It's August 18! That's a significant date in our family because it happens to be my wife's birthday (Happy Birthday Kathy Haule!). While that is cause for celebration in the Haule household, it's not the reason most women or numismatists would remember the date.
August 18 is the anniversary of the date that the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified. What was the 19th Amendment?
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
And what does this have to do with coinage? Check out THIS PAGE and you'll find a brief discussion of the Susan B. Anthony Dollar.
Coins are a great way to introduce history lessons! You could use it to introduce the entire idea of citizenship. Discuss the suffragette movement. Tell students about her registering to vote on November 1, 1872, her actual voting 4 days later, her arrest, indictment and conviction for voting. Remember the politics of the thirty nine years between Anthony's conviction and the passage/ratificaton of the amendment. So many topics introduced by a single coin!
A prop is a great way to introduce or reinforce a history lesson! I know that when I work with my coins I often remember the history of the subject and the politics surrounding the introduction of the coin. My daughter tends to view me as a little "different," and she's probably right, but I enjoy it. And knowing the history behind the coin makes me appreciate it just a little bit more.
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