On This Day

Martha Hughes Cannon takes office as the first woman state senator in the US in Utah after defeating her own husband

Martha Maria "Mattie" Hughes Cannon (July 1, 1857 – July 10, 1932) was a Welsh-American politician, physician, Utah women's rights advocate, suffragist, and a polygamous wife.

Martha Maria "Mattie" Hughes Cannon (July 1, 1857 – July 10, 1932) was a Welsh-American politician, physician, Utah women's rights advocate, suffragist, and a polygamous wife. Her family immigrated to the United States as converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and traveled West to settle in the Utah Territory with other church members. She started working at the age of fourteen, and at sixteen she enrolled in the University of Deseret (now called the University of Utah), receiving a bachelor's degree in Chemistry. She later attended the University of Michigan and received an M.D.

She became the fourth of six wives in a polygamous marriage to Angus M. Cannon, a prominent Latter-day Saint leader during the anti-polygamy crusade.

Historical Significance

Martha Maria "Mattie" Hughes Cannon (July 1, 1857 – July 10, 1932) was a Welsh-American politician, physician, Utah women's rights advocate, suffragist, and a polygamous wife.

Events Before

  1. German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen announces his discovery of X-rays

    German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen announces his discovery of X-rays

  2. American Emile Grubbe is the first doctor to use radiation treatment for breast cancer

    American Emile Grubbe is the first doctor to use radiation treatment for breast cancer

  3. Giacomo Puccini's opera "La Boheme" premieres in Turin

    Giacomo Puccini's opera "La Boheme" premieres in Turin

  4. Charilaos Vasilakos of Greece wins the first modern marathon in 3:18 at the Panhellenic Games

    Charilaos Vasilakos was a Greek athlete and the first man to win a marathon race. He also won a silver medal for a second place finish in marathon at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens.

  5. Writer "Heart of Darkness" Joseph Conrad (39) marries Englishwoman Jessie George (23)

    Joseph Conrad was a Polish-British novelist and story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language and – though he did not speak English fluently until his twenties...

Events After

  1. Brooklyn merges with New York City to form the present-day City of New York

    The City of Greater New York was the consolidation of the City of New York with Brooklyn, western Queens County, and Staten Island, which took effect on January 1, 1898.

  2. Painter Henri Matisse (28) weds Amélie Noellie Parayre

    Painter Henri Matisse (28) weds Amélie Noellie Parayre

  3. Australian cricketer Joe Darling hits the first six in Test cricket (out of the ground)

    Australian cricketer Joe Darling hits the first six in Test cricket (out of the ground)

  4. Poet Paul Laurence Dunbar (25) weds political activist and poet Alice Ruth Moore (22) in New York

    Poet Paul Laurence Dunbar (25) weds political activist and poet Alice Ruth Moore (22) in New York

  5. Battle of Atbara River: Anglo-Egyptian forces defeat 15,000 Sudanese during the Mahdist War, a turning point in the reco

    Battle of Atbara River: Anglo-Egyptian forces defeat 15,000 Sudanese during the Mahdist War, a turning point in the reconquest of Sudan

More from the 1890s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on January 11, 1897?
Martha Maria "Mattie" Hughes Cannon (July 1, 1857 – July 10, 1932) was a Welsh-American politician, physician, Utah women's rights advocate, suffragist, and a polygamous wife. Her family immigrated to the United States as converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and traveled West to settle in the Utah Territory with other church members. She started working at the age of fourteen, and at sixteen she enrolled in the University of Deseret (now called the University of Utah), receiving a bachelor's degree in Chemistry.
Why is Martha Hughes Cannon takes office as the first woman state senator in the US ... significant?
Martha Maria "Mattie" Hughes Cannon (July 1, 1857 – July 10, 1932) was a Welsh-American politician, physician, Utah women's rights advocate, suffragist, and a polygamous wife.

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