Margaret Brent Memorial, (sculpture).

Margaret Brent Memorial, (sculpture).

de Packh, Mary, sculptor.

Margaret Brent Memorial, (sculpture).

1983. Dedicated June 24, 1983.

Plaque: bronze; Base: marble and brick.

Plaque: approx. 19 x 25 x 1 1/2 in.; Marble base: approx. 26 1/4 x 4 ft. 6 in. x 8 in.; Brick base: approx. 2 ft. 11 x 4 ft. 4 in. x 1 ft. 1 11 1/4 in.

M. Fraser de Packh (Bottom of plaque, raised lettering:) IN 1648 MARGARET BRENT/ASKS FOR "VOTE...AND VOYCE" (Plaque on front left base:) Margaret Brent (ca/ 1601-1671). A catholic gentlewoman, lived in Maryland from 1638 to 1650. In June 1647 the dying Governor, Leonard Calvert, made her executrix to his estate with power to pay the soldiers he had hired to put down a Protestant rebellion. Margaret Brent's skills in carrying out this mission preserved Lord Baltimore's authority and his policy of religious toleration. During this crisis she unsuccessfully requested two votes in the assembly. One for herself and one as Lord Baltimore's agent. This is the first known effort of a women to vote in a legislative assembly.

(Plaque on front right base:) "came Mrs. Margaret Brent and requested to have vote in the House for Herself and voice also...as his lordships attorney. The Governor denied that he said Mrs. Brent should have vote as afore said." Assembly proceedings, Friday, January 21, 1648 "Your Lordships Estate was better for the colony's safety at the that time in her hands than in any man's else in the whole province after your brother's death. For the soldiers would never have treated any other with...civility and respect." Assembly to Lord Baltimore, April 21, 1649. signed

A bas-relief plaque depicting Margaret Brent speaking before the Maryland Assembly in 1648, petitioning Lord Baltimore for the right to vote. She stands on the left before a window frame, with members of the Assembly gathered around tables and chairs on the right. The relief plaque rests in marble, mounted upon a brick base.

Portrait female -- Brent, Margaret -- Full length

Portrait male -- Baltimore, Lord -- Full length

Occupation -- Other -- Reformer

Occupation -- Other -- Colonist

Occupation -- Other -- Aristocrat

Outdoor Sculpture -- Maryland -- St. Mary's City

Administered by Historic St. Mary's City Commission, P. O. Box 39, St. Mary's City, Maryland 20686

Located Brome-Howard Mansion, Margaret Brent Garden, St. Mary's City, Maryland

The plaque commemorates Margaret Brent (ca. 1601-1671), a Maryland woman who was the first woman in America to vote in a legislative assembly. The plaque is part of the Margaret Brent Memorial, which also includes a garden and a gazebo. The total cost of the memorial was $38,000 and funds were raised by the Friends of Margaret Brent. IAS files contain an unidentified article with a discussion of the dedication.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Maryland survey, 1993.

The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

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