Woman Suffrage Tableau at the DNC, St. Louis

Woman Suffrage Tableau at the DNC, St. Louis

Illustration of the Woman Suffrage Tableau at the Democratic National Convention in St. Louis, MO in June 1916

From a discussion published by Randolph Hollingsworth on Monday, October 28, 2019 on the H-net Kentucky resources site: At noon they presented a “tableau vivant” of women on the steps of the old city Art Museum building at 19th and Locust streets. One woman was dressed as Liberty. Thirteen more represented the suffrage states including the Alaska territory - they were in white togas and gold laurel leaves "Sappho style" in their hair. Each carried a bright red shield proclaiming the name of the state and carrying a flag. The women representing the partial suffrage states (including Kentucky) were robed in gray gowns ornamented with a Greek fret design in yellow. They wore veils of white with golden filets. The non-suffrage states with their backs to the sun were in black togas with no decoration, their heads bowed and faces covered with black veils. In addition, ten women wore traditional costumes of other countries showing where women had the right to vote at that time: Norway, Denmark, Canada, Iceland, Finland, Bosnia, Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, and the Ile of Man. The group posed five minutes at a time with rest intervals of five minutes between sessions. In the evening, the actors also took part in the 12th street parade when every suffragist carried a lighted yellow lantern on a pole. Marguerite Martyn (1880-1948) published the image below showing the design of the tableau vivant - her article was published in the Sunday magazine of the St. Louis Post Dispatch (11 June 1916).