May Arkwright Hutton (July 21, 1860 – October 6, 1915) was a

suffrage 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 ...

leader and

labor rights Labor rights or workers' rights are both legal rights and human rights relating to labor relations between workers and employers. These rights are codified in national and international labor and employment law. In general, these rights infl ...

advocate in the early history of the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Thou ...

of the United States.

Biography

May Arkwright Hutton, who has been described as an orphan by some sources, is now often believed to have been illegitimate. She was raised by her paternal grandfather, Aza, in

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

. Aza, who was blind, enjoyed political meetings and May often accompanied him. In 1883, she moved to

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Monta ...

, where she owned and operated a boarding house in Kellogg. In 1887, she married Levi "Al" Hutton, one of her customers. They moved to

Wallace, Idaho Wallace, Idaho is a city in and the county seat of Shoshone County, Idaho, in the Silver Valley mining district of the Idaho Panhandle. Founded in 1884, Wallace sits alongside the South Fork of the Coeur d'Alene River (and Interstate 90), app ...

where she oversaw the dining hall of the Wallace Hotel and her husband worked for the

Northern Pacific Railroad The Northern Pacific Railway was a transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the western United States, from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest. It was approved by Congress in 1864 and given nearly of land grants, whi ...

. May and Al were part of a group of miners that struck it rich when discovering a vast silver mine. When miners dynamited the Bunker Hill and Sullivan's mine concentrator in

Wardner, Idaho Wardner is a city in Shoshone County, Idaho, United States. Located in the Silver Valley mining region, the population was 188 at the 2010 census, down from 215 in 2000. Geography Wardner is located at (47.523164, -116.134190), at an elevation ...

, Al was the engineer of the train used to deliver the dynamite. Al was arrested in connection to the destruction of the Bunker Hill and Sullivan's mine concentrator, and held in a stockade known as the "bull pen". He was soon released, but May continued to write letters to Governor Steunenberg of Idaho and to newspapers in the name of the

Western Federation of Miners The Western Federation of Miners (WFM) was a trade union, labor union that gained a reputation for militancy in the mining#Human Rights, mines of the western United States and British Columbia. Its efforts to organize both hard rock miners and ...

. She accused the Governor of taking bribes of up to $50,000 and being a traitor to the union cause. In 1897, the Huttons, invested in the successful Hercules silver mine Hutton was a candidate for the Idaho State Senate in 1904, but was defeated. The last year of her life, she was ill with

Bright's disease Bright's disease is a historical classification of kidney diseases that are described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. It was characterized by swelling and the presence of albumin in the urine, and was frequently accompanied ...

. She was known to travel in her chauffeured Thomas Flyer to farm communities, meeting farmers and trying to make matches to keep single mothers and their children together. In her memory, Al started the Hutton Settlement orphanage in the

Spokane Valley The Spokane Valley is a valley of the Spokane River through the southern Selkirk Mountains in the U.S. state of Washington. The valley is home to the cities of Spokane and its suburbs Spokane Valley, Liberty Lake, and Millwood. The valley i ...

Labor activism

Both Hutton and her husband were active in the associated labor movements. She wrote a book about the horrible treatment of the miners at the hands of the mine owners, and the treatment of her husband at the hands of the sheriff/mine owners in her book ''The Coeur d'Alenes: or, A tale of the modern inquisition in Idaho''. In later life, she bought all of the copies she could back. Hutton also supported an eight-hour work day and six-day workweek for women.

Suffrage movement

She was a supporter of the women's suffrage movement in Idaho. In 1906, the Huttons moved to

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the ...

. She became a member of the

Spokane Equal Suffrage Club Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Canad ...

and first vice-president of the Washington Equal Suffrage Association, which was then led by

Emma Smith DeVoe Emma Smith DeVoe (August 22, 1848 – September 3, 1927) was an American women suffragist in the early twentieth century, changing the face of politics for both women and men alike. When she died, the Tacoma News Tribune called her Washington s ...

. She became a well-known suffrage leader, but her outspoken style and unconventional behavior contrasted sharply with that of the more moderate Emma Smith DeVoe, a national suffrage organizer who was active in Tacoma, Olympia and Seattle. There was a great deal of conflict between the two, but they achieved their goal in 1910. Hutton attended the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 18 ...

in 1912.

Notes

External links

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May Arkwright Hutton
clip from "Courage in Corsets" PBS {{DEFAULTSORT:Hutton, May Arkwright 1860 births 1915 deaths People from Spokane, Washington American suffragists People from Kellogg, Idaho Idaho Democrats Washington (state) Democrats