FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, August 25, 2022

Sec. Bellows, Gov. Mills, Maine Suffrage Centennial to Unveil Historic Women’s Suffrage Marker at State House

AUGUSTA — Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, Governor Janet Mills and members of the Maine Suffrage Centennial will hold a ribbon cutting on Friday for the new historic marker at the State House commemorating Maine’s ratification of the 19th Amendment on November 5, 1919.

“Maine’s ratification of the 19th Amendment was the product of decades of hard work by suffragists and their supporters and serves as a reminder that our right to vote should never be taken for granted,” said Secretary Bellows. “For me as Maine’s first female Secretary of State, the marker represents part of the journey of the fight for equality that continues today.”

The Maine Suffrage Centennial is a group of diverse organizations from across the state dedicated to commemorating the adoption of the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote. Friday’s ribbon cutting is the final public event of the multi-year celebration effort. The theme of the centennial celebration is “Hard Won, Not Done.”

Representatives of Maine’s U.S. Senators and Representatives, as well as state legislators, will also attend Friday’s event.

“The State House was the center of so much activity from legislative hearings, bills and resolutions introduced, lobbying efforts, and finally to the ratification of the 19th Amendment, that we wanted to be sure to commemorate this location,” said Anne Gass, member of the Maine Suffrage Centennial Board of Advisors. “We know this wasn’t the end of efforts to ensure equal access to the ballot – those fights continued past 1919 for Black, indigenous and other women of color – and they continue to this day.”

The historic marker is one of seven historic markers on the Maine Suffrage Centennial Trail. The other markers are in Portland (two), Bangor, Farmington, Lewiston, and Indian Island.