SHSI Des Moines. Joseph Dugdale papers.
The period from 1870 to 1890 was one of both excitement and disappointment for Iowa suffragists. When Iowa’s constitution was adopted in 1857, the word “white” was included in the voting section, but in 1868, Iowans voted to remove it, enfranchising black and Native American men in law, if not always in practice.
This dramatic change in just over a decade led women to believe they would be next. Indeed, in 1870, the Iowa Legislature hired a female clerk (Mary Spencer), changed the code so women could practice law, and approved a resolution to amend the constitution and allow women to vote.
Quaker and peace activist Joseph Dugdale spearheaded a women’s rights convention in Mount Pleasant in 1870, which led to the organization of the Iowa Woman Suffrage Association (later known as the Iowa Equal Suffrage Association). A Mount Pleasant Journal editorial encouraged other states to look to Iowa as an example of progress.
In 1871, a free love scandal rocked the nation and splintered the suffrage movement in Iowa. The 1872 General Assembly rejected the women’s suffrage resolution - forcing the women to start over in the legislature.
SHSI Des Moines. Iowa Women's Suffrage Collection.
SHSI Des Moines. Iowa Women's Suffrage Collection.
Meanwhile, more and more Iowa women began speaking publicly and getting involved in local, state, and national suffrage organizations.