Twelve years earlier, Leo had been one of five precincts in the county to vote by machine; see Voting Machines at Leo.
Township History · 1920
Women Register to Vote, 1920
From 2 clippings in Fort Wayne newspapers, 1920.
In October 1920 Allen County’s “newly enfranchised voters” came out to register in greater numbers “than the most optimistic equal suffrage workers had predicted.” The News and Sentinel counted them precinct by precinct in two reports two days apart. Registration closed on Monday, October 4. In the first count, compiled at 1 o’clock the next day, Cedar Creek A had registered 206 men and 135 women. The final tally made Cedar Creek B, with 155 voters, the smallest precinct in the county, and found that “in no country districts are the men out numbered.”
Women Qualify by Thousands
The Fort Wayne News and Sentinel, Tuesday, October 5, 1920, page 14.
Transcription
Unofficial transcription, prepared from the archive scan for ease of reading, copying, and searching. The printed page is authoritative. Original spelling, punctuation, and paragraphing are preserved. Nothing has been corrected or modernized.
WOMEN QUALIFY BY THOUSANDS
Large Registration of New Voters Is Feature of Final Day in Allen County.
OFFICIALS ARE ELATED
Registration of women in greater numbers than the most optimistic equal suffrage workers had predicted was the outstanding feature of the final registration day Monday, according to figures released today by County Auditor A. C. McCoy. The women overcame their timidity and reticence which many politicians thought would keep them from qualifying and come forward in a most encouraging manner.
Republican county officials were elated over the showing. The large number of women registered was, of course, the most surprising thing and shows that a vast majority of the newly enfranchised voters mean to do their duty and accept the responsibility that has been thrust upon them.
Forty precincts report a total registration of 28,160. And of this number 12,360 registered the first day. If the present ratio continues the total registration for Allen county will reach 45,000 and perhaps 50,000.
Only 78 women registered the first day, September 4, in Madison township, but Monday 188 qualified. In Monroeville a total of 423 women are registered against 511 men, which is considered remarkably good. The total registration for the November election had been compiled at 1 o'clock today in the following precincts:
| Precint. | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Adams A. | 537 | 475 |
| Cedar Creek A. | 206 | 135 |
| Eel River | 285 | 211 |
| Jefferson | 330 | 228 |
| Madison | 362 | 266 |
| Marion | 294 | 249 |
| Monroeville | 511 | 428 |
| Springfield | 382 | 325 |
| Washington | 381 | 259 |
| Wayne A. | 150 | 100 |
| Wayne B. | 388 | 195 |
Fort Wayne City.
| Men | Women | |
|---|---|---|
| Precinct 1 | [?]29 | 416 |
| Precinct 2 | 409 | 369 |
| Precinct 4 | 363 | 329 |
| Precinct 6 | 533 | 390 |
| Precinct 8 | 362 | 296 |
| Precinct 9 | 620 | 434 |
| Precinct 14 | 444 | 374 |
| Precinct 15 | 216 | 167 |
| Precinct 16 | 416 | 473 |
| Precinct 17 | 526 | 483 [?] |
| Precinct 20 | 246 | 186 |
| Precinct 24 | 277 | 260 |
| Precinct 26 | 385 | 497 [?] |
| Pdecinct 29 | 598 | 518 [?] |
| Precinct 30 | 575 | 508 |
| Precinct 37 | 338 | 278 [?] |
| Precinct 40 | 620 | 457 |
| Precinct 41 | 257 | 171 |
| Precinct 43 | 450 | 366 |
| Precinct 44 | 431 | 304 |
Notes
- Cedar Creek A only. The table gives the township's A precinct (206 men, 135 women) but not Cedar Creek B, which had not been compiled by 1 o'clock. The News and Sentinel's Oct. 7 follow-up gives Cedar Creek B's total (155) but not its split by sex.
- Monroeville: 423 or 428. The text says 423 women in Monroeville; the table says 428. Both are clear on the film. The paper contradicts itself; neither figure has been corrected.
- "Precint." and "Pdecinct 29" — misprints as set.
- Doubtful figures [?]. Precinct 1's men's figure has a damaged first digit (reads "?29"). The women's figures for Precincts 17, 26, 29 and 37 have one damaged digit each; the readings given are the most likely.
- The first word of the second paragraph ("Republican") is badly worn on the film but readable in context.
- "September 4." This article gives the first registration day as September 4; the Oct. 7 follow-up says "Sept. 2." One of the two is a misprint; which one isn't settled here.
- County Auditor "A. C. McCoy." The Oct. 7 article calls him "Angus McCoy."
About this clipping
- Source
- The Fort Wayne News and Sentinel (Fort Wayne, Indiana), October 5, 1920, page 14.
- Archive
- Newspapers.com, image 29133873 (subscription site). The images and transcription on this page are complete and free to use.
- Copyright
- Published in the United States before 1931 and in the public domain.
- Images
- Cleaned from the archive scan for legibility.
- Transcription
- Prepared by Robert J. Pfister, October 2026, and checked word by word against a magnified view of the scan.
County Voters' Total is 48,303
The Fort Wayne News and Sentinel, Thursday, October 7, 1920, page 11.
Transcription
Unofficial transcription, prepared from the archive scan for ease of reading, copying, and searching. The printed page is authoritative. Original spelling, punctuation, and paragraphing are preserved. Nothing has been corrected or modernized.
COUNTY VOTERS' TOTAL IS 48,303
Women Qualify Heavily on Last Day; Outnumber Men in Four City Precincts.
BALLOTS PUT AT 41,000
Official figures released this morning by County Auditor Angus McCoy show the total registration in Allen county for the November election to be 48,303. The women registered in the county and city for a total of 21,501 against a total of 26,802 men.
The women beat the men in registering the second day with a total of 13,796 against 13,142 men. Nearly twice as many women qualified the last day as on Sept. 2, while the men did better the first day.
Fort Wayne has 36,335 eligible voters this fall and the country districts have 11,968. The largest precinct in point of numbers is the Twelfth with 1,196 while Cedar Creek B is the smallest with 155.
In four city precincts the women outnumber the men. These are:
| Men | Women | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Precinct 3 | 517 | 533 | 1,050 |
| Precinct 23 | 546 | 582 | 1,128 |
| Precinct 25 | 443 | 486 | 909 |
| Precinct 26 | 385 | 407 | 792 |
In no country districts are the men out numbered. The men have the most decided superiority in the seventh precinct where the totals are 623 against 381 women.
The registration in 1918 was slightly in excess of 23,000 while the vote dropped to 18,000. While it can hardly be expected that 48,000 ballots will be voted here this fall, still, since the women are believed to be very much interested and will not be likely to drop the subject after going this far it is thought that the vote will hold up well. County officials today approximated the total Allen county vote for county offices at fully 41,000.
Notes
- Cedar Creek B, smallest in the county. 155 registered voters, men and women together. The article doesn't split the figure by sex. The Oct. 5 article gives Cedar Creek A's split (206 men, 135 women) but not B's.
- The arithmetic mostly holds. 21,501 women plus 26,802 men is 48,303; Fort Wayne's 36,335 plus the country districts' 11,968 is 48,303. In the four-precinct table, 517 + 533 = 1,050, 546 + 582 = 1,128, and 385 + 407 = 792; but Precinct 25's figures are printed clearly as 443, 486 and 909, and 443 + 486 = 929. The total is the paper's error; it is transcribed as printed.
- "Sept. 2." The Oct. 5 article gives the first registration day as September 4. One of the two is a misprint.
- "Angus McCoy." The Oct. 5 article calls the county auditor "A. C. McCoy."
- "out numbered" — two words as printed.
- "In no country districts are the men out numbered." So in Cedar Creek, as everywhere outside the city, more men than women registered in 1920.
About this clipping
- Source
- The Fort Wayne News and Sentinel (Fort Wayne, Indiana), October 7, 1920, page 11.
- Archive
- Newspapers.com, image 29135223 (subscription site). The images and transcription on this page are complete and free to use.
- Copyright
- Published in the United States before 1931 and in the public domain.
- Images
- Cleaned from the archive scan for legibility.
- Transcription
- Prepared by Robert J. Pfister, October 2026, and checked word by word against a magnified view of the scan.