Did You Know Montana Made History In The 1910s?

This is not only a considerable part of Montana history, it's a big part of political and social history for the whole nation. 

The political season is upon us, and Montana has several elections approaching. This November, locals will elect two U.S. Representatives, local officials, and more. When looking at the history of Montana's politics, we found something unique. 

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Did you that know back in 1916, Montana made Congressional history? Well, we did. Montana was the first state in the history of our nation to elect a woman to Congress. That's right, back in 1916, Montana elected Jeannette Rankin to the House of Representatives. 

Jeannette Rankin served a two-year term then decided to run for Senate in Montana. She ended up in third place in the voting. Most people wouldn't bother trying again, but Jeannette Rankin pushed on. 

She ended up running for the U.S. House of Representatives again in 1941 and won. She served for two years again. Her political career was not without some trouble. Rankin was a known pacifist and voted against going to war with Japan after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. 

In fact, she was the only person who voted against it. This move would, in some ways, end her political career. She is still recognized for her courage and bravery and is in the National Women's Hall of Fame. 

It's pretty cool that Montana was at the forefront of national progress, in this particular case. And now, we get to go down in history for it. 

For more details, check out Jeannette Rankin.