Missouri T.B. Hanna (1857-1926) was the first woman publisher in Washington State, and was heralded as “the mother of journalism” in Washington.

Hanna, who also went by “Mrs. M.T.B. Hanna,” moved to Spokane Falls in Washington Territory in 1882, and then to the waterfront mill town of Edmonds in 1904. In 1905 Hanna purchased the weekly "Edmonds Review" and published it for the five years before selling the paper to a competitor in 1910. A passionate and articulate supporter of women’s causes, Hanna then published two journals on women’s suffrage. “Votes for Women,” the official newspaper of the Washington Equal Suffrage Association, worked towards attaining the vote in the November 1910 election. It ran from October 1909 through January 1911 with news on suffrage work throughout Washington state and nationally, and included editorials, political commentary, and cartoons. After the vote was won, the paper continued for another year as “The New Citizen,” which endorsed political candidates and focused on the role of newly enfranchised women.

Missouri Hanna also developed Hanna Park, a neighborhood in Edmonds, and helped found the Snohomish County Press Association.

The January 1911 issue of "Votes for Women" was the last one published under that title. The cover features an endorsement for candidate George W. Dilling in the recall election of Mayor Hiram Gill, Seattle's first election under equal suffrage. The newspaper legitimately claimed that women voters made a difference in Dilling's narrow victory, with 22,000 out of approximately 58,000 votes cast by women.

Caption information source: “Hanna, Missouri T. B. (1857-1926)” by Charles P. LeWarne, Historylink.org Essay 9029
Caption information source: “Woman Suffrage Campaign — Snohomish County (1909-1910)” by Margaret Riddle, HistoryLink.org Essay 8690