Voting Down the Rose: Florence Brooks Whitehouse and Maine's Fight for Woman Suffrage

by Anne B. Gass

Voting Down the Rose is a lively account of Maine native Florence Brooks Whitehouse’s efforts to win women voting rights in the decisive final years of the campaign, 1914-1920. Considered radical for picketing the White House, Florence helped win women suffrage against a backdrop of conservative views of women’s roles, political intrigues, WWI, and the 1918 influenza epidemic.

Due to the abundant historical record, in many cases the author was able to tell the story in Florence's own words. Gass is Florence's great-granddaughter.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

271 pages, Paperback

Published November 1, 2014

Reviews

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Phenomenal book about the fight for women's suffrage in the United States, with a focus on Maine specifically. This nonfiction book focuses on Florence Brooks Whitehouse, a Maine woman, who was instrumental in progressing the cause of women's suffrage in the state of Maine. I found it especially fascinating because, in direct contrast to many of the national leaders like Alice Paul and Lucy Burns who were single and childless women, Florence was married and had 3 sons, 2 of whom were fighting in WWI during much of the battle to pass the 19th Amendment. Talk about conflicting interests! Though not the primary intent of this book, it talks a lot about the conflicts women still face between obligations to their homes and families and their desires to work and be involved in projects outside the home. I loved it, I'm so glad I read it, and I'm going to recommend it to all of my Maine feminist friends!

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Voting Down the Rose," by Anne B. Gass is a great study in the state workings of the national organizations of NAWSA and the Congressional Union/National Woman's Party. But it is more than that, it is a loving biography of Florence Brooks Whitehouse of Maine, who spent a lifetime in service to local and national causes and worked to bring about the ratification of the 19th Amendment. Ms. Gass is her great-granddaughter.

Gass weaves the personal story of Florence with the state and national narrative of the fight for woman suffrage seamlessly. Each strand complements the other to create a full story of how suffragists' work was impacted by world events and how suffrage work impacted their personal lives. It also illustrates the struggles women faced as they juggled the responsibilities of family life, service during war, and continuing the fight for suffrage and equality. How these women managed to accomplish so much is a story worth telling.

Gass's writing style is easy and fluid, and she transitions between each strand of her narrative purposefully. My only complaint is the the few typographical errors I found in my copy of the book. But I can easily overlook those because the reading of this book was so worthwhile.

If you are interested in women's history and the later suffrage movement in particular, this book is a must read.

[MaryKay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book for awareness around the women’s suffrage movement. Thank you, thank you to the courageous and driven women.

An underlying theme for me was around the fact that the most of the women who advocated and determinedly pushed for the right to vote were women of wealth and privilege. And, many had incredibly supportive men aligned with them. I did not fully realize this. My K12 education only briefly touched this topic. I wish I had known to do a research report on this topic / I had good high school teachers who encouraged independent work.

Three stars is because this was longer than necessary. I didn’t finish the book - it could’ve been about 1/3 shorter. A good editor would’ve been helpful.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and insightful recording of the fight for women's suffrage in the early 1920's...particularly in Maine. The author is the granddaughter of Florence Whitehouse. These incredible women never gave up under pressure, unfavorable odds, political maneuvering, lack of funds, organized antis, a pandemic, and the fact that they were competing with WWI sentiment and the Red Cross for the attention and money of the American people. The rose was the logo for the anti-suffrage movement. The suffragettes wore a jonquil.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely biography of Florence Whitehouse and history of women’s suffrage in Maine. Written by her great-granddaughter. Florence was active in the more radical NWP with Alice Paul which was criticized by mainline NAWSA.