Jeannette Rankin spent her life taking clear stands: for women’s suffrage, for peace and against war. She was instrumental in the passage of women’s suffrage in Montana in 1914 and later, at the national level. An avowed pacifist and the first woman to serve in Congress, she is noted for voting against U.S. entry into both World War I and World War II. A statue of Rankin, inscribed "I Cannot Vote For War," stands in the U.S. Capitol’s Statuary Hall, and a copy stands in the Montana State Capitol in Helena, Montana. Rankin’s clarity about her beliefs regarding conflict that results in war and her advocacy for peace and nonviolent protest showed itself in a range of public styles: outspoken words, grace, civility, and unyielding firmness.
Primary Sources:
Jeannette Rankin Papers, 1916-1919. Montana Historical Society Archives, Helena.
Secondary Sources:
Giles, Kevin S. Flight of the Dove: The Story of Jeannette Rankin. Beaverton, OR: Lochsa Experience Publishers, 1980.
Hardaway, Roger D. “Jeannette Rankin: The Early Years.” North Dakota Quarterly 48, no.1 (Winter 1980), 62-68.
Harris, Ted C. “Jeannette Rankin in Georgia.” Georgia Historical Quarterly 58, no.1 (March 1974), 55-78.
Josephson, Hannah. Jeannette Rankin, First Lady in Congress: A Biography. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill, 1974.
La Guardia, Fiorello H. The Making of an Insurgent. New York: Lippincott, 1948.
Lopach, James J., and Jean A. Luckowski, Jeannette Rankin: A Political Woman. Boulder: University Press of Colorado, 2005.
O'Brien, Mary Barmeyer. Jeannette Rankin: Bright Star in the Big Sky. Helena; Twodot Press, 2015.
Shirley, Gayle C. More than Petticoats: Remarkable Montana Women. Helena: Falcon Press, 1995.
Smith, Norma. Jeannette Rankin America's Conscience. Helena: Montana Historical Society, 2002.
Primary and Secondary Sources on the Web:
Alonso, Harriet Hyman. “Jeannette Rankin and the Women’s Peace Union.” Montana The Magazine of Western History 39, no. 2 (Spring 1989): 34-49. Download here.
Baumler, Ellen. "After Suffrage: Women Politicians at the Montana Capitol." Women's History Matters Blog post. Montana Historical Society. http://montanawomenshistory.org/after-suffrage-women-politicians-at-the-montana-capitol/
Jeannette Rankin Peace Center. Missoula MT. https://jrpc.org/
Lopach, James J., and Jean A. Luckowski, "A Chronology and Primary Sources for Teaching about Jeannette Rankin." http://svcalt.mt.gov/education/textbook/Chapter15/teaching%20materials%20on%20Rankin.pdf
Montana History Revealed Blogpost. Montana Historical Society. http://mthistoryrevealed.blogspot.com/2016/06/extra-montana-newspaper-stories-1864.html Includes links to important newspaper articles.
Murphy, Mary. “Jeannette Rankin: Suffragist, Congressman, Pacifist.” Women’s History Matters Blog post. Montana Historical Society. http://montanawomenshistory.org/jeannette-rankin-suffragist-congresswoman-pacifist/
Wilson, Joan Hoff. “‘Peace Is a Woman’s Job . . .’ Jeannette Rankin and American Foreign Policy: The Origins of Her Pacifism.” Montana The Magazine of Western History 30, no. 1 (Winter 1980): 28-41. Download here.
———. “‘Peace Is a Woman’s Job . . .’ Jeannette Rankin and American Foreign Policy: Her Lifework as a Pacifist.” Montana The Magazine of Western History 30, no. 2 (Spring 1980): 38-53. Download here.
Vertical Files at the Montana Historical Society:
Rankin, Jeannette Family, Suffrage (8)
Suffrage