Designated in 2025 as an Outstanding Historic Event.
Nominator: Newfoundland and Labrador Historical Society
2025 marks the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in the Dominion of Newfoundland, an historic moment when women 25 years of age and older and living in electoral districts represented in the House of Assembly could cast their votes for the first time. Labrador was not yet represented in the House of Assembly so women there would vote for the first time in 1946, when they cast their votes for a representative to the National Convention. Since 1925, great strides have been made towards increasing the political presence and participation of women in Newfoundland and Labrador. The road to “the vote” was marked by resilience, collaboration, and the fierce advocacy of countless women.
The suffrage movement in Newfoundland and Labrador is as much the story of well-known, outspoken women as it is of unknown, unheard, and unrecorded women. All advocated and fought for women’s political and voting rights. During the 100th anniversary year of women’s suffrage in Newfoundland and Labrador, new generations of women voted and ran in municipal, provincial, and federal elections, continuing a strong legacy of female leadership and agency in this province. The 100 years between have been marked by significant social, political, and technological change, but the strategies and community building that the women of the suffrage movement engaged in remain relevant today. Through its commitment to imagining a better future for all, the women’s suffrage movement brought about remarkable change and left a profound legacy.
LINKS
“Women’s Suffrage” from Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Website
“Women’s Suffrage in Newfoundland” (Video) from Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Website
History of the Vote from Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Website
From Silence to Suffrage: Women’s Path to Citizenship in Newfoundland, 1803-1949 by Margot I. Duley
Report on the first WCTU meeting held in St. John’s. (The Evening Telegram, 1890-09-11)
Report on the WCTU’s petition to allow women to vote on temperance issues. (The Evening Telegram, 1891-03-19)
Early notice announcing the establishment of The Ladies Reading room. (The Evening Chronicle, 1910-01-31)
Early Women’s Patriotic Association appeal. (The Evening Telegram, 1914-08-28)
Women’s Patriotic Association members at work in the Ball Room of Government House, 1915. (The Rooms Archives Great War photograph collection)
Newfoundland suffragists, ca. 1920s. (Gertrude Crosbie, Memorial University Archives and Special Collections)
A group of young suffragists in St. John’s. (Holloway Studios)
Update on suffrage petition. (The Evening Telegram, 1920-05-19)
