Photo of the Week

FROM THE SCHS LIBRARY ARCHIVES

“How shall we know it is us without our past?”
– John Steinbeck 

August 2020: 100th Anniversary of 19th Amendment / Women’s Suffrage

by Wendy Polhemus-Annibell, Head Librarian  

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Suffrage Badge & L.I. Suffrage Wagon. From the Collection of the Suffolk County Historical Society Library Archives.)

Suffrage (noun): the right to vote in political elections.

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19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (1920):
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote
shall not be denied or abridged by the United States
or by any state on account of sex.
Congress shall have power to enforce this
article by appropriate legislation.”

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August 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, guaranteeing and protecting women’s constitutional right to vote across the nation. New York women won suffrage rights three years earlier, in 1917, with the passage of a statewide referendum. In Suffolk County, Riverhead and Shelter Island were the only towns to cast majority votes against the suffrage amendment, while the other eight towns–Southold, East Hampton, Southampton, Brookhaven, Islip, Smithtown, Huntington, and Babylon–all voted in favor of granting New York women the right to vote. Statewide, the referendum was approved by male voters by a margin of 53.92 percent to 46.08 percent.

The horse-drawn “Spirit of 1776” campaign wagon shown here was a suffrage-movement symbol of patriotic protest on Long Island and in New York City. In 1913, the Brooklyn carriage company I.S. Remson donated the wagon to the New York State Woman Suffrage Association. It was subsequently used in suffrage parades and at organizing events. Today the historic wagon is in the collection of the New York State Museum in Albany.  

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Welcome Back! The Suffolk County Historical Society Museum is open to the public with new special summer hours of operation:

Thursday through Saturday, 10:00 am to 4:30 pm 

  • Enjoy a safe, socially-distanced family outing with 15-minute intervals between parties, for an enjoyable, worry-free environment.
  • Exhibits are open and provide a safe “touchless” experience for adults and children alike!
  • Masks are required of all museum visitors over age 2.

Due to Covid-19 distancing guidelines, our library will remain closed to the public but remote research services are available. Contact the library for more information: 631 727-2881 x103 or librarian@schs-museum.org 

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To View 2014 Photo of the Week pages click here.

To View 2015 Photo of the Week pages click here.

To View 2016 Photo of the Week pages click here. 

To View 2017 Photo of the Week pages click here.

To View 2018 Photo of the Week pages click here.

To View 2019 Photo of the Week pages click here. 

To View 2020 Photo of the Week pages click here.

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AAQ / Resource: Joseph Pagac Architect

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