League of Women Voters of Tacoma-Pierce County

Identity area

Type of entity

Organization

Authorized form of name

League of Women Voters of Tacoma-Pierce County

Parallel form(s) of name

Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules

Other form(s) of name

  • League of Women Voters
  • LWV
  • Tacoma League of Women Voters

Identifiers for corporate bodies

Description area

Dates of existence

1920-

History

As the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote was passed by Congress in 1919, the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) reorganized to form the National League of Women Voters. Women in the Tacoma area had been active in statewide and national efforts to secure voting rights for women. Emma Smith DeVoe, of Parkland, served as President of the National Council of Women Voters which provided assistance and support to new voters in states where suffrage for women had been secured. In March 1919, DeVoe attended the NAWSA convention in St. Louis where President Carrie Chapman Catt began the National League of Women Voters. In January 1920, DeVoe and other local members of the National Council of Women Voters joined this national effort and converted to the state League of Women Voters in Tacoma. The Tacoma League began the Woman Voter newspaper in 1922 and took an active role in local politics. While the League became involved in work around restructuring city government as early as 1946, it wasn’t until the 1950s that membership expanded as a result of increased attention to local politics and restructuring efforts. By the end of the 1950s, there were 200 members of the Tacoma league. As more women joined from other areas of Pierce County, the League began to expand their focus to cover local issues outside of the City of Tacoma. In 1962, the group officially became the League of Women Voters of Tacoma-Pierce County to reflect their broader membership and scope. In 1974, the League dropped their requirement that members be women to join, allowing anyone with an interest in local political engagement to become involved. The group continues to produce and distribute The Voter newsletter. They also produce studies on a range of local and regional political topics and TRY (They Represent You) directories of elected officials in Pierce County.

Places

Legal status

Functions, occupations and activities

Mandates/sources of authority

Internal structures/genealogy

General context

Relationships area

Access points area

Subject access points

Place access points

Occupations

Control area

Authority record identifier

3.4.3

Institution identifier

Rules and/or conventions used

Status

Level of detail

Dates of creation, revision and deletion

Written by Anna Trammell, 2022

Language(s)

Script(s)

Sources

"History of the League," League of Women Voters of Tacoma-Pierce County (accessed 4/11/2022).

Maintenance notes

  • Clipboard

  • Export

  • EAC

Related subjects

Related places