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20 Trail Blazing Women

There have been so many women that have made an impact on history. Below are just 20 women to remember and honor during the study of women’s history.

1784 Hannah Adams

First woman to become professional writer

1812 Lucy Brewer

First woman marine

1849 Elizabeth Blackwell

First woman to receive a medical degree

1850 Harriet Tubman

First woman to run underground railroad to help slaves escape

1910 Blanche Scott

First woman to fly an airplane 1910

1916 Jeannette Rankin

First woman U.S. House Representative (Montana)

1917 Jeannette Rankin

First woman in Congress 1917

1920 Florence E. Allen

First woman judge 1920

1924 Hallie Ferguson

First woman governor of U. S. state (Texas)

1931 Jane Addams

First woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize

1932 Hattie Wyatt Caraway

First woman elected to U.S. Senate

1932 Amelia Earhart

First woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean

1939 Hattie McDaniel

First African-American of any gender to win an Academy Award (she won for Best Supporting Actress in the film, Gone with the Wind).

1978 Mary Clarke

First woman to be named major general in U.S. Army

1981 Sandra Day O’Connor

First woman a justice of the U. S. Supreme Court

1983 Sally Kristen Ride

First American woman to reach outer space.

1997 Madeleine K. Albright

First woman Secretary of State and highest ranking woman in the U.S. government

2002 Halle Berry

First African-American woman to win a Best Actress Oscar

2005 Condoleezza Rice

First African-American woman to be appointed Secretary of State

2007 Nancy Pelosi

First woman to become Speaker of the House

2007 Hillary R. Clinton

First woman to run for the US Presidency

Continue to Videos on The History of Women

Continue to The History of Women’s Suffrage

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