Women's History Month

I am a collector of facts, of tidbits, of information...
And today, I am interested in Women's History Month.

So, I am searching the web for stuff...
If I find out something is wrong, I'll fix it.

1987 was the first time that March was declared Women's History Month.
March was chose as the month since March 8th is International Woman's Day.
It is a global recognition as it is recognized in the USA, UK and Australia (or has been in past years).

A few women that you may have heard of (in order by birth year):

Cleopatria (69 BCE-30BCE) The last Ptolemaic ruler of Egypt.  She was 17 or 18 when she became Queen of Egypt and the last pharaoh.  She was a shrewd politician who spoke nine languages.

Mary Magdalene (4 BCE–40BCE) Accounts from the Gospels suggests that she was one of Jesus’ most devoted followers.

Joan of Arc: (1412–1431) The patron saint of France. At the age of just 17, she successfully led the French to victory at Orleans.

Sacagawea (1787–1812) She was the interpreter for Lewis and Clark during the U.S. government’s first exploration of the Northwest.  

Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896) Her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin was a bestseller and helped the anti-slavery campaign.

Florence Nightingale (1820–1910) A British nurse who served in the Crimean war, she was instrumental in changing the role and perception of the nursing profession.

Susan B. Anthony (1820–1906) The 19th century women’s movement’s most powerful organizer. She fought for women's right to vote as well as very involved in the fight against slavery. Her arrest for voting in the 1872 Presidential Election and eventual trial paved the way for Women’s Rights.

Harriet Tubman (1820–1913) This abolitionist was born a slave. She eventually became a "conductor" on the Underground Railroad, leading more than 300 slaves to freedom.

Clara Barton (1821–1912) She treated injured Union soldiers on the battlefield during the Civil War. She later was the founder and first president of the American Red Cross.

Elizabeth Blackwell (1821–1910) Born in Britain, she was the first woman to receive a medical degree in America from the Geneva College in New York. She later founded a women’s medical college to train other women physicians.

Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888) She produced the first literature for the mass market of juvenile girls in the 19th century best known as author of Little Women.  She is less known for her service as a Civil War nurse.

Marie Curie (1867–1934) She was the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize and the first person to win the Nobel Prize for two separate categories (Physics in 1903 and Chemistry in 1911). A few years later, she also helped develop the first X-ray machine.

Helen Keller (1880–1968) American social activist. At the age of 19 months, Helen became deaf and blind. Overcoming the frustration of losing both sight and hearing she campaigned tirelessly on behalf of deaf and blind people.

Amelia Earhart (1897–1937) The first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean, she opened the skies to other women. In 1937 while attempting to become the first person to fly around the world, her plane disappeared over the Pacific Ocean.

Margaret Chase Smith (1897-1995) She was the first woman to serve in both houses of the United States Congress representing Maine.  She was very active in fighting McCarthyism in the 1950s (and the subject of my high school term paper).  She was the first woman to be a presidential candidate for a major party in 1964.

Mother Teresa (1910–1997) Founder of a religious group of nuns in Calcutta, India, she devoted her life to aiding sick and poor people throughout the world, becoming a global icon for selfless service to others. She was awarded the Nobel Peace prize in 1979.

Dorothy Hodgkin (1910–1994) This British chemist was awarded the Nobel prize for her work on critical discoveries of the structure of both penicillin and later insulin. These discoveries led to significant improvements in health care.

Margaret Thatcher (1925–2013) The first female Prime minister of Great Britain, she governed for over 10 years.

Anne Frank (1929–1945) Her diary is one of the most widely read books in the world.

Barbara Jill Walters (1929- ) is an American broadcast journalist, author, and television personality. In 1976, continuing as a pioneer for women in broadcasting, she became the first female co-anchor of a network evening news. 

Sandra Day O'Connor (1930– ) As the first woman appointed to the position of U.S. Supreme Court justice, she carved a place for women at all levels of the legal profession. 

Janet Reno (1938-2016) She was the first woman to hold the office of U.S. Attorney General, she's remembered for her toughness and for several controversies during her tenure.

Dr. Sally Ride (1951– ) The first American woman in space was also the youngest American astronaut ever to orbit Earth.

Diana, Princess of Wales (1961-1997) British Royal princess who was noted for her humanitarian charity work.

Malala Yousafzai (1997– ) Pakistani school girl who campaigns for the right to education. She survived being shot in the head by the Taliban and has become a global advocate for women’s rights, especially the right to education.

I know that there are a lot more notable women who were born in the 1970s and later...

I just need to do some more research to find out about them...

Namaste.