Biographies generously sponsored by Susan D. Whiting.

Biographies

Every woman has a story.

"The purpose of a storyteller is not to tell you how to think, but to give you questions to think upon."

-Brandon Sanderson, The Way of Kings

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

Elizabeth Freeman became the first African American woman to successfully file a lawsuit for freedom in the state of Massachusetts.

Elizabeth Freeman

Abigail Adams was an early advocate for women's rights.

Abigail Smith Adams

Phillis Wheatley was the first African American woman to publish a book of poems.

Phillis Wheatley

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Frances Ellen Watkins Harper

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was the first African American woman to publish a short story and was also an influential abolitionist, suffragist, and reformer.

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Kamala Harris

Kamala D. Harris became the first woman, the first Black woman, and the first person of Asian-American descent to become the Vice-President Elect of the United States of America.

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A symbolic figure in the American Revolutionary War, the woman known as “Molly Pitcher” reportedly brought water to the troops at the Battle of Monmouth and worked the cannon after her husband was wounded.

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Anna Arnold Hedgeman

Throughout her long life, Hedgeman advocated for civil rights, education, social justice, poverty relief, and women.

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Dorothy Height

Dorothy Height was the president of the National Council of Negro Women for 40 years and a leader in the Civil Rights Movement.

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Helen Taussig

Dr. Helen Brooke Taussig was a pioneering American cardiologist best known for developing the first successful open-heart surgery to treat "blue baby syndrome."

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Audrey Faye Hendricks

On May 2, 1963, 9 year old Audrey Faye Hendricks became the youngest known person arrested during the Civil Rights Movement.

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Antonia Hernández

According to Antonia Hernández, she “went to law school for one reason: to use the law as a vehicle for social change.” Decades later, she can claim numerous legal victories for the Latinx community in voting rights, employment, and education.

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Carmen Herrera

Abstract painter, sculptor, and minimalist Carmen Herrera influenced a generation of artists.

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Judith Heumann

Judith Heumann has improved accessibility and opportunities for the estimated 56 million people in the United States and one billion people around the world with disabilities.

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Oveta Culp Hobby

Oveta Culp Hobby served as the director of the Women’s Army Corps and first secretary of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare.

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Eleanor Holmes Norton

Eleanor Holmes Norton was the first woman appointed to chair the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and continues to fight for DC statehood in her third decade as a congresswoman.

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Anne Crawford “Nancy” Allen Holst

The first woman to join the International Association of Fire Chiefs, “Chief Nancy” led Rode Island’s Cedar Hill Volunteer Fire Department beginning in 1931.

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Reiko Homma True

A leading advocate for culturally sensitive mental health care, Dr. Reiko Homma True is dedicated to improving mental health treatment for the Asian-American community and other minority populations.

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Grace Hopper

Rear Admiral Grace Hopper helped to outline the fundamental operating principles of computing machines.

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Etta Horn

Etta Horn was a prominent welfare rights advocate. As an activist, she worked alongside other anti-poverty organizers to improve the living conditions of low-income DC residents.

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