Helen Ring Robinson (1878–1923), was an American

suffragist Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

, writer, and political office holder. She was either the first or the second woman to serve as a state senator in the United States and the first in the

Colorado State Senate The Colorado Senate is the upper house of the Colorado General Assembly, the state legislature of the US state of Colorado. It is composed of 35 members elected from single-member districts, with each district having a population of about 123,0 ...

. She was elected in 1912 and began her service in the 19th Colorado General Assembly, when she was sworn in on January 1, 1913. She was inducted into the

Colorado Women's Hall of Fame The Colorado Women's Hall of Fame is a non-profit, volunteer organization that recognizes women who have contributed to the history of the U.S. state of Colorado. As of 2020, 170 women have been inducted. History There was a short-lived recogniti ...

in 2014.

Early life

Helen Ring Robinson was born in 1878 in

Eastport, Maine Eastport is a city and archipelago in Washington County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,288 at the 2020 census, making Eastport the least-populous city in Maine. The principal island is Moose Island, which is connected to the mainlan ...

. She grew up in New England and went to Wellesley College, a private women's liberal arts college in

Wellesley, Massachusetts Wellesley () is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Wellesley is part of Greater Boston. The population was 29,550 at the time of the 2020 census. Wellesley College, Babson College, and a campus of Massachusetts Bay Communit ...

Career

Educator

Robinson moved to

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

in 1895 and taught at Wolfe Hall until 1898, when she went to teach at the Wolcott School for Girls. It was established by a friend who also lived in Providence. It was during her time at Wolcott that she became acquainted with members of Denver society.

Journalist

She then began working in the newspaper industry. She spent ten years as a literary critic and editorial writer for the ''

Rocky Mountain News The ''Rocky Mountain News'' (nicknamed the ''Rocky'') was a daily newspaper published in Denver, Colorado, United States, from April 23, 1859, until February 27, 2009. It was owned by the E. W. Scripps Company from 1926 until its closing. As ...

'' and the ''Denver Times''.Weatherford, Doris. "Helen Ring Robinson (1878–1923)," ''Women in American Politics: History and Milestones'' (SAGE Publications, 2012), pp. 136–137.

Politics

After leading a crusade against Denver's poor water service, she was recruited to run for office. She was elected to the Colorado Senate for one four-year term in 1912, and took office in 1913. While in office, she was appointed chair of the Colorado State Senate Education Committee. As a state senator, Robinson traveled the country making speeches on women's issues. In 1915 she served as a speaker for the Fayette Equal Rights Association, giving presentations throughout central Kentucky on woman suffrage. Among the progressive laws she passed were a minimum wage law for women and an abatement for property used for prostitution – both efforts to limit prostitution. Women were not allowed to serve on juries at that time, although women had received the vote in Colorado in 1893. All of Robinson's bills on this issue failed. Consequently, women could not serve on juries in the state until 1944.

Personal life

She died in 1923. Her body lay in state in the Capitol rotunda before her service. She was buried at Fairmount Cemetery in Denver.

Publications

* ''Preparing Women for Citizenship'' (1918)
''Uncle Tom's Cabin for Children''
by Harriet Beecher Stowe; adapted by Helen Ring Robinson. From the Collections at the

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