Connecticut Suffrage Centennial

Connecticut Suffrage Centennial Logo

2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment guaranteeing and protecting the women's right to vote.  The State of Connecticut launched the Connecticut Women's Suffrage Commission and is encouraging municipalities and non profits to work together to celebrate this anniversary.  A number of Wilton organizations have planned events and activities to celebrate this important milestone. 

Wilton League of Women Voters: Film and Panel Discussion - The Hello Girls. March 5, 2020 from 6:30-8:00 pm. Wilton Library Association, 137 Old Ridgefield Road, Wilton. This film screening and panel discussion of the documentary film The Hello Girls is part of Wilton's Centennial Celebrations of the Ratification of the 19th Amendment. The film tells the story of the 223 women sent to France in 1918 by the U.S. Army Signal Corps to work on the war effort as telephone operators. Following the screening, three panelists will discuss the film, the role of women in the U.S. Armed Forces, and the impact of the return of the Hello Girls at the end of WW1 on the path toward ratification of the 19th Amendment. Register online at www.wiltonlibrary.org or call (203) 762-6334. No charge. Co-sponsored by Wilton Library, The League of Women Voters, Wilton Historical Society, and the James B. Whipple American Legion Post 86.

Wilton Women's Club Short Story Contest for Girls.  Girls who are Wilton residents in grades 9-12 are encouraged to submit a fictional short story related to American women gaining the right to vote. Deadline is April 27, 2020.  For more information, please visit www.wiltonwomansclub.com

Citizens at Last: Hannah Ambler, Grace Schenck, and the Vote. Exhibition runs June 20-September 12, 2020 from 10:00 am-4:00 pm. Wilton Historical Society, 224 Danbury Road, Wilton, CT.  On November 2, 1920, Hannah Raymond Ambler proudly wrote “It is my first vote” in her daily journal. This triumphant and poignant phrase, underlined for emphasis, captures the voice of just one of the women in Wilton who campaigned for suffrage. Grace Knight Schenck, a force to be reckoned with in the community, was a leader who organized the first women’s suffrage meeting in town. The stories of these two women are at the heart of the Wilton Historical Society’s exhibition “Citizens at Last: Hannah Ambler, Grace Schenck and the Vote” which joins the national recognition of the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, guaranteeing and protecting women’s constitutional right to vote. For more information, visit www.wiltonhistorical.org or contact Wilton Historical Society at info@wiltonhistorical.org or (203) 762-7257.

Additional events are being planned and will be announced during the year.  For more information, please contact Sarah Gioffre at sarah.gioffre@wiltonct.org or (203) 563-0129, x1128.