WYOMING WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE HISTORY.
Though lovingly referred to as the “Cowboy State,” Wyoming’s true nickname is the “Equality State.” And for good reason. On December 10, 1869, Wyoming passed the first unconditional law in the U.S. permanently guaranteeing women their inherent right to vote and hold office.
On September 6, 1870, in Laramie, Wyoming, Louisa Swain made history by becoming the first woman in the world to cast an electoral ballot under laws giving women full civil and political equality with men. These same laws were never changed even as Wyoming was admitted to the Union in 1890.
And those weren’t the only female firsts that took place in Wyoming. The first female governor was elected in Wyoming and the nation’s first woman to be appointed to public office was done so in South Pass City, Wyoming. In addition, the Equality State is home to the first female jurors, the world’s first female bailiff and the first town that was governed entirely by women.
When invited to join the Union only if women’s suffrage was revoked, Wyoming’s legislature said, “We will remain out of the Union one hundred years rather than come in without the women.” In 1890, Wyoming became the 44th state… with the women.
