Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Coronation of Womanhood posters, 1884-1885
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Duniway, Abigail Scott, 1834-1915
- Title
- Coronation of Womanhood posters
- Dates
- 1884-1885 (inclusive)18841885
- Quantity
- 0.18 cubic feet, (1 oversized folder) : Two posters, each 28 in. x 42 in. and identification key, 10 in. x 18.5 in.
- Collection Number
- Coll 839
- Summary
- Two copies of a poster entitled "The Coronation of Womanhood," and the corresponding identification key. The poster was commissioned and designed by Abigail Scott Duniway in 1884 to honor supporters of the equal-suffrage movement.
- Repository
-
Oregon Historical Society Research Library
1200 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR
97205
Telephone: 503-306-5240
Fax: 503-219-2040
libreference@ohs.org - Languages
- English
Historical NoteReturn to Top
Abigail Scott Duniway commissioned Kurz & Allison's Art Studio in Chicago, Illinois, to create a poster-sized lithograph print honoring supporters of the equal-suffrage movement in 1884. Duniway presented gold-framed copies of the engraving to several entities, including the states of Oregon and Washington in 1885.
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Abigail Scott Duniway was a writer, editor, and champion for women's suffrage in the Pacific Northwest. She was born in Groveland, Illinois, in 1834 and she traveled to Oregon with her family in 1852. After moving to Portland in 1871, she published and edited The new northwest and became Oregon's leading advocate of women's suffrage. She moved to Idaho in 1887 and helped to achieve women's voting rights there in 1896. After returning to Oregon, she was instrumental in the passage of Oregon's own women's suffrage bill in 1912.
Other Descriptive InformationReturn to Top
One copy of the poster was previously described as Poster 549 and the identification key was previously cataloged as Poster 540.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
The collection consists of two copies of a poster entitled "Coronation of Womanhood" and a single copy of an identification key to the people depicted in the poster. The posters are printed from a photo crayon lithograph engraving. At the front center of the image, the goddess of Liberty is crowning a kneeling female figure representing womanhood. Below them is a banner reading, "Coronation of Womanhood." Arranged in a half-circle above Liberty and Womanhood at the top of the poster are the portraits of Edward Dickinson Baker, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and James A. Garfield. On either side of the image is a dais draped in bunting featuring the state crests of New York, California, Oregon, Nebraska, Wyoming, and the District of Columbia. Seated on the daises are 17 women of the suffrage movement: Martha C. Wright, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucy Stone, Frances Wright, Lucretia Coffin Mott, Elizabeth Boynton Harbert, Susan B. Anthony, Abigail Scott Duniway, Dr. Clemence S. Lozier, Helen M. Gouger, Sarah L. Knox Goodrich, Mary Ashton Rice Livermore, Mary J. Collins, Julia Ward Howe, Lillie Devereux Black, Matilda Jocelyn Gage, and Ernestine L. Rose. Below the daises is an audience of 275 additional men recognized as supporters of women's enfranchisement. The men depicted in the scene include Matthew Deady, Stephen F. Chadwick, Rockey Preston Earhart, Joseph N. Dolph, Melvin Clark George, Samuel Royal Thurston, and William S. Ladd. A full listing of the depicted individuals is accessible via the identification key. The inscription at the bottom of the poster reads, "Respectfully dedicated to the loyal subjects of liberty who paved the way to woman's enfranchisement in the Pacific Northwest, United States of America, anno domini one thousand eight hundred eighty three."
Source: The Idaho Semi-Weekly World. February 20, 1885.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Alternative Forms Available
Digitized versions of the poster and key are available in OHS Digital Collections.
Preferred Citation
Coronation of Womanhood posters, Coll 839, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Restrictions on Use
Materials in the collection are in the public domain.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Acquisition Information
Acc 27241, acquired prior to 1983.
Preservation Note
Original posters are not available for direct access due to the fragility and oversized nature of the material. Contact library staff for assistance.
Related Materials
Additional materials relating to Abigail Scott Duniway are available in the Abigail Scott Duniway papers, Mss 432, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Women's rights--Northwest, Pacific--1880-1890
- Women--Suffrage--United States
Form or Genre Terms
- Political posters
- lithographs
Other Creators
-
Corporate Names
- Kurz & Allison (lithographer)
