Suffrage Fans

Suffrage fans, generally flat and made out of cardboard although some pleated varieties are known, were an especially popular form of suffrage memorabilia. For people who lived in an age that preceded air conditioning, they were a highly welcome give-away at ball games, horse races, picnics, and other outdoor activities, even for those who otherwise did not support the suffrage movement. They were especially prominent in the 1915 state referendum campaigns in both New York and Massachusetts.

Some carried only an advertising message for suffrage, some also contained an illustration of the “suffrage map,” indicating which states had granted women voting rights so far, and one variety even duplicated an Emily Chamberlain illustration from a post card that depicted two children in patriotic dress. The implicit message of the illustration was that suffrage was not revolutionary but part of the original American fabric.

Anti-Suffrage associations generally avoided production of very much memorabilia, not wishing to imitate the tactics of suffragist activists. Fans, however, were a partial exception, as seen by the example shown here. Most anti-suffrage fans, however, lack the visual and graphic appeal of their pro-suffrage counterparts.