The Suffragette movement takes center stage in The
Suffragettes Choice Brides Agency series, which combines the amazing sacrifice
and dedication of the suffragettes with sweet and clean historical romance.
Each story begins in Boston, (one of my favorite cities), and
therefore it makes perfect sense that it would become the center of each
mail-order bride’s origin in the series! The fact that the 1850
National Women’s Rights Convention was held a Brinley Hall in Worcester, MA,
and 186 of the 268 attendees were from Massachusetts has a little something to
do with it, too.
Here's some history...
In 1869, a joint special committee on Woman Suffrage was
formed by the Massachusetts State Legislature; when the State House of
Representatives voted on the question of municipal suffrage for women, there
were 68 “Yeas” and 133 “Nays”. This
is what prompted the American Equal Rights Association to change the name of
their organization to the National Women Suffrage Association.
On July 4, 1876, Susan B. Anthony, Matilda Joslyn Gage, Sara Andrews Spencer, Lillie Devereux presented the “Declaration of Rights of the Women of the United States” and on September 12th they endorsed John I. Baker for Governor of Massachusetts.
Once again, we
find Massachusetts and Boston pivotal in the movement.
Historically, even women with the ‘highest standing’ in Boston (and other cities and states) struggled to find men who would take them as brides if they were a known
suffragette. That is not to say that there were no men in Boston, MA who supported the Suffrage Movement, however, there were not many.
The territory of Wyoming was the first to give women the right to vote in 1869 (Go Wyoming!). The West tended to give women this right on a much broader scale and earlier adoption than did the East, and we have a list below showing the chronological adoption of this right, by state. You can click the image to see the full list, as we cut it off when Massachusetts finally voted to allow women the right to vote!
I'm passionate about this, and grateful to all the women (and men) who sacrificed more than we'll ever know to pursue this right, and in some cases committed their entire adult lives to this cause. As a result, women today have the right to vote, own property, run their own businesses, and much more.
Although it may seem counterintuitive that a mail-order brides series would focus on Suffragettes, for this series it makes perfect sense.
Reading about the history of the Suffragettes is what prompted me to create the Suffragettes Choice Brides Agency series, and book one, BEGINNINGS, tells the story of one woman who decided to begin a mail-order bride agency to find husbands who supported the Suffrage Movement for her Suffragette friends.
I trust this brief synopsis has been interesting to you, and may even spur you on to learn more about the sacrifices and dedication of the suffragettes.
It is my hope that as women we'll not take our rights for granted, but rather say a prayer of gratitude as we work, run our businesses, vote for the candidates we support, and teach our children the importance of this each and every day.
It has not always been our right, but it is now. May we never lose sight of this fact, or become complacent.
Maya Angelou is one of my absolutely favorite women in history, and so I leave you with her words, spoken at former President Bill Clinton's Inaugural address:
"... give birth again to the dream... "
With love,
***
Consistently an Amazon top 100 bestselling author in Literature & Fiction Short Reads, Westerns, and Christian categories, Kate Cambridge writes always sweet historical and contemporary romances with strong characters, and a thread of faith and love interwoven throughout. She has loved writing since she was a child, and could not be more grateful to be an indie author! Her first Western Historical Series is The Suffragettes Choice Brides Agency series, and she also writes in collaboration with the Sweet Clean Book Club authors. Visit Kate's Amazon Author page here: Kate Cambridge on Amazon. Visit her website at KateCambridge.com and let's connect on Instagram! @KateCambridgeAuthor
Well said, and a brllliant concept for a series. Continued success with your books. History has so much to offer for writers, we just need to use it. Angela Raines
ReplyDeleteThanks, Angela!
ReplyDeleteI appreciate learning the order in which the states allowed women the vote. I had a minor in feminist studies in college but the courses focused more on the turn of the 20th century and forward.
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