The Museum of Australian Democracy acknowledges the traditional owners and custodians of country throughout Australia. We recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and community. We pay our respects to the people, the cultures and the elders past, present and emerging.

The museum respectfully acknowledges the role that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples continue to play in shaping Australia’s democracy.

xClose
Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House
  • About
  • Blog
  • Prime Ministers
  • Websites
  • Venue hire
  • Visiting
  • What's On
  • Collection
  • Learning
  • Democracy
Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House
  • Visiting
    • Planning your visit
    • Families at MoAD
    • Access
    • Group bookings
    • Cafe
    • MoAD Shop
    • UNSW Canberra Howard Library
  • What’s On
    • Exhibitions
    • Events
  • Collection
    • The Building
    • Objects and rooms
    • Oral Histories
  • Learning
    • Teachers
    • Students
    • Parents
  • Democracy
    • Democracy 2025
    • Defining democracy
    • Australian democracy: an overview
    • The democratic audit of Australia
    • One thing I like about democracy
    • Links
    • Quotes
    • Notes
    • About
    • Blog
    • Prime Ministers
    • Websites
    • Venue hire
    From the blog

    ‘Votes for Women’ suffragette stockings

    3 minute read

    Fri 10 Feb 2012 by
    Libby Stewart
    • collection
    • Suffragette

    Recently the museum added to its collection of suffragette items a very personal piece of clothing; a pair of black stockings embroidered with the suffragette slogan ‘Votes for Women’. Belonging to Yorkshire suffragette Elizabeth Wright, the stockings would have been worn at the start of the twentieth century at the height of the marches and demonstrations by English women to obtain the vote. Suffragettes were women who had turned to violence and disruption in order to gain publicity, frequently being sent to prison for their actions. Many of them belonged to the Women’s Social and Political Union, which produced a large range of merchandise, sold in its own shops, to advertise the cause. Stockings like this pair were purchased and worn by thousands of women when they attended marches and rallies.

    Little is known about Elizabeth Wright herself, however she was among a large number of British women who turned from passive protest to active militancy during the early 1900s in order to try and gain the vote. That she wore the stockings frequently is clear from the amount of darning evident in the toes. The positioning of the embroidery on the lower part of the stockings indicates the rise in hemlines that often accompanied women activists’ ambitions and their desire for more physical freedom. It also drew attention to the feet of the wearer. It has been argued that the high-heeled shoes worn by many suffragists were designed to reassure others of their wearer’s femininity, despite their progressive views. Others have argued that the heel itself was a political statement, bringing women up to equal height with men.

    This pair of stockings joins a small but important collection of suffragette items now held by the museum. Other objects include the board game Pank-a-Squith, a suffrage pendant, a souvenir serviette from a suffrage march, and a hunger strike medal. Another important part of this collection is a pamphlet that highlights the gains made by women in New Zealand and Australia, having obtained the vote in the late 1890s, and using them as models to aim for in the British struggle. Several of these items are currently on display in the museum’s From Our Collection display and they are well worth a visit.

    3 minute read

    Fri 10 Feb 2012 by
    Libby Stewart
    • collection
    • Suffragette
    Stockings that belonged to English suffragette Elizabeth Wright.
Museum of Australian Democracy Collection

    Stockings that belonged to English suffragette Elizabeth Wright. Museum of Australian Democracy Collection

    • Stockings2 4f3490f5f3a00

    Libby Stewart is the Senior Historian at the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House, Canberra. She was previously a historian at the Australian War Memorial, Canberra. She has curated exhibitions and published in the areas of the representation of women leaders in museums, Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War, and Australian nurses in the First World War.

    Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House

    18 King George Terrace, Parkes, ACT 2600, Australia

    PO Box 3934
    Manuka ACT 2603

    9am to 5pm daily 
    Closed Christmas Day

    ABN: 30 620 774 963

    Telephone: 02 6270 8222

    Enquiries:
    info@moadoph.gov.au

    Please note: video surveillance is used 24 hours a day around and throughout the building and may be used for research purposes

    Visiting

    • Planning your visit
    • Families at MoAD
    • Access
    • Group bookings
    • Cafe
    • MoAD Shop
    • UNSW Canberra Howard Library

    What's On

    • Events
    • Exhibitions

    Collection

    • The building
    • Objects and rooms
    • Highlights
    • Oral histories

    Learning

    • Teachers
    • Students
    • Parents

    Democracy

    • Exploring democracy
    • Documenting a democracy
    • Australian democracy
    • Defining democracy
    • Democracy 2025

    About

    • OPH Board
    • Annual Reports
    • Budget
    • Corporate documents
    • Disability Inclusion Action Plan
    • Employment
    • Freedom of information
    • Public Interest Disclosure
    • Media
    • Newsletter
    • Support us
    • Partnerships
    • Our prime minister patrons
    • Donate to our collection
    • eCommerce terms and conditions
    • Online house rules

    Blog

    Prime Ministers

    Websites

    Further information

    View our recruitment opportunities.

    View our copyright policy.

    View our privacy statement.

    View our ticketing terms and conditions.

    Questions about the website:
    website@moadoph.gov.au

    The Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House is a Corporate Commonwealth Entity within the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts