a lecturer and organizer in the suffrage movement and was a representative of the National American Woman Suffrage Association for four years.

Carry Amelia Nation diary and scrapbook
Creator: Nation, Carry Amelia Moore, 1846-1911
Date: 1870-1900
Although difficult to read due to considerable water damage, Carry Nation's diary and scrapbook records her concern for her family, fear for her marriage to David Nation, and worry for her daughter's health. The book also contains information on the family's economic life with lists of purchases and farm commodities sold, descriptions of their work to establish hotels in Texas, and several moves for health or economic reasons. The diary has two distinct parts. The first part (pages 1-200) is primarily a scrapbook pasted over a hand written ledger. The second part (pages 201-320) is primarily a journal that includes some accounts and copies of songs. Each part includes many unnumbered pages. Each unnumbered page is identified with a lowercase letter. The letters return to "a" again for the second part. Each part also includes many missing pages. The first part is missing pages 29-32, 75-138, 147-154, 172-174, 185-188 and 191-192. The second part is missing pages 213-214, 253-254, 269-274 and 279-282. The Carry Nation Memorial Home of Medicine Lodge, Kansas, donated the diary and scrapbook to the Kansas Historical Society in 1990. The diary forms series one of the Carry Amelia Nation papers, Manuscript coll. 744. A transcription of pages 201-320 is available by clicking on Text Version below. In the early 20th century, Carry Nation championed women's rights and the prohibition of alcoholic beverages and gained international attention for opposing illegal saloons by smashing them with a hatchet. A complete description of the entire collection is available through a link below. Transcription by Emily Jane Stoll.

Carry Amelia Nation miscellaneous collection
Creator: Nation, Carry Amelia Moore, 1846-1911
Date: 1900-1961
These materials include letters written by Carry Amelia Nation possibly between 1900 and 1906, and letters, articles, and other items written about her between 1901 and 1961. These papers originally comprised the Carry Nation miscellaneous collection which included materials received from many sources over a period of many years. This collection is now included as series 2 of the Carry Nation Papers, Manuscript Coll. #744. In the early 20th century, Carry Nation championed women's rights and the prohibition of alcoholic beverages and gained international attention for opposing illegal saloons by smashing them with a hatchet. A complete description of the entire collection is available through a link below.

Carry Amelia Nation papers
Creator: Nation, Carry Amelia Moore, 1846-1911
Date: 1901-1919
These papers include materials written by or concerning Carry A. Nation such as letters and poetry received, memorabilia, and the Callie Moore papers. The Callie Moore papers include letters & postcards received by Callie Moore from her aunt, Carry Nation (Callie was the daughter of Carry's brother Campbell). Jerald and Dianne Kelly donated the papers to the Kansas Historical Society (KHS) in 1999. This collection comprises the third and final series of the Carry Nation Papers, Manuscript Coll. #744. In the early 20th century, Carry Nation championed women's rights and the prohibition of alcoholic beverages and gained international attention for opposing illegal saloons by smashing them with a hatchet. A complete description of the entire collection is available through a link below.

Championship of Woman
Creator: Train, George Francis, 1829-1904
Date: 1867
This pamphlet contains excerpts from and/or newspaper accounts of thirty speeches that George Francis Train, a supporter of women's rights, gave in Kansas over a two week period in October and November of 1867. Train came to Kansas after participating in an excursion to the Rocky Mountains with approximately 200 newspapermen to hunt buffalo. Numerous Kansas women's suffrage supporters are mentioned in the booklet. Train gave speeches in Leavenworth, Lawrence, Olathe, Paola, Ottawa, Mound City, Fort Scott, LeRoy, Humboldt, Burlington, Emporia, Junction City, Topeka, Atchison, Wyandotte, and possibly other communities. Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were also campaigning in Kansas and shared the podium and/or communicated with Train. Train was an author, speaker, and a celebrity for his eccentricity.

Charles Langston to Samuel Wood
Creator: Langston, Charles
Date: June 20, 1867
This letter was written to Samuel Wood from Charles Langston, the leader of the black male suffrage movement in Kansas. Langston addressed two issues; removing the word white from the Kansas Constitution and women's suffrage. The word white prohibited black males from voting in Kansas leaving them powerless. Although Langston did support women's suffrage, he felt their movement was hampering the progress of black male suffrage. Therefore, he was not going to speak on the issue of women's suffrage. Like many Kansans during this time, Langston thought women should wait their turn for their right to vote. Samuel Wood was an influential politician and a supporter of women's suffrage but not black male suffrage. Black men were unable to vote in Kansas until the passing of the fifteenth amendment in 1870.

Charles Langston to Samuel Wood
Creator: Langston, Charles
Date: April 7, 1867
Charles Langston, Leavenworth, Kansas, wrote this letter to Samuel Wood, Cottonwood Falls, Kansas, in response to a letter Wood had written him on April 4, 1867, concerning a suffrage convention in Topeka. Langston was unable to attend and felt misrepresented. Wood claimed Langston thought supporters of female suffrage opposed Negro suffrage, which was not the case. Langston went on to explain that he needed Wood's financial help to secure black male voting rights. Enclosed at the end of the letter is a petition from the State Executive Committee of Colored Men. This proposition asked for two things; a vote in the fall election to remove the word white from the state constitution and funds to further the black male suffrage cause. The vote to remove the word white did not pass in the fall of 1867. Black men had to wait three more years before they received their right to vote in Kansas elections. Charles Langston later served as the principal of the Normal School--Colored in Quindaro, Kansas.

Charles W. Waddell to Governor George Hodges
Creator: Waddell, Charlis, W
Date: June 28, 1914
This letter from Charles W. Waddell was sent to Governor George Hodges to express his thoughts on the possible passage of a Jim Crow law in Kansas. Waddell, a Wisconsin resident and a supporter of Jim Crow, claimed that if the people of Kansas understood who the Negro was, then the law would pass with little opposition. In Waddell's letter he suggests that Governor Hodges supports the passing of the Jim Crow law. Hodges had made a speech to the Kansas House of Representatives in January of 1913 publicly discouraging the passing of any Jim Crow laws in Kansas. The Jim Crow law did not pass. Blacks in Kansas did experience discrimination from Jim Crow laws such as poll taxing and segregated elementary schools. Jim Crow laws were not officially outlawed nationwide until the mid to late 1960s.

Child labor and woman suffrage
Creator: The Club Member
Date: January 1907
This brief article in The Club Member describes the problem of child labor, arguing that in states where women had the right to vote "child labor and illiteracy have ceased to be problems." This information is taken from an article called "Treason of the Senate" by David Graham Phillips.

Chivalry or the Ballot! Which? Or Aren't You Asking too Much for That Seat, Brother?
Creator: Monroe, Lilla Day, 1858-1929
Date: November 5, 1912
This leaflet was prepared and distributed by the Good Government Club of Topeka. It was supporting the passage of the women's voting rights amendment on the November 5, 1912 ballot. The pamphlet addresses the question that if women want equal rights they should not expect courtesies from men in a somewhat aggressive manner. It was authored by Lilla Day Monroe, president of the Good Government Club.

Circular of the State Impartial Suffrage Association
Date: 1867
This circular describes the efforts to secure suffrage for blacks and women in the state of Kansas. The flyer indicates the Henry B. Blackwell of New York and Mrs. Lucy Stone were traveling in Kansas at that time. The Association was being organized in 1867. S. N. Wood was the corresponding secretary for the association. There is a hand written note on the back from H. C. Whitney, Lawrence, Kansas, indicating his willingness to speak for the group.