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Downtown Boise Historical Walking Tour, from Idanha Hotel to Carnegie Public Library
Item 9 of 11

In 1871, one year after the 15th Amendment gave African American men the right to vote, Representative Joseph William Morgan proposed women’s suffrage for the first time in the Idaho territory. The proposal was defeated in a tie vote and similar proposals were defeated in 1885 and 1887. When Idaho requested statehood, they specifically excluded women’s suffrage from the new constitution, fearing that it would hinder the acceptance of statehood. When women’s suffrage was not included in the state constitution, the first suffrage organization formed in 1893. The Idaho Equal Suffrage Association organized in 1895 and a year later a constitutional amendment granted Idaho women full suffrage. Idaho ratified the 19th Amendment on February 11, 1920.


Suffrage parade in Lewiston, Idaho

White, Black, Tree, Black-and-white

Suffragist Abigail Scott Duniway presented to the Idaho House of Representatives in 1887 in support of a women's suffrage measure

Black-and-white, Art, Tints and shades, Vintage clothing

Suffragist Minnie Priest Dunton

Dress, One-piece garment, Sleeve, Waist

"Idaho and the 19th Amendment." National Park Service. April 6, 2020. Accessed July 13, 2021. https://www.nps.gov/articles/idaho-and-the-19th-amendment.htm.

Little Book of Boise Suffrage. Boise City Dept of Arts & History. 2020. Accessed July 13, 2021. https://indd.adobe.com/view/924fb21f-25f4-4852-91d9-439805df2321.

Burns, Brandi. "Women's Suffrage: Notes from the City Historian." Accessed July 13, 2021. https://www.boiseartsandhistory.org/learn/suffrage/womens-suffrage-notes-from-the-city-historian/.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

"Leading the Way: Idaho Women and the Vote Exhibit." Idaho State Archives. Accessed July 13, 2021. https://idahohistory.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16281coll37/id/440/rec/8.

"Leading the Way: Idaho Women and the Vote Exhibit." Idaho State Archives. Accessed July 13, 2021. https://idahohistory.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16281coll37/id/440/rec/8.

"Leading the Way: Idaho Women and the Vote Exhibit." Idaho State Archives. Accessed July 13, 2021. https://idahohistory.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16281coll37/id/440/rec/8.