Morris, Esther Hobart (1814-1902), led the fight for women’s suffrage in Wyoming. Through her efforts, the territory of Wyoming passed a women’s suffrage law in 1869 that became a model for later suffrage laws. When Wyoming became a state in 1890, it was the first state to permit women to vote.
Born Esther McQuigg on Aug. 8, 1814, in Tioga County, New York, she settled in the Wyoming territory in 1868. She became the first woman justice of the peace in the United States in 1870. Morris died on April 2, 1902. A statue of Morris represents Wyoming in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.
