Susanna M. Salter was born Susan Madora Kinsley in 1860 in Lamira, Ohio, to a family of Quakers who made their living farming.

When she was 12 the family moved to an 80-acre farm near Silver Lake, Kansas.

Having grown up surrounded by nature and farming, in 1878 Susanna chose to further her education at Kansas State Agricultural College. Unfortunately, illness forced her to drop out just six weeks shy of graduation.

All was not lost, however, as it was there she met her future husband, law student Lewis Allison Salter, the son of a former Kansas Lieutenant Governor.

They married and moved to Argonia, where Susanna became active in fighting to ban the consumption of alcohol, joining both the Woman’s Christian Temperence Union and the prohibition party, making her a target of animosity among the local men. It was during this time that she also became friends with the national activist Carrie Nation, who was a fierce advocate for alcohol prohibition.

In 1883 she gave birth to the first of her nine children.

Argonia was incorporated in 1885, and both her father and husband were elected to public office, her father as mayor and her husband as city clerk.

During the mayoral election season of 1887, the suffrage movement was in full swing. Wanting to dissuade the suffragists, local men put Susanna’s name on the ballot, believing her humiliating defeat would shut those women up about voting rights once and for all.

Because the names of candidates were not required to be made public, no one was more surprised than Susanna when she entered the voting booth and saw that she was not only on the ballot, but eventually won.

Because of her family’s experience in politics, Susanna was not intimidated by her position. Her term as mayor held no great notes in history, but her election started a national conversation for other towns to consider the election of females.

Her first city council meeting was attended by a reporter who, aside from nothing what she was wearing, also praised her ability to keep control of the meeting.

After a year in office, she declined to seek reelection.

She moved with Lewis to Woods, Oklahoma, where he practiced law and established a newspaper.

They then moved to Carmen, where they lived until Lewis’ death in 1916.

After his death Susanna moved to Norman, Oklahoma, where she lived until her death on March 17, 1961.

She was 101 years old.