I learned this both from seeing an exhibit in London on the British suffragists and then writing a paper in grad school on women & language: be sure to use the word "suffragist."  "Suffragette" was a word that was coined by journalists in England to belittle the women involved in the right to vote movement, much like the word "bachelorette."  

I also learned that when women first started receiving master's degrees, they were called "mistress of arts," because surely a woman couldn't be referred to as a "master" of anything.  Very interesting.