Submitted photo Cindy Stemple, Randolph County Democrats chairperson, sets up for the upcoming Suffragette Tea Party at the Kump House in Elkins on Sunday from 1-3 p.m. The event honors the certification of the 19th Amendment on Aug. 26, 1920.

ELKINS — A unique Suffragette Tea Party event this weekend will celebrate the passage of the 19th Amendment, which won American women the right to vote.

To celebrate the July 26, 1920 passage of the Amendment, Randolph County Democrats will host their own Suffragette Tea Party on Sunday, from 1-3 p.m. at the historic Kump House in Elkins.

“We are excited to host this event honoring the women who worked tirelessly on the suffragette movement,” said Randolph County Democratic Executive Committee chair Cindy Stemple. “The fact that there are so many links to tea in the women’s suffrage movement makes our event even more unique.”

Sunday’s Suffragette Tea in Elkins will feature high tea sweets and savories, as well as both hot and iced teas, suffragette docents, and live music by Whistlers Children.

“Having the event in the historic Kump House is even more special because this former home of West Virginia governor Guy and Edna Kump is celebrating its Centennial year,” Stemple said.

House tours will be available at the end of the tea, and actors from the Old Brick Theater are scheduled to assist with the tours and provide conversations with some of the suffragette movement’s most famous activists.

“We had hoped to celebrate the 19th Amendment’s Centennial in 2020, but due to COVID-19, we had to cancel our event,” Stemple said. “This event is even more fitting, because it is important to remember today how hard women fought and how long it took (70 years) to pass finally.”

Tickets for the event may be purchased online at randolphcountydems.com (under Events) or by calling 304-641-0751.

Space is limited, and so early reservations are recommended. The Kump House is located at 401 Randolph Ave., Elkins (across from Kroger). Parking is available behind the home.

What many don’t realize is that the 70-year journey to achieve the women’s right to vote milestone began with a simple tea party.

On July 9, 1848, five key members of the American women’s suffrage movement met for tea in Waterloo, New York: Lucretia Mott, Martha Wright, Mary Ann McClintock, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and hostess Jane Hunt. Over tea, these women began discussing the idea of holding the Seneca Falls Convention; this convention, held just 10 days later, was the first women’s rights conference in the Western world.

In 1913, Alva (Vanderbilt) Belmont constructed a large Chinese teahouse at her large Newport, Rhode Island mansion, where she held fundraising teas for the suffrage movement. Votes for Women teacups and teapots were designed for an event held there in 1914. In northern California, suffragists sold “Equality Tea,” while suffragists in southern California sold “Votes for Women” tea.