Saying goodbye to Martha Hughes Cannon as she heads to Washington (2024)

Martha Hughes Cannon got a big send-off party on Wednesday night from hundreds of Utahns who gathered outside the Utah Capitol to celebrate her influence on the state and, soon, the nation.

There were multiple organizations on hand with displays and activities for all ages, from coloring pages to period reenactors telling Martha’s story to pioneer-era games on the lawn. There were food trucks, music, gold and purple flags, yellow ribbon roses and, of course, the star of the show, Martha herself, outside on a flatbed trailer, getting her picture taken with everyone who wanted to stand by the larger-than-life, 7-foot-6 statue on her last night in Utah.

Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson spoke fondly of Martha as she wished her safe travels on her trip across the country. “What’s so remarkable about Martha is not just that she was the fourth wife of Angus Cannon, who ran against him and beat him ... it’s not just remarkable that she had (four) degrees by the time she was in her mid-20s. It’s not just remarkable that she fought for women’s rights, for women’s suffrage and then when she secured them, helped women in other states try to get them. What’s remarkable about Martha is that she was the first, but she was not the last.”

Henderson said Martha showed that, when faced with what seems like an intractable brick wall, you don’t have to tear down the whole wall. Sometimes, you can focus on removing a brick or two — or a few — and do your little bit of good, making it easier for those behind you to make it over that wall.

“Martha’s statue does not just symbolize what she has done for us,” said Henderson. “She symbolizes what our state and what our people did for America, and that history has been forgotten. It has been swept under the rug. It is not mentioned, and yet, you cannot talk honestly about the history of women’s suffrage in the United States without talking about Utah. I’m going to miss her.”

The process

Two of the many people in attendance were former Utah Rep. Adam Gardiner, the first sponsor of the bill to send Martha to Washington, and Ben Hammond, the artist who created the Martha Hughes Cannon statue.

Gardiner shared the backstory of wanting to see Martha in Washington. In 2009, he was an intern for then-Rep. Rob Bishop in Washington. Bishop, a former high school history teacher, loved the Capitol and loved to share stories about the history contained therein. Bishop used to give Capitol tours, and from him, Gardiner learned about the two statues representing Utah in Statuary Hall. Bishop had been speaker of the Utah House when Philo T. Farnsworth made his journey back to Washington more than 30 years ago. When Bishop led tours and walked past the Farnsworth statue, he would comment that he personally would have preferred either a statue of John M. Browning or Martha Hughes Cannon.

Bishop would then share that Cannon was a doctor, that she was the first female state senator in the nation and that Utah had been “way ahead of its time,” leading the way in women’s suffrage long before the rest of the nation. As Gardiner began leading tours, he shared those same stories and developed a deep respect for Cannon. In 2017, as a newly elected state representative, Gardiner realized he could actually run legislation to send Martha back, and he filed a bill in May for the 2018 session.

When Gardiner won a race as the Salt Lake County recorder, state Sen. Todd Weiler publicly told him on a radio show that he wanted to be the Senate sponsor. Then-Rep. Becky Edwards simultaneously told him she wanted to be the House sponsor of the bill. The legislation to send Martha to Washington was not without controversy, but in the end, it passed with overwhelming margins in both houses.

Then, the process began to choose an artist to sculpt the statue. Artists who wanted to be considered were asked to bring a 12-inch mock-up of their version of Martha, but Ben Hammond did not do that. Instead, he presented four different versions of Martha, including one he called “sassy,” where she had a hand on her hip, and another one with her reading a book. In the end, Gardiner said, the majority of the committee was enchanted by Hammond’s vision of what Martha could be and he got the contract. Hammond sculpted her with a strong, wide stance, he said, which adds all the dynamic shape to the dress. “I wanted Martha to feel very strong, because that’s who she was,” Hammond said. The process of sculpting in clay took about nine months and then another 16 weeks to cast in bronze. He finished on time for Cannon to be placed in Statuary Hall in August 2020, on the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, but COVID-19 caused an almost-four-year delay.

Both Gardiner and Hammond will be in Washington with Henderson and others for the official installation ceremony next month.