Inside History

March is womens history month Here s Tom Gerhardt with more on a new exhibit at the Heritage Center With the start of womens history I monthI wanted to look back at the history of women in North Dakota In this months edition of Inside History I learned about some incredible stories It s hard to believe women have only been able to vote in North Dakota for 90 years Genia Women gained the right to vote in 1918 but it was a long struggle and a lot of women stepped out of very traditional roles to fight for this to march to demand these votes and equal representation Genia Hesser says there s more Take a look at this ERA pin in the 1970 sNorth Dakota passed the equal rights amendmentbut if failed on the national leve There are several objects in the exhibitrepresenting women activities through the years Meet Nancy Hendricksonone of many single women to come to North Dakota to homestead Her actual shack in on display in the main gallery Genia And you look at the shack and its just so tiny you just can t imagine being out there on the prairie in this tiny little shack she lived out there and she proved up and became a photographer road a motorcycle and was just a real character Thenthis photo in Devils Lake of a women s temperance march Genia They have stars and stripes on their skirts showing that this wasn t just a moral issue but a national patriotic issue for the good of the country The stories continue Here s a picture of Governor Lynn Frazier signing the womens suffrage bill 1917 Geania Hesser says one of the best ways to observe womens history monthis to ask your mother and grandmothers their stories Several years ago I was surprised to find out my grandma worked to build ships during World War II Taking you Inside History I m Tom Gerhardt