Reception to U.S. Senate Petitioners, Hyattsville, M.D., July 31, 1913

This postcard shows a welcome reception in Hyattsville, Maryland, marking the start of an automobile procession to the U.S. Capitol. Suffragist delegations assembled to hear speeches by local leaders before making the half-hour drive to Washington, D.C. They carried banners and petitions for women’s right to vote.

Manuscript Division, Library of Congress

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Exhibit Theme

Working for Woman Sufferage

From 1848 at a convention in Seneca Falls, New York, and continuing into the 20^th century, several generations of woman suffragists worked tirelessly for the right to vote. Over time, they employed different strategies—some worked for a constitutional amendment, and others pursued suffrage state by state. Tactics included petitions, parades, public speaking, civil disobedience, imprisonment and hunger strikes. Women finally achieved suffrage in 1920 with ratification of the 19th Amendment guaranteeing them the right to vote.