Putting the "Rat" in Ratification of the 19th Amendment

by Karl Kurtz

On Public Radio's "The Writer's Almanac" today, Garrison Keillor honored the passage of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote on August 18, 1920. He told this story about the pivotal vote for ratification in the Tennessee General Assembly:

Finally, in 1919, it [the 19th Amendment] narrowly passed both houses of Congress and was sent to the states to be ratified. Most Southern states opposed the amendment, and on August 18, 1920, it all came down to Tennessee. The pro-amendment faction wore yellow roses in their lapels, and the "anti" faction wore red American Beauty roses. It was a close battle and the state legislature was tied 48 to 48. The decision came down to one vote: that of 24-year-old Harry Burn, the youngest state legislator. Proudly sporting a red rose, he cast his vote ... in favor of ratification. He had been expected to vote against it, but he had in his pocket a note from his mother, which read: "Dear Son: Hurrah, and vote for suffrage! Don't keep them in doubt. I noticed some of the speeches against. They were bitter. I have been watching to see how you stood, but have not noticed anything yet. Don't forget to be a good boy and help Mrs. Catt put the 'rat' in ratification. Your Mother."

The web site, BlueShoe Nashville contains a more graphic description of chaos in the Tennessee House surrounding this vote:

With wilted collars and frayed nerves, the legislators squared off for the third roll call. A blatant red rose on his breast, Harry Burn--the youngest member of the legislature--suddenly broke the deadlock. Despite his red rose, he voted in favor of the bill and the house erupted into pandemonium. With his "yea," Burn had delivered universal suffrage to all American women. The outraged opponents to the bill began chasing Representative Burn around the room. In order to escape the angry mob, Burn climbed out one of the third-floor windows of the Capitol. Making his way along a ledge, he was able to save himself by hiding in the Capitol attic.

When tempers had cooled, Burn was asked to explain the red rose on his lapel and his "yellow-rose" vote. He responded that while it was true he was wearing a red rose, what people couldn't see was that his breast pocket contained a telegram from his mother in East Tennessee. She urged him to do the right thing and vote in favor of the amendment. Governor A. H. Roberts signed the bill on August 24, 1920 and two days later, the Nineteenth Amendment became national law. One hundred and forty-four years after the Declaration of Independence, American women had earned the constitutional right to vote--thanks in large part to a woman named Febb Ensminger Burn and her son, Harry.

Image credit: BlueShoes Nashville

Comments

[Nate Levin]

I love the Harry Burn story and have retold it myself. But the fact is that Connecticut or Vermont would have been the necessary 36th state (though not in time for the 1920 election) if the suffragists had failed in Tennessee.