Genevieve Blatt
Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
One of the most influential women in Pennsylvania politics in the 20th century. First woman to be elected to a statewide office, Secretary of Internal Affairs, and to be nominated by a major party to run for the U.S. Senate. Elected to the Commonwealth Court in 1973, she wrote the 1975 opinion that gave girls equal access to school sports. Blatt lived at 115 North Street for twenty-five years.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
Genevieve Blatt broke barrier after barrier in 20th-century Pennsylvania politics, becoming the first woman elected to statewide office as Secretary of Internal Affairs and the first woman a major party nominated for a U.S. Senate seat in the state. Elected to the Commonwealth Court in 1973, she authored the 1975 opinion that opened school sports to girls on equal terms. She made her home at 115 North Street in Harrisburg for a quarter century.
Why it matters
Blatt helped pry open elective office and equal opportunity to women and girls in Pennsylvania, a state-level chapter in the broader American struggle for women's full participation in public life.
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