Recognizing the Legacy of Women's Suffrage in Idaho

Floor Speech

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Mr. RISCH. Madam President, today, I join my fellow members of the Idaho congressional delegation, Senator Mike Crapo and Representatives Mike Simpson and Russ Fulcher, in honoring the fight that so many waged for women's suffrage by recognizing Idaho's role in securing the vote for women in Idaho 24 years before the passage of national women's suffrage legislation and by acknowledging the installation of the Idaho Women's Suffrage Commemorative Sculpture on Idaho's capitol grounds.

Notably, 126 years ago, on December 11, 1896, the Idaho State Supreme Court ruled in favor of the women's suffrage cause when it unanimously upheld the Idaho Equal Suffrage Amendment. According to historic Idaho publications, Idaho became the fourth State in the Union to enfranchise women with the right to vote and the first to do so via a State constitutional amendment. Remarkably, Idaho cemented the value and importance of women in the Gem State through a highly visible action prior to the Equal Suffrage Amendment--the adoption of the Idaho state seal--designed by a young woman named Emma Edwards. According to the Journal of the State senate of the Idaho Legislature, on March 14, 1891, the first Idaho State Legislature and Governor Norman B. Willey approved, for official use, Edwards' rendering of the Idaho State Seal--the only woman-designed State seal in the country. Idaho's all- male legislature approved Edwards' design, thus enshrining the importance of women in Idaho's past, present, and future and further validating the important role art continues to have in commemorating significant historical moments in time.

Edwards' design reflects Idaho's unlimited potential, and her depiction implies that women represent an equal half of that potential. Edwards assigned women's influence as symbolic of the ideals of justice and liberty. A woman's placement within the State seal suggests that women are integral to the protection of those ideals in Idaho. The inclusion of women in relation to Idaho's strongest and most prominent 1890s-era industries, mining, timber, and agriculture, position women not only as recipients of Idaho's bounties, but also as essential for the successful stewardship of these valuable resources.

Inspired in part by the Idaho State seal and the long-fought efforts of Idaho suffragists to enfranchise women of the Gem State and to serve as leaders in the fight to secure the vote for women nationally, the Idaho State Historical Society, in partnership with the Idaho Commission on the Arts and the Foundation for Idaho History, commissioned local sculptor Irene Deely to develop the Idaho Women's Suffrage Commemorative Sculpture. This sculpture, privately funded by the Idaho State Historical Society and the Foundation for Idaho History, embodies the spirit and legacy of the women's suffrage movement, universally represents Idaho women through time, and pays tribute to the Idaho Women 100 initiative. The sculpture's nameless woman walks metaphorically in the footsteps of those who came before her and then hands off her shoe to the future generations who will come after her. Deely noted, ``Fourteen unique styles of shoes spanning ten decades represent women through history, with a single shoe being handed off for subsequent generations to fill.'' The 14 shoes include a pair of contemporary moccasins made by Donzia, traditional Shoshone Bannock artisans, to represent the women of Idaho's five federally recognized Tribes. Variations of boots represent women's role in Idaho's agriculture and ranching industries and the military.

On December 12, 2022, the Idaho State Historical Society will proudly unveil the Idaho Women's Suffrage Commemorative Sculpture that celebrates the story of Idaho women past, present, and future and their impacts in the Gem State. This new symbol of the strength and significance of Idaho women will be the only female figure featured on the exterior State capitol grounds. The sculpture's placement on the grounds of the Idaho State Capitol is a statement of the importance of women to our State, especially in reference to their place in making decisions that impact us all. We commend all those involved in this important project that will serve as one more opportunity to commemorate several moments in time that speak to women's suffrage history and the resiliency, perseverance, and determination of many in the fight for a singular, focused goal.

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