Biographies generously sponsored by Susan D. Whiting.

Biographies

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

Felisa Rincón de Gautier, affectionately known to the public as Doña Fela, became the first female mayor of a capital city in the Americas when she was appointed mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico in 1946.

Felisa Rincón de Gautier (Doña Fela)

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (commonly referred to by her initials, AOC) is the youngest woman and youngest Latina to ever serve in the United States Congress.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

As the first Hispanic and third woman appointed to the Supreme Court, Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor has made an impact in and out of the courtroom.

Sonia Sotomayor

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Edmonia Lewis

Edmonia “Wildfire” Lewis is considered the first professional BIPOC sculptor in the United States and the first to achieve international acclaim.

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Edna Lewis

Chef and cookbook author Edna Lewis taught the American public to appreciate southern meals in a new way.

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Leona Woods Libby

Physicist Leona Woods Marshall Libby was one of the women who helped to create the atomic weapon.

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Maria Guadalupe Evangelina de Lopez

An educator, translator, and clubwoman, Lopez helped win the vote for Californian women with her oratory and the writings she translated into Spanish.

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Audre Lorde

Poet and author Audre Lorde used her writing to shine light on her experience of the world as a Black lesbian woman and later, as a mother and person suffering from cancer.

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Suzan-Lori Parks

Though a high school teacher discouraged her from writing because of her poor spelling, Suzan-Lori Parks went on to become one of the most successful playwrights in the United States.

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Juliette Gordon Low

Known as the founder of the Girl Scouts, Juliette Gordon Low created the largest and most successful organisation for girls in the world.

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Autherine Lucy

Autherine Lucy was the first African American student to attend the University of Alabama

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Dolley Madison

Dolley Madison, the fourth First Lady of the United States, is widely remembered as the most lively of the early First Ladies.

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Mary Eliza Mahoney

Mary Eliza Mahoney pursued a nursing career which supported these aims. She is noted for becoming the first African American licensed nurse.

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Wilma Mankiller

Wilma Mankiller is honored and recognized as the first female Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation.

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Sarah McBride

The first openly transgender person elected to a state senate in the U.S., Sarah McBride won a seat in the Delaware Senate on November 3, 2020.

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Ruth Hanna McCormick

Ruth Hanna McCormick Simms was a Republican United States Representative from Illinois who served from 1929 to 1931.

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Patsy Mink

Patsy Mink was the first woman of color elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and the first Asian-American woman to serve in Congress.

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Gabriela Mistral

Chilean author and educator Gabriela Mistral became the first Latin American author to receive the Nobel Prize in literature.

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Maria Mitchell

Maria Mitchell was the first female astronomer in the United States and the first American scientist to discover a comet.

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Janet Mock

Janet Mock became the first transgender woman of color to write and direct an episode of television.

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Charlotte Edith Anderson Monture

Canadian Charlotte Monture moved to the US for nursing training and served in the US Army during World War I.

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Rita Moreno

Rita Moreno became the first Latina woman to earn an “E.G.O.T.:” an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony.

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Toni Morrison

Toni Morrison is one of the most celebrated authors in the world.