Photo by William Bruzas for the Washington State Historical Society
SUFFRAGETTE CITY. Washington State History Museum registrar Fred Poyner and “Women’s Votes, Women’s Voices” exhibit curator Shanna Stevenson of Washington Women’s History Consortium unpack a rare copy of the Declaration of Sentiments, which stands today as the Declaration of Independence for women’s rights. In the background, a mannequin wears a top coat once belonging to suffragette Susan B. Anthony. Tacoma is the first city in the state to be honored with the extremely rare opportunity of housing these items before they move on to other exhibits across Washington.
Several custom-built cartons of rare women’s suffrage artifacts arrived at the Washington State History Museum last week. After resting for 24 hours to acclimate, the items were delicately unpacked in preparation for the museum’s exhibit “Women’s Votes, Women’s Voices” in late February, a centennial celebration of when women in Washington permanently achieved the right to vote.
Numerous pieces belonged to suffragette Susan B. Anthony, who first came to the Washington Territory in 1871 to campaign for women’s rights and establish the first suffrage association in Washington. Displayed in the exhibit will be her wire eyeglasses, silver and glass inkwell, and her burgundy velvet dress, among other of her belongings on loan from the Rochester Historical Society and Susan B. Anthony House in Rochester, N.Y.
Also included in the exhibit will be an extremely rare copy of the Declaration of Sentiments. Shanna Stevenson of Washington Women’s History Consortium and co-curator of the upcoming exhibit described the declaration, on loan from the National Women’s Rights Historic Park in Seneca Falls, N.Y., as “the Holy Grail” of the women’s suffrage movement, signed by 100 delegates at the first women’s rights convention in Seneca Falls in 1848 to make the case for women’s right to vote.
Kimberly Adams, public relations coordinator for the museum, noted that these items are not usually loaned out from the museums where they are on permanent display. Special accommodations have been made so that the pieces may be in the “Women’s Votes, Women’s Voices” exhibit here in Tacoma.
“It’s pretty special that our state gets to be the first, and basically only, state outside of New York to house these precious artifacts and that our own Tacoma gets to house them for the majority of their trip,” she said.
“Women’s Votes, Women’s Voices” will be on display at the museum for one year before embarking on a statewide tour through Wenatchee, Yakima, Seattle and Spokane.
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