Women's Suffrage - Martinez Played A Role in Winning Women the Vote

These days, voting is taken for granted to the point where a majority of people don't go to the polls, especially for those non-presidential elections. But back in the early part of the 20th Century, women did not have the right to vote, and they fought hard to get it.

According to this great story by Melissa Jacobson in the Martinez News Gazette, Martinez was the scene of much activity in the suffrage movement. There was a visit from Susan B. Anthony in 1896. Mary Louise Swett, an educator and spouse of John Swett, the founder of public education in California, was also a major proponent of the suffrage movement.

Jacobson's research also reveals that, in order to convince "the men folk" to vote for women's voting rights, they held events like plays and "smokers," where the men were served tobacco and drinks and urged to vote for suffrage.

It's important to remind ourselves how this hard-fought right was won, if for no other reason than to remember not to take it for granted when the time comes to cast our ballots.