Amelia Bloomer was a women’s rights activist famous for popularizing “bloomers.” A women’s rights activist, writer, and editor, she founded a newspaper called The Lily which she used to advocate for women’s suffrage and temperance as well as more sensible dress for women. The Early Life of Amelia Jenks Bloomer Amelia Bloomer was born Amelia […]
African American Women Firsts in Medicine
Though today over half of medical school graduates are women, it hasn’t been a level playing field for very long. Women have had to struggle and fight hard for the right to study and practice medicine, and Black women in America have had to face the double barriers of racism and sexism in this struggle. […]
The Rational Dress Reform Movement
How did women’s fashion change from the restrictive corsets and heavy petticoats worn for centuries, to the more comfortable and practical clothes available today? The Rational Dress Movement of the Victorian era played a small role in women casting off their cumbersome clothing. Women’s Fashion in the Victorian Era Women’s fashions in Victorian times emphasized […]
Mary Richards, Civil War Spy: She Never Surrendered
Mary Richards was born into slavery in Richmond, Virginia. Freed by the Van Lew family who owned her, she was sent to school in the North, in order to become a missionary. At age 15, she was sent to teach in Liberia, West Africa. But after four years, ill and miserable, she wrote to her […]
5 Successful Black Businesswomen In History
Black women entrepreneurs have faced the double barriers of sexism and racism throughout United States history. Despite these challenges, many have achieved remarkable success. Here are five inspiring stories of 19th and early 20th century black businesswomen who overcame adversity and built thriving businesses: Bridget “Biddy” Mason (c. 1818 – 1891) Bridget, also known as […]
Women of the California Gold Rush
In the mid-19th century, women had very few rights. But the circumstances of the California Gold Rush created unique opportunities for women, enabling many to make their fortune—and not just by discovering gold. When Was the California Gold Rush? The Gold Rush began in 1848 when gold was discovered by James W. Marshall in Coloma, […]
Julia Ward Howe: Abolitionist, Social Activist, Poet
In November 1861, while she was staying at Willard’s Hotel in embattled Washington, DC, Julia Ward Howe wrote the lyrics to the most famous patriotic anthem of the Civil War. “It would be impossible for me to say,” she wrote in her Reminiscences (1899), “how many times I have been called upon to rehearse the […]
Buffalo Calf Road, Heroic Cheyenne Warrior Woman
The remarkable story of a young Cheyenne warrior woman in her early twenties, Buffalo Calf Road, spans a period of 3 years from 1876 until her death in 1879. During this time the Cheyenne were caught in the westward expansion of pioneers, miners and the army, all determined to colonize the land on the great […]
Who Invented Windshield Wipers? Mary Anderson
You may have never heard of Mary Anderson, but you’ve probably used her invention thousands of times in your life! One frosty day in 1903, Mary Anderson (1866-1953), a native of Birmingham, Alabama, was visiting New York City via a trolley car. She was trying to catch all the sights of the city’s crowded streets, […]
Who Was the First Female Lawyer in the US?
Arabella Mansfield became the first female lawyer in the United States when she was admitted to the bar in 1869. She took the bar exam when only men were legally allowed to take the test, and won a court case for her right to practice law. Early Life of Arabella Mansfield Born Belle Aurelia Babb […]
