
Biographies generously sponsored by Susan D. Whiting.
Suggest a new bioBiographies
Women have always played an active role in history. Explore some of the historical women and contemporary newsmakers that continue to impact the world. New biographies are added regularly, so check back to discover inspiring new stories!
Featured Biographies
Bernice Johnson Reagon is a renowned composer, historian, musician, and activist.
Read More
Bernice Johnson Reagon
Biography
Shirley Horn
Jazz singer and pianist Shirley Horn was one of the leading jazz musicians of her generation.
READ MORE
Biography
Biography
Dolores Huerta
Co-founder of the United Farm Workers Association, Dolores Huerta is one of the most influential labor activists of the 20th century.
READ MORE
Biography
Ruby Hurley
Civil rights pioneer and campaigner, Ruby Hurley is most known for her work with the NAACP in the 1950s and 1960s.
READ MORE
Biography
Biography
Anne Hutchinson
Considered one of the earliest American feminists, Anne Hutchinson was a spiritual leader in colonial Massachusetts who challenged male authority.
READ MORE
Biography
Jovita Idár
Mexican-American journalist, activist, and suffragist, Jovita Idár often faced dangerous situations, however she bravely fought the injustices in her time.
READ MORE
Biography
Margaret Ives Abbott
Imagine being the first woman to win an Olympic event for the United States, but never knowing that you had done so. This is what happened to Margaret Ives Abbott.
READ MORE
Biography
Mae Jemison
Astronaut Mae Jemison became the first African American woman to travel in space.
READ MORE
Biography
Andrea Jenkins
Andrea Jenkins made history in 2017 when she became the first African American, openly transgender woman elected to public office in the United States.
READ MORE
Biography
Barbara R. Johns
As a teenager, Barbara Johns helped organize a strike that eventually led to the desegregation of schools in the United States.
READ MORE
Biography
Claudia 'Lady Bird' Johnson
Claudia Johnson, known as “Lady Bird Johnson” was an environmentalist, businesswoman, political activist, and First Lady.
READ MORE
Biography
Marsha P. Johnson
Marsha P. Johnson was one of the most prominent figures of the gay rights movement of the 1960s and 1970s in New York City.
READ MORE
Biography
Mary Harris Jones
Female labor activist “Mother Jones” was a self-proclaimed “hell-raiser”.
READ MORE
Biography
Barbara Jordan
As a lawyer, a congresswoman, and a scholar, Barbara Jordan used her public speaking skills to fight for civil and human rights.
READ MORE
Biography
Deloris Jordan
Deloris Jordan has established multiple charities, especially focused on underprivileged youth.
READ MORE
Biography
Annie Jump Cannon
Known as the “census taker of the sky,” Annie Jump Cannon was a brilliant astronomer that revolutionized the way scientists classify stars.
READ MORE
Biography
Elena Kagan
The first female Solicitor General of the United States and now an associate justice on the U.S. Supreme Court, Elena Kagan is a prominent legal scholar and jurist who has advocated for justice and equality since childhood.
READ MORE
Biography
Edith Kanaka'ole
Edith Kanaka’ole (also affectionately called “Aunty Edith”), a native Hawaiian composer, chanter and dancer, was a champion for the preservation of native Hawaiian culture and arts.
READ MORE
Biography
Kati Karikó
Karikó’s research and perseverance proved that mRNA vaccines were possible and paved the way for the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines to end the Covid-19 Pandemic.
READ MORE