Who Was The Very First Woman To Cast Her Ballot In Wyoming?

As we all know, Wyoming prides itself in being the first state to allow women to vote as well as having the first woman governor. But who was the woman who cast the first vote?

If you know your history, then you're probably aware that there is a record of a Wyoming woman being the first woman to cast her ballot in the Cowboy State.

She was the daughter of a sea captain, who was reported lost at sea when she was just 7 years old. After moving to Charleston, South Carolina, her mother passed away. Not the greatest life for a youngster now or then.

Her name was Louisa Ann Swain and on September 6, in the year 1870, while going downtown to pick up groceries in Laramie, Wyoming, she purposed in her heart that she would go and vote while she was downtown.

And vote she did. However, she didn't just cast her vote, but she was the first woman to cast her vote after Wyoming Territorial Governor John Allen Campbell signed a landmark bill in 1869.

Ms. Swain has been described as a gentle, white-haired housewife and is marked as the first woman to cast her vote in Wyoming. She passed away in Lutherville, Maryland in 1880.