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Progressive Alaskan women have been forging ahead since the Gold Rush when they ran boardinghouses, mining companies, restaurants, banks and hotels. So, it makes sense that women’s right to vote was passed in Alaska in 1913, seven years before the Constitution adopted the 19th Amendment.
Sixty-eight-year-old Nellie Cashman, who spent the last 25 years of her life mining above the Arctic Circle, was the first woman to cast her ballot in 1912. The honor couldn’t have been bestowed on anyone more deserving: She was one of the most famous stampeders of the time, made multiple fortunes and was a generous philanthropist.
– Eve Lederman, The 100 Companies