G overnment In 1916, Jeannette Rankin was thefirst woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. She served another term from 1941to 1943. A lifelong pacifist, Rankin voted against
going to war with Germany in 1917 (WorldWar I), and was the only representative to voteagainst the U.S. entering World War II.
S cience and m edicine After being the first woman
admitted to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Ellen Swallow Richards also became
the first professional chemist in the US after her
graduation in 1873.
L iterature and P ubLiShinG Edith Wharton became
the first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1921 for her novel The Age of Innocence.
Wharton did not begin her writing career until
she was almost 40 years old, and through her
career published over 40 books.
F iLm In 1896, Alice Guy Blache became the first
American female film director with the release ofher film The Cabbage Fairy. During her career
she directed over 300 short films.

Jeanette Rankin
Amelia Earhart

m uSic In 1914, Mary Davenport-Engberg became the first woman to conduct a symphonyorchestra in the United States.
a ir and S Pace In 1932, Amelia Earhart became
the first woman to fly solo across the AtlanticOcean. She flew from Harbor Grace, Newfoundland, to Ireland in about 15 hours. In 1937
Earhart attempted to fly around the world, but
her plane disappeared. No one knows what
happened to her.

Ellen Richards
Althea Gibson

m iLitary In 1993, Sheila Widnall was appointed
Secretary of the Air Force, becoming the firstwoman to hold this high-level position for any
branch of the U.S. military.
S PortS In 1967, Althea Gibson became the firstwoman (and African American) to win the tennis
singles title at Wimbledon. During her career,Gibson won ten straight national black women’ssingles championships, and, in 1971, she was inducted into the National Lawn Tennis Hall ofFame.

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recognition montHs

W

OMEN’S HISTORY MONTH
is one of the outcomes of a countywide movement in Sonoma County,
California, in the 1970s that brought a focus on women into school curricula as well as into the generalpublic’s consciousness. In 1978, the Educational Task
Force of the Sonoma County (California) Commission
on the Status of Women initiated a “Women’s HistoryWeek.” The week of March 8 was chosen since March
8 is International Women’s Day. As word of the movement spread, State Departments of Education acrossthe U.S. initiated similar changes to their curricula,and encouraged celebrations of women’s history as ameans of achieving equity in classrooms. In 1987 theNational Women’s History Project petitioned the United States Congress to recognize the whole month ofMarch as National Women’s History Month. Since
then, every year the House of Representatives and theUnited States Senate approve the designation.
March is celebrated with special programs andactivities in schools, workplaces, and communities.
Besides recognizing women’s achievements in suchareas as science, math, politics, arts, and athletics, acommon topic in school curricula is the women’s suffrage movement in the United States. Before 1920,
women did not have the right to vote under the constitution. In the decade between 1910 and 1920,
women organized and were involved in political demonstrations and marches across the United States.
Though the vote was brought to the congress several
times, it failed to pass. Finally in 1919, after years of
picketing, petitioning, and protesting, the vote passed,resulting in the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution on August 26, 1920. In
recognition montHs

November 1920, women voted for the first time in anational election.
Glossaryoutcome(s): n. a result or the effect of an action
consciousness: n. knowledge or awarenessinitiate(d): v. to begin
equity: n. justice or fairness
designation: n. something chosen for a particularreason or purpose
suffrage: n. the right to vote in an election
right: n. a legal claim
decade: n. a period of ten years
picket(ing): v. to stand or demonstrate outside abuilding or place of work to prevent people fromentering and working, as a means of political protest
petition(ing): v. to demand or request some action
from a government or other authority
amendment: n. a change in a law

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Women’s History montH