New NH Historical Highway Marker in Bristol honors women’s voting rights advocate

The NH Division of Historical Resources is pleased to announce that a New Hampshire Historical Highway Marker honoring E. Maude Ferguson, who worked to help women secure the right to vote and who became the first woman elected to the New Hampshire State Senate, has been installed in Bristol Town Square.

The marker reads:

“E. MAUDE FERGUSON, NEW HAMPSHIRE’S FIRST WOMAN STATE SENATOR

“A resident of Bristol, E. Maude Ferguson was widely admired for her community service. A member of the League of Women Voters, she won election to the NH House of Representatives six years after women secured the vote. In 1930, after two terms in the House, she became the first woman elected to the NH State Senate, having been endorsed by both Republicans and Democrats. A trained elocutionist, she served on the Judiciary Committee and chaired the State Library Committee during her terms in Concord.”

Inspired by the 100th anniversary of the passing of the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote, Bristol Historical Society requested the marker to recognize the contributions of women who broke ground by becoming involved in state and local government.

This is the 269th marker in New Hampshire’s Historical Highway Marker program.

Any municipality, agency, organization or individual wishing to propose a historical highway marker to commemorate significant New Hampshire places, persons or events must submit a petition of support signed by at least 20 New Hampshire residents. They must also draft the text of the marker and provide footnotes and copies of supporting documentation, as well as a suggested location for marker placement.

New Hampshire’s historical highway markers illustrate the depth and complexity of our history and the people who made it, from the last Revolutionary War soldier to contemporary sports figures to poets and painters who used New Hampshire for inspiration; from 18th-century meeting houses to stone arch bridges to long-lost villages; from factories and cemeteries to sites where international history was made.

An interactive map of all of the state’s historical highway markers is available at the NH Division of Historical Resources’ website, nh.gov/nhdhr.

The New Hampshire Historical Highway Marker program is jointly managed by the NH Division of Historical Resources and NH Department of Transportation.