By Andrea Marroquin
JIA Museum Curator
This year marks the 100th Anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, guaranteeing and protecting women’s right to vote. Many Jekyll Island Club families were actively engaged in leading the fight for women’s suffrage. The Jekyll Island Club’s prominent suffragists and suffragettes included Alva Vanderbilt Belmont, Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan, Julia Langdon Barber, Katherine Dexter McCormick, and Narcissa and Frank Vanderlip. These men and women marched in parades, organized petitions, spoke at rallies, donated funds, and hosted teas in support of women’s right to vote.
As leaders of such organizations as the Political Equality League, the National American Woman Suffrage Association, the National Women’s Party, and the League of Women Voters, these socially prominent men and women added their celebrity, connections, wealth, and influence to attract attention and support for the women’s suffrage movement. With help from their efforts, the women’s suffrage movement celebrated a momentous victory 100 years ago. The 19th Amendment to the Constitution was signed into law on August 26, 1920, guaranteeing women the right to vote.
An interpretive display provided by the National Archives is currently on exhibit at Mosaic, the Jekyll Island Museum, covering this landmark moment in American history. Stayed tuned for upcoming programs highlighting the role of Jekyll Island Club families in the fight for women’s right to vote.
Mosaic, the Jekyll Island Museum offers a variety of experiences for the whole family. Visit our interactive museum gallery or take a historic district tour, to discover the many Jekyll Island historic figures whose legacies have shaped our nation, past and present.
Please visit our website for details and tour reservations. For more information, please visit jekyllisland.com/history or call 912.635.4036.
