August 26, 2020 marks the 100th Anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote.
This simply stated Amendment -- The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex -- required a lengthy and difficult struggle; victory took decades of agitation and protest. Beginning in the mid-19th century, several generations of woman suffrage supporters lectured, wrote, marched, lobbied, and practiced civil disobedience to achieve what many Americans considered a radical change of the Constitution. Few early supporters lived to see final victory in 1920.
Between 1878, when the amendment was first introduced in Congress, and August 18, 1920, when it was ratified, champions of voting rights for women worked tirelessly, using a variety of strategies. Some pursued a strategy of passing suffrage acts in each state — Colorado was the first state to ratify votes for women in 1893. Coloradoans then turned their activism towards a national referendum. They persisted and 100 years later we celebrate their sacrifices.
Celebrating Eliza Routt (1839-1907) a pioneer in the struggle for women’s rights. As wife of John Routt, Colorado’s first State Governor, she became Colorado’s first First Lady. Routt joined the Non-Partisan Suffrage Association of Colorado and served as president of the City League of Denver branch. After women’s suffrage passed in Colorado in 1893 and in honor of her tireless work, Routt became the first woman registered to vote in the Centennial State. She set the standard for Colorado’s first ladies and the state’s newly enfranchised women by performing community and public service without fanfare or pretense.
The Routts arrived in Colorado in 1875 and ushered Colorado into statehood in 1876. Eliza was an activist a member of the Ladies Relief Society, and helped establish the Old Ladies Home and was instrumental in obtaining a building for the Women’s Home Club (which became the YWCA). This building provided a safe residence for young women. She was a co-founder of and donor to the Denver Orphans Home Association in 1881.
Routt served on the first Board of Trustees for Colorado Women’s College. She was the first woman to serve on the Colorado State Board of Agriculture, the governing body of Colorado State Agricultural College, which became Colorado State University. During her decade on the board, Routt started the School of Domestic Economy, giving women wide access to higher education, and she obtained the first professorship for a female instructor. She helped acquire the Guggenheim Building for the school, a feat commemorated in a stained glass window honoring her. Another building on the campus is named after Colorado’s first First Lady.
Eliza Routt promoted public art and culture in early Denver through organizations like the Ladies Loan Exhibition and the Denver Fortnightly Club. She helped procure “The Closing Era Statue,” which was introduced at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893. After the Fair, it was installed on the east lawn of the Colorado State Capitol, where it stands today.
Now for the puzzle: How many stars are on the emblem on Eliza's headstone? Type in this number (do not spell it out) below for the final coordinates and a hint.
You can validate your puzzle solution with certitude.
Update: Helen Reddy, who popularized the song, "I Am Woman," that this series was based on died on 29 September 2020. RIP Helen.
