Southern Myths and the Nineteenth Amendment: The Participation of Nashville Newspaper Publishers in the Final State's Ratification

Abstract

In 1920, Tennessee became the final state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment, which eliminated sex restriction on voting rights. This article uses the concept of myth to examine how Nashville newspapers made suffrage part of the discursive battle for regional identity. While the Nashville Banner amplified anti-suffragists' “Old South” propaganda of the Lost Cause and southern honor, Nashville Tennessean coverage was grounded in the “New South” myth's national, progressive focus. The two newspapers' publishers took their positions beyond their pages by becoming participants in the political contest.