October 1920: Celebrating the Centennial of Women's Suffrage

What were their names?

Names go in cycles. In the mid 1970s, Jennifer and Amy topped the national lists. Right now Olivia and Emma are the most popular. Mary was far and away the most popular name for those registering to vote in 1920. The voting age at the time was 21, so these were women born in 1899 and prior. Below are the results from our sample of approximately 6100 women.  

*Denotes multiple spellings of the name

How did they spend the day?

Some of the professions available to women in 1920, such as nurse, department store employee, and teacher, remain options today. Technology and societal changes have decreased the number of dressmakers and stenographers. Among those in our 1920 sample, one was even an undertaker!