What Day Is August 18? Women's Suffrage and St. Helena
August 18 is the 230th day of the year. In 1920, the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution was certified, granting women the right to vote after more than 70 years of campaigning. The Catholic Church celebrates St. Helena on August 18.
About August 18
August 18 is the 230th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (231st in a leap year). There are 135 days remaining until the end of the year.
The significance of August 18
On August 18, 1920, Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby certified the 19th Amendment, giving American women the constitutional right to vote. The amendment had been before Congress in some form since 1878. The decisive moment came two days earlier in the Tennessee legislature: 24-year-old Harry Burn changed his vote from “no” to “yes” after reading a letter from his mother Phoebe, who wrote: “Don’t forget to be a good boy and help Mrs. Catt put the ‘Rat’ in ratification.” That letter, now in the Tennessee State Library, swung the amendment. The Catholic Church celebrates the feast of St. Helena on August 18. Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine, reportedly discovered the True Cross in Jerusalem around 326 AD.
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On This Day in History
- 1587Virginia Dare was born at the Roanoke Colony on Roanoke Island (present-day North Carolina), the first English child born in the Americas. The entire colony later vanished without explanation.
- 1920The 19th Amendment to the US Constitution was certified by Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby, granting women the right to vote. The decisive ratification vote came from Tennessee two days earlier.
Baby Names for This Day
August 18 is tied to women's suffrage and St. Helena. Names connected to this date:
- HelenaGirl
St. Helena (c. 250-330 AD), mother of Emperor Constantine and discoverer of the True Cross; her feast is August 18.
- SusanGirl
Susan B. Anthony, the foremost leader of the women's suffrage movement; the 19th Amendment is sometimes called the 'Susan B. Anthony Amendment.'
- VirginiaGirl
Virginia Dare, the first English child born in America (August 18, 1587); also the US state named for Queen Elizabeth I.
- PhoebeGirl
Phoebe Burn, whose letter to her son Harry persuaded him to cast the decisive vote for the 19th Amendment in Tennessee.
- ElizabethGirl
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, who co-organized the first women's rights convention at Seneca Falls in 1848 and dedicated her life to suffrage.
- SojournerGirl
Sojourner Truth, abolitionist and suffragist, whose 'Ain't I a Woman?' speech in 1851 linked racial equality and women's rights.
Frequently Asked Questions
What day is August 18?add
August 18 is the day the 19th Amendment was certified, granting US women the right to vote (1920). The feast of St. Helena. Virginia Dare was born on this date in 1587. The 230th day of the year.
What number day of the year is August 18?add
August 18 is the 230th day of the year, or the 231st in a leap year, with 135 days remaining.
What zodiac sign is August 18?add
August 18 is Leo, which runs from July 23 to August 22.