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Scandinavian Woman Suffrage Association

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Photograph of 1914 women' suffrage parade

Women display Scandinavian costumes and flags in a Minneapolis suffrage parade on May 2, 1914. The march drew 2,000 participants.

The Scandinavian Woman Suffrage Association used its unique ethnic affiliation to promote suffrage within Minnesota’s substantial Scandinavian community. By weaving celebrations of culture with targeted suffrage campaigns, the club contributed to Minnesota’s larger fight for women’s voting rights and even raised enough money to build a suffrage movement headquarters on the state fairgrounds.

The Scandinavian Woman Suffrage Association (SWSA) was founded in 1907 with help from prominent suffragist Ethel Edgerton Hurd. Affiliated at first with the Minnesota Woman Suffrage Association, the SWSA quickly carved its own identity as a crucial link between the Scandinavian community and the women’s suffrage movement.

Though open to men, the SWSA was mostly made up of—and exclusively led by—women. It charged no dues, which helped suffrage supporters of all ages and socioeconomic backgrounds take active roles in the organization. The SWSA was also unique for limiting membership to first- and second-generation Scandinavians, the vast majority of whom were Norwegian and Swedish. The dominant ethnicity of members tended to slant toward that of the acting president. Founding president Jenova Martin attracted many Norwegian suffragists, while her successor, Nanny Mattson Jaeger, pulled in more Swedes.

The two presidents had diverging goals for the SWSA. Martin emphasized cultural preservation and prized the unique aspects of her Scandinavian heritage. Jaeger, a self-described “patriotic American mother,” was an assimilationist who hoped that woman suffrage could lead immigrants, including women, to fuller American citizenship. Though both presidents prized their heritage, swelling anti-immigrant sentiments during World War I almost led the organization to change its name to avoid association with any particular ethnic group.

Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish suffragists were not without their differences. Yet they recognized the advantages of uniting in their fight for women’s voting rights. Together, they made up Minnesota’s largest immigrant group. Because the SWSA emphasized this shared heritage, its outreach efforts in the Scandinavian community were particularly effective. President Nanny Mattson Jaeger wrote to Scandinavian lawmakers like Knute Nelson to garner support for suffrage. She also partnered with Swedish newspapers like Svenska Folkets Tidning to publish pro-suffrage articles.

The SWSA also forged strong bonds with Scandinavian suffragists in Europe and shared their successes with women in the United States. Members translated speeches from Norwegian to English, performed a play about the Swedish struggle for women’s suffrage, and celebrated Scandinavian suffrage milestones.

Though the SWSA found great success working within the Scandinavian community, it also collaborated with other suffrage groups in Minnesota. In 1914, the SWSA joined 2,000 other marchers from across the state at a Minneapolis suffrage parade. Members wore traditional Scandinavian clothing and urged the United States to catch up with Norway, which had legalized women’s suffrage the previous year. President Jaeger also brought Swedish folk dancers to lawn parties thrown by Clara Ueland, president of the Minnesota Woman Suffrage Association.

Because the SWSA did not charge dues, it organized frequent fundraisers to support its work for women’s suffrage. Many doubled as celebrations of the members’ heritage, varying from Scandinavian plays performed at members’ homes to cultural festivals held in Minneapolis parks.

One of the SWSA’s most significant fundraising efforts supported the construction of a suffrage headquarters on the state fairgrounds. Though the SWSA initially pledged $500, it eventually decided to cover the full $2,000 price tag. Fundraising efforts ranged from soliciting donations of money and labor to selling baked goods and marmalade. The association also hosted a Scandinavian culture night at St. Paul’s Central High School, which drew an audience of over 1,000 people.

When completed, the headquarters was named the Woman Citizen Building. The SWSA dedicated it to the Minnesota Woman Suffrage Association on the first day of the 1917 State Fair. It was intended as a space for women to meet friends, make plans, and eventually celebrate their newly-earned right to vote. That dream came true for the SWSA when the nineteenth amendment was ratified in August of 1920. With its mission fulfilled, the association disbanded just months later.

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A/.J22
Luth and Nanny Mattson Jaeger papers, 1974–1933
Manuscript Collection, Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul
Description: Box 4 includes information on Nanny Mattson Jaeger’s work as president of the Scandinavian Woman Suffrage Association.

M508 26
Minnesota Woman Suffrage Association records, 1894–1923
Manuscript Collection, Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul
http://www2.mnhs.org/library/findaids/00756.xml
Description: Volume 26 of reel 18 includes newspaper clippings, letters, and other records related to the SWSA.

P939: Martin, Jenova
Manuscript Biographies collections, 1801–1998
Manuscript Collection, Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul
http://www2.mnhs.org/library/findaids/P939.xml#a8
Description: Biographical Information on Jenova Martin, first president of the SWSA.

“Association to End Work.” Minneapolis Morning Tribune, October 17, 1920.

Hurd, Ethel Edgerton. Woman Suffrage in Minnesota: A Record of the Activities in its Behalf Since 1847. Minneapolis: Inland Press, 1917.

“Paraders Place Equal Suffrage on a New Plane.” Minneapolis Morning Tribune, May 3, 1914.

Peterson, Anna Marie. “Adding ‘A Little Suffrage Spice to the Melting Pot:’ Minnesota’s Scandinavian Woman Suffrage Organization.” Minnesota History 62, no. 8 (Winter 2011–2012): 288–297.
http://collections.mnhs.org/mnhistorymagazine/articles/62/v62i08p288-297.pdf

——— “Making Women’s Suffrage Support an Ethnic Duty: Norwegian American Identity Constructions and the Women’s Suffrage Movement, 1880–1925.” Journal of American Ethnic History 30, no. 4 (Summer 2011): 5–23.

Scovell, Bessie Lathe. “Big Membership Drive by the Minnesota W.C.T.U.” Union Signal, March 7, 1918.

Stuhler, Barbara. “Organizing for the Vote: Leaders of Minnesota’s Woman Suffrage Movement.” Minnesota History 54, no. 7 (Fall 1995): 290–303.

“Suffrage Society Meets.” Minneapolis Morning Tribune, November 13, 1910.

“‘Suffs’ to Dedicate New Fair Building to the Woman Citizen.” Minneapolis Morning Tribune, August 26, 1917.

“Where Neutrals Are Allies.” Woman Citizen, September 15, 1917.

“A Woman Citizen Building.” Woman Citizen, October 27, 1917.

Related Images

Photograph of 1914 women' suffrage parade
Photograph of 1914 women' suffrage parade
Political Equality Club leaders
Political Equality Club leaders
Swedish folk dancers at Loring Park
Swedish folk dancers at Loring Park
Photograph of Unveiling of Gunnar Wennerberg staute
Photograph of Unveiling of Gunnar Wennerberg staute
Scandinavian Woman Suffrage Association members picketing in Washington, DC
Scandinavian Woman Suffrage Association members picketing in Washington, DC
Photograph of Scandinavian Woman Suffrage Association fundraising for the Red Cross
Photograph of Scandinavian Woman Suffrage Association fundraising for the Red Cross
Woman Citizen Building
Woman Citizen Building
Portrait of Nanny Mattson Jaeger
Portrait of Nanny Mattson Jaeger
“Women Vote in Norway” sash
“Women Vote in Norway” sash

Turning Point

In 1917, the SWSA raises enough money to build a “Woman Citizen Building” on the state fairgrounds. Suffrage organizations across the state recognize the SWSA for its fundraising abilities and dedication to the suffrage movement.

Chronology

1901

Anna Gjertson is hired to act as a suffrage organizer within the Scandinavian community.

1907

Ethel Edgerton Hurd helps found the Scandinavian Woman Suffrage Association, and Norwegian-born Jenova Martin becomes the organization’s first president.

1913

The same year that Norway legalizes women’s suffrage, Nanny Mattson Jaeger takes over as SWSA president. Her Swedish heritage attracts more Swedish members to the club.

1914

On May 2, the SWSA joins 2,000 other marchers in a Minneapolis suffrage parade.

1915

On June 24, SWSA members attend a dedication ceremony at Minnehaha Park for a statue honoring Gunnar Wennerberg.

1916

The SWSA collaborates with a Scandinavian group from the University of Minnesota to organize a May Fete in Loring Park.

1917

1,000 people gather in St. Paul Central High School’s auditorium on February 28 for an evening of Scandinavian dancing, theater, and culture. The money raised goes to the SWSA.

1917

The Woman Citizen Building is dedicated to the Minnesota Woman Suffrage Association on September 3, the first day of the state fair.

1918

Due to the anti-immigrant rhetoric common during WWI, the SWSA considers—but ultimately decides against—changing its name to the Woman Citizen Association to avoid association with any particular immigrant group.

1920

The nineteenth amendment is ratified on August 18.

1920

After some discussion of how best to use their newly-won votes, the SWSA disbands on October 20.