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First NH Lawyer (1840 - 1920)
New Hampshire's first woman lawyer, Marilla Ricker was certified to try cases
in front of the US Supreme Court and even ran for state governor, but she was
still unable to vote. Across America, the suffragist movement followed close behind
the abolitionist movement. Women like Ricker worked tirelessly to gain the voting
rights, and Ricker was reportedly the first woman in NH to attempt to register
to vote. A property owner in Dover, NH, Ricker believed that, if she paid property
taxes, she should be able to vote. She would go on registering, and being denied
the vote until 1920, when just months before her death -- she voted legally in
the United States for the first time. Born in New Durham, NH, Ricker was known especially
for her work in prison reform and for her religious writings. Ricker was distinct
as a lawuer in her time -- and in any other -- becuase she worked for her clients
for free.
Long before Ally McBeal, Marilla
was the first female lawyer & first to vote
More Famous NH People
MARILLA RICKER LINKS
She Fought for the Vote
Article in the Concord Monitor about Ricker's 50 year battle for woman's right
to vote.
True Light: The Life of Marilla Ricker
Summary of a 30-minute video by Presto Productions sponsored by the NH Humanities
Coucil.
Mrs. Marilla M. Ricker (Abobe Acrobat File)
Short biography and a photo from an early copy of "The Law Student's Helper"
in 1893
Women of Free Thought
Ricker is profiled among others (scroll down) in this article from the American
Athiest
Historocal & Biological Sketch of the Ricker, Riker Family Origin
Scroll way down for short bio
Ricker Listed in NH Authors
Scroll down
History of New Durham, NH
Ricker listed in history of her home town
Women Without Superstittion
Ricker listed in book described as the collected writings of women freethinkers
of the 19th and 20th centuries.
WOMEN IN LAW
Women's Legal History Project
From stanford University, CA
Women Lawyers in New Hampshire
WomenLawyers.com
The New Hampshire page listing
NH Trial Lawyers Assoc .
Feminist Jrisprudence: an Overview
Women in Law
Research aids from American Women's History
Lawyers.com
The ultimate online list for hiring a lawyer
Official Ally McBeal Web Site
Where would this lawyer be without Marillla Ricker?
WOMEN'S RIGHTS
National Women's History Project
Distinguished Women Past & Present
Womens' Suffrage from Grolier's American Presidency
History of Amserican Suffragist Movement
Index lists Marilla Ricker
One Woman, One Vote
Short history of the Suffrage Movement from American Experience
The Suffragist Oral History Project
From the Library at Berkeley CA
KEY BOOKS
Drachman, Virginia G. Sisters in Law: Women Lawyers in Modern American History. Cambridge:
Harvard University Press, 1998.
Narcotta, Amy L., comp. Notable New Hampshire women : A Guide to the Resources
of the New Hampshire Historical Society, 1997.
More Famous NH People
By J. Dennis Robinson
Photo Courtesy of Thom Hindle Images of the Past Gallery
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