Sacramento in Sacramento County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)
Lavinia Gertrude Watson
By Andrew Ruppenstein, April 20, 2021
1. Lavinia Gertrude Watson Marker
A physician practicing during California's Gold Rush who was also a spiritualist,
businesswoman, and leading Sacramento suffragist. When Sacramento officials denied
her the vote, she sued the city on the grounds that as a taxpaying citizen, she had the
right to decide how those taxes were spent. Through her practice as a physician and
midwife, Waterhouse began writing letters to the Sacramento papers arguing for voting
and economic rights and composing pro-suffrage poetry for the leading feminist papers of
the time while also painting pictures based on women's rights themes. Upon her death
in 1890, she bequeathed all her property to the building of a retirement home for elderly
women, a final act of consideration capping a life of frontier empathy and devotion.Erected 2020 by Maren Conrad.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, Music • Civil Rights • Science & Medicine • Women. In addition, it is included in the Women's Suffrage 🗳️ series list.
Location.
By Andrew Ruppenstein, April 20, 2021
2. Lavinia Gertrude Watson Marker - wide view
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Zitkála-Šá (here, next to this marker); María Amparo Ruiz de Burton (a few steps from this marker); Luella Johnston (a few steps from this marker); Alice Dunbar Nelson (a few steps from this marker); Clara Shortridge Foltz (a few steps from this marker); Jovita Idár (a few steps from this marker); Jeannette Rankin (a few steps from this marker); Charlotte Amanda Spears Bass (a few steps from this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Sacramento.
More about this marker. This is one of nineteen markers that comprise the 19th Amendment Outdoor museum, erected in 2020 as part of the "I Vote" project, honoring suffragettes and their work.
Credits. This page was last revised on April 26, 2021. It was originally submitted on April 26, 2021, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Sacramento, California. This page has been viewed 31 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 26, 2021, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Sacramento, California.
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