Jeannette Pickering Rankin was an American politician and women's rights advocate who became the first woman to hold federal office in the United States. She was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Republican from Montana in 1916 for one term, then was elected again in 1940. Rankin remains the only woman ever elected to Congress from Montana.
Rankin in 1917
Jeannette Rankin, Representative from Montana
Jeannette Rankin speaking from the balcony of the National American Woman Suffrage Association on April 2, 1917—the same day that President Wilson declared, "The world has to be made safe for democracy."
Rankin arguing against the fortification of Guam before the House Naval Affairs Committee in 1939
Montana is a landlocked state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It borders Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan to the north. It is the fourth-largest state by area, the eighth-least populous state, and the third-least densely populated state. Its capital is Helena, while the most populous city is Billings. The western half of the state contains numerous mountain ranges, while the eastern half is characterized by western prairie terrain and badlands, with smaller mountain ranges found throughout the state.
Assiniboine family, Montana, 1890–91
Montana Territory in 1865
Chief Joseph and Col. John Gibbon met again on the Big Hole Battlefield site in 1889.
Buffalo Soldiers, Ft. Keogh, Montana, 1890. The nickname was given to the "Black Cavalry" by the Native American tribes they fought.