CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- The first woman to vote in the state of Illinois is honored at a new exhibit at the Lombard Historical Society.
Women weren't given the right to vote nationwide until 1920.
But on April 6, 1891, a woman named Ellen Martin went to a polling place in Lombard to vote in a municipal election.
"And they said, 'But you're a woman.'
"And she said, 'But am I not a citizen?'
"And they said, 'Of course you're a citizen. But you're a woman.' And she pointed out, with her very, very large legal brief, that she had written - she was an attorney in Chicago - the town charter says all citizens can vote."
Ellen Martin's vote stood, and the historical society is honoring her and other women with an exhibit, "Art and Artists of the Women's Suffrage Movement."
The exhibit will be on display through August. It is open 1-4 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays for a suggested donation of $2 a person.
