Reenactment Of The Election Of 1836 And The Women's Suffrage Movement At Allaire Village In Farmingdale, NJ On November 6, 2011

I came home from voting not too long ago on this day, Election Day, November 8, 2011. I voted two days ago too, but in a completely different kind of Election. I took part in a Reenactment of the Presidential Election Of 1836 held at the historic Allaire Village in Farmingdale, New Jersey. The candidates back then, and represented at this event, were Martin Van Buren of the Democratic Party and William Henry Harrison of the Whig Party. Electioneers were on hand trying to influence and convince voters to choose their respective candidates while female activists were rallying for their right to vote.

Here is a flyer for the event:


In the center of this photograph you can see the voting booth:


Zoomed in:












Here you see the Village Suffragettes protesting and rallying for their right to vote:




The ballots:




Voters would sign the book on the right and simply take a ballot and put it in the box on the left:








The Historic Howell Works Museum And General Store:




Here I am after casting my ballot wearing a hat I purchased at The General Store:








Counting the ballots:


I believe the final tally was 17 votes for Harrison and 16 votes for Van Buren. The percentages were 51.52% and 48.48% respectively. Although Van Buren won the Election and the Presidency, Harrison did carry New Jersey with 50.53% of the vote in 1836 (Source: http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?year=1836&f=0&off=0&elect=0&fips=34&submit=Retrieve). Harrison's victory in this Reenactment exactly mirrored the results 175 years ago and the percentage was remarkably similar as well.

Who did I vote for? I won't tell. This was a really fantastic event and very unique since this era and these particular candidates are barely, if ever, discussed. I stayed until the very end because I really wanted to see the results.

Here is a magnet I purchased at The General Store:


I wanted to make reference to the fact that the hat I bought was made in the USA. Here is a shot of the tag. The hat cost $8.95 which I felt was a good price. It just shows that items can be manufactured here, in this country, and still be affordable. This is significant and this is a very important message to convey.


Here is the Village's website (more fine events are scheduled for the remainder of the year): http://www.allairevillage.org