It's hard to believe that voting in our country started in the late 1700's by granting the right to vote to a very narrow subset of our society- white male landowners. Early in the 20th century women still were only able to vote in a handful of states.

In New Jersey between 1776 and 1807 a single woman who owned property “worth fifty pounds” could vote before that right was restricted back to white males only. In the 1800's Kentucky allowed widows with school-aged children to vote in school board elections and Kansas followed suit in 1861.

On August 18, 1920, after decades of organizing and activism American women nationwide won the right to vote with the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution. “Women didn't win the right to vote, Town Co-Historian Deb Conway told me they took it.”

I recently saw Mrs. Conway, the wife of our County Historian John Conway and Executive Director of the Delaware Company a local not for profit that promotes the history and historic landmarks of the Upper Delaware River Valley, at the Barryville Farmers' Market celebrating the 100th year anniversary of women's voting rights by registering new voters and giving out information about transferring voting to Sullivan County for seasonal or second homeowners.

Here where an election can be decided by fewer than a dozen votes, an individual vote packs more of a punch. To register as a new voter you need to be a US citizen, be at least 18 years old by the date of the election you want to vote in, be a resident of the state, county, city or village for at least thirty days before the election, not be a prisoner or on parole for a felony conviction and not claim the right to vote elsewhere. “It is important that everyone vote Deb Conway recently told me but especially women need to get out and vote because if they don't, they will be living in a man's world!”

The voting registration booth will be at the Barryville Farmers' Market every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. now through Labor Day.

The Sunshine Hall Free Library is reopening up their doors with some restrictions. The Library will be open Tuesdays through Friday's noon until 4 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. till 3 p.m.

In an abundance of caution onsite Library visits will be limited to a half hour or less once a day and only seven people may enter the building at a time, and no one will be admitted without a face mask. Now only two computers will be available for use to enhance social distancing and the copier and fax machine will be available for use as well.

As it has been during the pandemic, the Library's deck with Wi-Fi and umbrella tables and chairs will continue to be available for patrons and visitors.The Library is recommending calling to make a reservation to visit the Library onsite. The very popular curbside pickup services will still be available.

Just place your order online and the Library staff will call you when your order is ready. When a patron tells the staff when they can pick up their order, it will be waiting outside on the porch.

For more information you can visit the Library online at www.sunshinehallfreelibray.org or call (845) 557-6258.