Articles

by Katherine Kitterman, Better Days 2020 Historical Director September 24, 2020 In honor of National Voter Registration Day this week, let’s take a look at Utah women’s involvement in voter registration over the years. When Utah was becoming a state, women hoped to regain the right to vote that Congress had taken from them in […]

by Katherine Kitterman, Better Days 2020 Historical Director September 10, 2020 As we’ve described in past blog posts, Utah suffragists were involved in the national movement for women’s voting rights from the 1870s onward. In the 1910s, Utahns worked with two rival suffrage organizations—the more moderate National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA), and the more radical […]

August 17, 2020 It’s 19th Amendment centennial week! As we commemorate the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, we honor the women (and men) who worked for women’s equal voting rights long before and long after 1920. We’ve been creating resources to help you learn about this history for the past 3 years! If you’re […]

August 13, 2020 There are hundreds of exhibits and digital programs happening across the country to commemorate this year’s voting rights anniversaries! Although the pandemic has closed most exhibits to visitors, there are still great virtual tours and other resources you can check out virtually. Here are some of our favorite national websites, documentaries, and […]

August 1, 2020 by Tiffany Greene, Better Days 2020 Historical Consultant August 1, 1870: Utah Territory. In the peak of the summer season, when crops were nearing harvest and trees were heavy with fresh fruit, women in Utah went to the polls for the second time in six months. The first time, back in February, […]

August 3, 2020 We’re thrilled to have two temporary art installations up this month celebrating voting rights in Utah! The Voting Rights Act became law on August 6, 1965 to ensure that all people had access to the ballot, regardless of race. Our interactive art pieces celebrate the women of color who fought for equal […]

By Maya Brimhall, Better Days 2020 Historical Intern July 21, 2020 Although many exhibits and libraries are closed due to COVID-19, we wanted to give you a taste of some records here in Utah that highlight women who made a difference in our country’s history. Zitkála-Šá (Gertrude Bonnin) was a committed activist for Native citizenship […]

by Katherine Kitterman, BD2020 Historical Director July 10, 2020 You’ve seen the photos of sash-wearing suffragists holding banners outside the White House or marching down Pennsylvania Avenue. But do you know the meaning of the colors they wore? And what about the colors of other important organizations working for women’s rights? The first major campaign […]

by Katherine Kitterman, Better Days 2020 Historical Director July 8, 2020 If you’ve been watching the new PBS documentary The Vote, you may have wondered how Utahns fit in with the national suffrage parades and protests of the 1910s. In 1913, Alice Paul organized a grand parade down Washington, D.C.’s Pennsylvania Avenue for the National […]

June 10, 2020 2021 update––We’re not handing out pins at physical locations this year, but if you take a photo at locations matching all 15 women and send us a message on social media, we’ll mail you a prize! You can also email info@betterdays2020.org to claim your prize. This summer, get outside and have fun […]

June 1, 2020 Welcome back to Reading Club! For our last week, we’re looking at the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA), an essential piece of legislation protecting the rights of people of color who often faced significant obstacles when trying to vote. This Vox article by Dara Lind features 19 different charts and maps […]

By Tiffany Greene, Better Days 2020 Historical Research Consultant May 25, 2020 Dr. Ellen Ferguson and Claire Ferguson: A talented speaker and intelligent thinker, Dr. Ellen Ferguson began practicing medicine in Salt Lake in the 1870’s. One newspaper noted: “In…all that relates to the medical profession, Mrs Dr. Ferguson has no superiors and few equals.” […]