The year 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, guaranteeing and protecting women’s constitutional right to vote. This historic centennial offers an unparalleled opportunity to commemorate a milestone of democracy and to explore its relevance to the issues of equal rights today.
The Annie Etheridge Detached Tent #14 recently gave a presentation on this historical vote at the Hilton Garden Inn in Tampa East/Brandon.
“The most recent presentation was given by Jan Bassett on women’s suffrage,” said Kate Davidheiser of the Annie Etheridge Detached Tent #14. “The Annie Etheridge Detached Tent #14 holds four meetings a year, and each meeting includes a speaker or a presentation.”
The Annie Etheridge Detached Tent #14 is part of the Daughter of the Union Veterans of the Civil War. The Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War, 1861-1865 was organized on May 30, 1885 by Olive Howard, Harriet Knapp, Eva Merwin, Frank Merwin and Bertha Martin.
“We are daughters, granddaughters and great-granddaughters of any generation of honorably discharged soldiers and sailors who served in the Union Army, Navy or Marine Corps and Revenue Cutter Service during the Rebellion of 1861 to 1865, and those who died or were killed while serving in the armed services of the Union between April 12, 1861 and April 9, 1865,” Davidheiser said. “To become eligible for membership, you must furnish with your application, a complete war record of your ancestor and proof of lineage. My second great-grandfather, Isaiah Pecht, was a private in Company-A, 49th Regiment, PA Infantry. He was wounded at the Battle of the Wilderness in Virginia.”
The Annie Etheridge Detached Tent #14 was chartered March 4, 2018. The Daughters of Union Veterans’ Tents are named after Union Army Nurses. Anna ‘Gentle Annie’ Etheridge was born on May 3, 1839 in Detroit, Michigan and died on January 23, 1913.
“Annie was one of only two women awarded the Kearny Cross, named in honor of General Phillip Kearney for ‘noble sacrifice and heroic service’ to the Union Army during the Civil War,” Davidheiser said.
On August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was finally ratified, enfranchising all American women and declaring for the first time that they, like men, deserve all the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.
To learn more about the Daughters of Union Veterans, visit www.duvcw.org.
