Clio Logo

Members of the abolitionist movement started the women’s suffrage movement in Rhode Island prior to the Civil War. Paulina Wright Davis was the first suffrage leader in the state, chairing the 1850 national women’s rights convention in Massachusetts and publishing a newspaper devoted to women’s issues. Davis and Elizabeth Buffum Chace (another abolitionist) founded the Rhode Island Woman Suffrage Association (RIWSA) and helped found the New England Woman Suffrage Association. Suffragists attempted to pass a suffrage constitutional amendment in 1887; the amendment was passed by the state legislature but defeated by voters. Through the next few decades reformers continued to press for women’s suffrage and other reform issues. In addition, African American suffragists formed their own suffrage organizations. The suffrage movement continued in the early twentieth century with the creation of a College Equal Suffrage League chapter, the formation of a Woman Suffrage Party in 1912, and the activism of Alva Belmont. In 1917 Rhode Island women gained partial suffrage and were able to vote in presidential elections, but full suffrage would not come until the 19th Amendment. Rhode Island ratified the 19th Amendment on January 6, 1920. 


Governor Beeckman signs the ratification resolution on January 7, 1920, the day after the General Assembly ratification (Russell DeSimone Collection)

Suit, Vintage clothing, Classic, Crew

Paulina Wright Davis

Jaw, Style, Black-and-white, Art

Elizabeth Buffman Chace

Face, Forehead, Hair, Head

People gathered on the steps of Marble House, one of the homes of Alva Vanderbilt Belmont. Belmont was a large financer of the suffrage movement and the National Woman's Party. (Library of Congress)

Art, Vintage clothing, Event, Monochrome

Governor Beeckman signs the Women's Suffrage Act on April 18, 1917 (Rhode Island Historical Society)

Table, Hat, Black, Coat

"Rhode Island and the 19th Amendment." National Park Service. September 4, 2019. Accessed July 9, 2021. https://www.nps.gov/articles/rhode-island-women-s-history.htm.

Stevens, Elizabeth C. "The Struggle for Woman Suffrage in Rhode Island." EnCompass. Accessed July 9, 2021. http://library.providence.edu/encompass/the-struggle-for-woman-suffrage-in-rhode-island/the-struggle-for-woman-suffrage-in-rhode-island/.

"Women's Suffrage Timeline." Rhode Island Department of State. Accessed July 9, 2021. https://www.sos.ri.gov/divisions/civics-and-education/for-educators/themed-collections/women-suffrage-timeline.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

DeSimone, Russell. "Rhode Island's Long Quest for Women's Suffrage." Small State, Big History. Accessed July 9, 2021. http://smallstatebighistory.com/rhode-islands-long-quest-for-womens-suffrage/.

"Rhode Island and the 19th Amendment." National Park Service. September 4, 2019. Accessed July 9, 2021. https://www.nps.gov/articles/rhode-island-women-s-history.htm.

DeSimone, Russell. "Rhode Island's Long Quest for Women's Suffrage." Small State, Big History. Accessed July 9, 2021. http://smallstatebighistory.com/rhode-islands-long-quest-for-womens-suffrage/.

"Rhode Island and the 19th Amendment." National Park Service. September 4, 2019. Accessed July 9, 2021. https://www.nps.gov/articles/rhode-island-women-s-history.htm.

Stevens, Elizabeth C. "The Struggle for Woman Suffrage in Rhode Island." EnCompass. Accessed July 9, 2021. http://library.providence.edu/encompass/the-struggle-for-woman-suffrage-in-rhode-island/the-struggle-for-woman-suffrage-in-rhode-island/.