by Jim Wetton
She smiled, her eyes still closed. It had been a long battle and now, tomorrow, it would be complete. She had finished what her Great-grandmother Hannah had asked of her. She felt tired. She didn’t know if it was just relief after the forty years of trying or if her fatigue was from watching Bonnie romp around her living room in all of her feminine glory. Nevertheless, she did feel tired. Though it was only five in the evening, the only thing that sounded good to her was the thought of her soft, feathered pillow snuggled gently under her head. As nice as that all sounded, the thought of getting up and moving, even if it was just to her bedroom, seemed far too laborious at the moment. She laid her head back and closed her eyes. Oh, the peaceful silence, so rewarding in itself. She took in a deep breath and smiled. It has been worth it, now hasn’t it there, Lizzy girl?
Soon, Lizzy had drifted off to sleep, her soft purring resonating through her living room. The sun set and the room around her became dark, yet from the look on her face, she was at peace. Tomorrow would be the culmination of all that she’d worked so very hard for. Tomorrow would be the time to bring Hannah’s wish to fruition.
Lizzy’s eyes opened to the sight of a bright white box across the room. Its light was so bright that she had to put her hand over her eyes to shield herself from the brightness and then she realized what it was.
Oh, this is good. God does have a sense of humor. Her thoughts made her laugh as she narrowed her eyes towards the bright white box with bold words etched in its side. She focused on the words and read:
HANNAH’S BALLOT BOX
She laughed at what she thought of God’s humor. “Good way to finish there, Lord. Give me a dream of casting my own vote, but if it’s OK with you, I’ll do it the right way tomorrow; no offense!” Once she said it, the light went away and she fell back into a peaceful slumber, her dream fading away.
* * * *
Nellie parked the car and told the passengers to take a short walk while she spent a few minutes with their grandmother. Nellie had looked forward to this day for some time. She wanted it to be a special morning, one in which she’d arrive and sit with her mother and reminisce over what she and so many other women had accomplished. She didn’t want it spoiled by all the noise and excitement that would come with all the grandchildren arriving all at once.
Nellie walked up the walkway to Lizzy’s home and stopped. She looked down the street and could see that her kids were long gone and she’d have the time she’d waited for. She felt a twinge of anxiety as she took her first step up to the porch. Had she built this up too much? She took two more steps and then as she began to cross the porch, she looked in the window and smiled at the sight of Lizzy’s head against the soft cushioned chair.
She cracks me up. Same old routine. Morning paper and a cup of coffee. Probably reading about how all the women were about to flood the voting booths. Nellie smiled and shook her head in amazement. Oh, it must be such a relief for her.
Nellie pulled the screen door back and softly knocked on the door. Noticing no movement from inside, she knocked again and then peeked around to look in the window again. She felt a chill run through her at the sight of Lizzy’s head still propped against the back of the chair. She tested the door and to her surprise it was unlocked.
Nellie slowly turned the knob and as it clicked open, she pushed it forward.
“Momma?”
There was no answer and another chill ran down her spine as she slowly walked in. She maneuvered around a floor lamp and a side table until she was standing in front of Lizzy.
“Momma?”
Nellie’s chest tightened. Her mouth felt dry. She moved slowly towards Lizzy and bent down on one knee and then reached out for her hand. Lizzy’s hand was cold to the touch and Nellie instantly dropped it. She sighed slowly and then as she picked up her mother’s hands again and held them tight, her eyes began to fill with tears.
“Oh, Momma.” Nellie placed Lizzy’s hands back in her lap. She caressed her mother’s cheek and brushed a strand of hair away from her eyes.
“Never told you that I had a special event planned out for the two of us,” Nellie choked. “Yes, you and I were going to sit together and think of all that you’ve done and all the women you’ve affected. It was going to be a time, just you and me; and believe me, I’ve been planning this little celebration ever since you decided to make this your lifelong quest.” Nellie wiped her cheek as she looked out the window to make sure she still had time before the children arrived.
“Oh, Momma, if you could have just waited one more day, we could have had our little celebration, you and me, but . . . I can see that you and God had other plans.” Nellie choked and wept. She put her hands over her mouth but it didn’t help much. “Oh, dear God, why, why now?”
The children. . . . They’ll be back soon. Got to meet them on the porch. Plan, what’s the plan?
Nellie could hear laughter down the street and knew her time was short. Think, Nellie, think! Nellie bent over and kissed her mother’s forehead and placed a blanket around her. She stood back and swallowed hard before she turned towards the front door.
Closing the door behind her, she met the rest of the family on the steps.
“Where’s Nana?” Bonnie asked. “I’d think she’d be out here ready to mark her name in victory.
“I still need to get my sweater before we go,” Adeline added. “I’ll be right back.”
“No!” Nellie choked. The abrupt outburst shocked everyone as Nellie placed her hands over her mouth to hold in her need to cry.
“Momma, what’s wrong?” Nancy Lee asked as she walked up to Nellie. “Why are you crying?”
“Momma, where’s Nana?” Bonnie asked in a somber tone.
Nellie gathered herself and replied softly, “Your Nana won’t be joining us today.”
* * * *
As they pulled their car into the parking lot, the mood was filled with a mixture of emotions. Bonnie was the first to get out and then opened the door to let Nancy Lee out. Teddy and Adeline walked around the back of the car and joined them as Nellie locked up.
The bands were playing and the sounds of the crowds could be heard for miles. As they made their way to the hall where the voting was taking place their voices were mute.
Edith Wilson did make her appearance, but soon was abreast to the news. As they walked through the crowds and heard the cheers, they didn’t comprehend what the cheers were all about. Soon the sound of cheers turned into a chant and with every step they walked, the chant grew louder.
Nellie could see a podium on the stage, its microphone gleaming in the sunlight. She felt empty as each step got her closer to the stage. The crowd grew louder and though her mind was clogged with emotions, she could now hear what they were chanting.
“LIZZY . . . LIZZY . . . LIZZY. . . .
LIZZY . . . LIZZY . . . LIZZY. . . .”
Nellie stopped and covered her mouth with her hands. She wiped her eyes with her handkerchief. Edith came alongside her and put her hand inside hers; she too was crying.
Nellie stopped at the first step to the stage and turned around. She looked first at Bonnie. Her face was stricken with grief. She looked over at Teddy and was amazed at his composure as he held firmly to Adeline who was too weak to walk anymore. She wiped her nose and glanced over at Nancy Lee. Their eyes met and though Nancy Lee was crying, she gave Nellie a nod of assurance to keep going.
Nellie took another step up to the stage and with Edith by her side, she made it to the top and walked over to the podium. She felt like collapsing at the constant chanting for her mother.
“Thank you!” Nellie leaned in and tried to speak. The microphone squeaked. Nellie looked over at Edith who kept her hand on Nellie’s back for support.
“You can do this, Nellie. Do it for her. She’s right here with us. Don’t forget that!”
“Th . . . thank you all. I . . . I’m sure my mother would have been thrilled to hear her name called out like that aft
er all these years.”
Nellie turned and broke down. Edith pulled her aside and approached the podium. “Ladies and Gentlemen, today is a day in which history is being made. Though I am here, not as your outgoing First Lady, but as a dear, dear friend of the woman whose name you’re chanting. I know that she’d be the first to tell you that she doesn’t deserve such a reception. No, my friends. Millie Elizabeth Monroe McKeever would not want any light shined her way. She would have wanted the light to be shined to our God above and to all of you who stood by her cause and the cause of equality for all men and women. She would have wanted me to tell you that she was taught that nothing was more important than her faith, her family and—as I can attest to—her friends. Lizzy couldn’t make it today, but I know that I, along with her beautiful family here, would like to dedicate this day to her and all she’s done for this moment.”
Edith gestured for Bonnie, Teddy, Adeline and Nancy Lee to join her and Nellie on stage.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, it is with great admiration and pride that I introduce to you Lizzy’s family.”
As the cheers quieted, Edith continued. “President Wilson and I owe them so much. We not only owe them our friendship but we also owe them our gratitude for their perseverance. This day would not have come to fruition if it wasn’t for Lizzy Monroe McKeever and her entire family.”
The crowd rose to their feet with an overwhelming standing ovation, again shouting:
“LIZZY . . . LIZZY . . . LIZZY . . .
LIZZY . . . LIZZY . . . LIZZY . . .”
Edith raised her hands in the air to quiet the crowd and looked over to Nellie and nodded. First Nellie shook her head but then after more encouragement from Edith and Nellie’s children, she walked back over to the podium.
“Thank you. I know my mother would be so overwhelmed and yet humbled by the outpouring of love and support you all are showing today. I don’t know if you know the story, but my mother gave an oath to her great-grandmother back in 1881 upon finding a diary she’d written. Her name was Hannah and she lived in the days of Abigail Adams and the beginning of this great country. She asked my mother to carry on her quest for all women to have the same rights as men and today, my mother’s dream has become a reality.”
Nellie choked out the last words as the crowd erupted in cheers.
“My mother is not only a great woman, a great leader of women, but she’s also a great mother and most of all, she’s a great friend.” Nellie paused. She dried her eyes with her handkerchief and took in a deep breath before continuing.
“She’d have loved . . . to see this day.”
She no longer could control her emotions. She turned her back to the crowd and wiped her eyes with her handkerchief. She took in several deep breaths, looked up to the sky and said a quick prayer before turning back around.
“As you all have probably made out by now, we lost my mother last night.”
Nellie paused as the crowd grew serenely quiet.
“It’s so odd though,” Nellie forced herself to continue. “When I found her, she was sitting peacefully in her favorite chair. A smile was still on her face as if she knew she’d be walking down this aisle and casting her ballot in that box over here. So, from me and my family, we’d like to ask you all, if you’d allow us to finish that quest of hers. It’s been a journey that has taken so many loved ones from her and from our family, but a voyage that has now become law. A law that all men and all women have a right to vote for who they believe in to lead our great country.”
Nellie gestured for Bonnie to join her on stage.
“My daughter Bonnie is the only woman in our family of age to vote, yet I know by the look on Nancy Lee and Adeline’s faces that they’d love to join us, so on this day, all of us are casting our vote in the memory of Millie Elizabeth Monroe McKeever.”
Nellie reached for Bonnie’s hand and when they connected, Nellie wept. Bonnie held firmly to her mother’s hand in support.
The crowd was silent. Nellie’s children surrounded her with a much-needed hug.
As the family broke from their embrace, Nellie, with her hand still clutching on to Bonnie’s, walked over to the ballot box and stopped as she prepared to cast her vote.
Her voice cracked as she continued to cry.
“This is for you, Momma.”
Timeline of Events
1881
Lizzy’s father Jed passes away at the age of 65.
President Garfield is shot.
1885
Martin announces that the state capital is moving from Wheeling to Charleston.
Agatha makes a surprise appearance in Wheeling, looking for Micah.
Agatha and her daughters are accepted into the Tuskegee School for Women.
Grover Cleveland is elected as the 22nd President of the United States.
1886
The suffrage amendment is defeated two to one in the U.S. Senate.
1887
Martin loses his bid for the U.S. Senate representing the state of New York.
1888
Lizzy has a dream about Wall Street.
Martin asks Lizzy to follow him to New York.
Martin announces to Lizzy that he wants to get out of politics and into finance.
1889
Wyoming insists that they maintain women’s suffrage if they join the Union.
Benjamin Harrison is elected as the 23rd president.
1890
The NWSA and the AWSA merge to form the National American Woman Suffrage Association. Its first president is Elizabeth Cady Stanton.
1893
The Silver Panic of ‘93 causes the stock market to crash and sends the economy into a depression.
Martin, James and James’ fiancée Katherine are stopped by angry investors.
Grover Cleveland is elected as the 24th president.
Colorado men vote for women’s suffrage.
1896
Women’s suffrage returns to Utah upon gaining statehood. Idaho grants women suffrage.
Lizzy receives an invitation to hear speakers from the NAWSA in her hometown of Washington, D.C. Keynote speaker is Harriet Tubman.
Mary Elizabeth can’t make it to the hall.
Women’s suffrage returns to Utah upon gaining statehood.
1897
McKinley is elected as the 25th president.
1898
The USS Maine is sunk in Havana Harbor, Cuba.
United States declares war on Spain.
Teddy Roosevelt’s Rough Riders charge up San Juan Hill.
Spain is defeated and signs a treaty in December ending the war with the United States.
1899
Lizzy receives a surprise visit from a distant relative after she gives another standing ovation speech.
Lizzy’s talk in the park is cut short by an anti-suffragist protester.
1901
President McKinley is assassinated.
Theodore Roosevelt is sworn in as the 26th president.
1902
Women from 10 nations meet in Washington, D.C. to plan an international effort for suffrage.
1906
Lizzy and Caroline enjoy a night at the San Francisco Fremont where Lizzy gets a standing ovation for her speech on women’s rights.
San Francisco Earthquake destroys 80% of the city at a cost of 3000 lives.
William, John Charles and Andrew Edward are waiting for Lizzy and Caroline to return.
1909
William Taft is elected as the 27th President.
1910
Washington State win women’s suffrage.
1911
California grants women suffrage.
In New York City, 3,000 people march for women’s suffrage.
1912
Teddy Roosevelt’s Progressive Party includes women’s suffrage in its platform.
Arizona grants women suffrage.
Kansas grants women suffrage.
Oregon women gain the right to vote.
&n
bsp; Japan offers 3020 cherry trees to President Taft and his wife. They plan to plant them along a stretch of land near the Potomac.
The RMS Titanic collides with an iceberg and sinks. Of the approx. 2,240 on board, 1,500 are lost.
Spencer Foster is given a medal for assisting with the saving of hundreds of lives on the RMS Titanic.
Unsinkable Molly Brown survives and becomes a spokeswoman for Lizzy.
1913
Woodrow Wilson is elected as the 28th president.
Alice Paul organizes the Woman’s Suffrage Procession in Washington, D.C.
It is the largest suffragist parade to date. The parade is attacked by a mob and hundreds are injured.
The Senate votes on a women’s suffrage amendment, but it does not pass
1914
Nevada grants women suffrage.
Henry and Spencer defend the honor of their women.
Montana grants women suffrage.
1915
Germany sinks the RMS Lusitania which goes under in 18 minutes with the loss of life exceeding 1,200. The United States and the world cry out to President Wilson to avenge the sinking of the Lusitania.
Caroline finally gets her wish of seeing the coast of Ireland.
President Wilson and Edith Galt are married.
1916
President Woodrow Wilson promises that the Democratic Party Platform will endorse women’s suffrage.
President Wilson wins re-election to a second term as president vowing to keep the United States out of the European conflict.
Montana elects suffragist Jeannette Rankin to the House of Representatives. She is the first woman elected to the U.S. Congress.
1917
The United States enters WWI, a decision Woodrow Wilson doesn’t take lightly.
Teddy enlists, much to Nellie and Lizzy’s dismay.
The Oklahoma state constitution grants women suffrage.
The South Dakota state constitution grants women suffrage.
The New York state constitution grants women suffrage. New York is the first Eastern state to fully enfranchise women.
1918
The Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, granting women suffrage, passes in the House of Representatives with exactly two-thirds vote but loses by two votes in the Senate.