Theodore Roosevelt’s support for women’s suffrage
Subject(s): Addams, Jane, 1860-1935, Anthony, Susan B. (Susan Brownell), 1820-1906, Dalton, Kathleen (Kathleen M.), Derby, Ethel Roosevelt, Hughes, Charles Evans, 1862-1948, Kellor, Frances, 1873-1952, Stanton, Elizabeth Cady, 1815-1902, Wilson, Woodrow, 1856-1924
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Natalie A. Naylor charts Theodore Roosevelt’s support of women’s suffrage from his writing an essay supporting equal rights for women as a Harvard student, to his tepid support of the movement as president, and his embrace of the right of women to vote in his 1912 Progressive Party campaign for president. Naylor notes the unsuccessful efforts of pioneer suffragettes like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton to move Roosevelt on the issue while president, and she shows how the 1912 campaign saw a change in Roosevelt’s attitude that he would maintain until the end of his life. Naylor details Roosevelt’s efforts in support of women’s suffrage in the years surrounding World War I, including the successful passage of women’s suffrage in 1917 in New York State.
The article includes a transcript of Roosevelt’s undergraduate essay “Practicability of Equalizing Men and Women before the Law” along with a one page hand-written excerpt from the essay. Two photographs of Roosevelt speaking and a drawing by Roosevelt supplement the article.
Collection
Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal
Creation Date
2020
Creator(s)
Naylor, Natalie A.; Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919
Publication Date
2025-01-02
Language
English
Period
Theodore Roosevelt and Public Memory (1919-present)
Original Collection
Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal
Page Count
13
Production Method
Record Type
Image
Resource Type
Rights
No permission is required from the Theodore Roosevelt Association to use items in the Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal collection for educational purposes. For permissions, contact William Tilchin at (516) 921-6319 or by email at wnt@bu.edu.
Citation
Cite this Record
Chicago:
Theodore Roosevelt’s support for women’s suffrage. [October 29, 2025?]. Theodore Roosevelt Papers. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o308790. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Naylor, Natalie A.; Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919. Theodore Roosevelt’s support for women’s suffrage. [29 Oct. 2025?]. Image. Theodore Roosevelt Papers. Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. October 29, 2025. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o308790.
APA:
Naylor, Natalie A.; Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919.: , [2025, October 29?]. Theodore Roosevelt’s support for women’s suffrage. Theodore Roosevelt Papers. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o308790.
Cite this Collection
Chicago:
Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal. Theodore Roosevelt Papers. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/theodore-roosevelt-association-journal. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal. Theodore Roosevelt Papers. Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. October 29, 2025. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/theodore-roosevelt-association-journal.
APA:
Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal. Theodore Roosevelt Papers. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/theodore-roosevelt-association-journal.
