March is Women’s History Month. In celebration, we look back at the accomplishments of some of the most influential women in American business and history. The theme for the 2012 Women’s History Month is “Women’s Education – Women’s Empowerment,” so it’s appropriate we include some pioneers of women’s college education.
- Anne Catherine Hoof Green. In 1767, Green took over her late husband’s printing and newspaper business, becoming the first American woman to run a print shop. The next year, Green became the official printer of Maryland.
- Elizabeth Blackwell. In 1849, Elizabeth Blackwell received a medical degree from the Medical Institution of Geneva, N.Y., becoming the first American woman in history to receive a medical degree.
- Arabella Mansfield. In 1869 in Iowa, Mansfield became the first woman lawyer.
- Ada H. Kepley. In 1870, Kepley was the first woman to graduate from law school at the Union College of Law in Chicago, Illinois.
- Sarah E. Goode. in 1885, Goode was the first African-American woman to receive a patent, having invented a bed that folds into a cabinet.
- Susanna Medora Salter. In 1887, in the town of Argonia, Kansas, Salter was the first woman to be elected a mayor in the United States.
- Alice Guy Blaché. In 1896, Blaché shot “La Fee aux Choux (The Cabbage Fairy),” becoming the first American woman film director.
- Mary Davenport-Engberg. In 1914 in Bellingham, Washington, Mary Davenport-Engberg was the first woman to conduct a symphony orchestra.
- Jeanette Rankin. In 1916, Rankin was the first woman to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
- Edith Wharton. In 1921, author Edith Wharton was the first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for fiction for her book, “The Age of Innocence.”
- Nellie Tayloe Ross. In 1925 in Wyoming, Ross was the first woman to be elected governor in the United States.
- Amelia Earhart. Earhart was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic in 1932.
- Frances Perkins. In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Perkins Secretary of Labor, making her the first woman member of a presidential cabinet.
- Lettie Pate Whitehead. In 1934, Whitehead was named director of Coca-Cola, becoming the first woman director of a major corporation.
- Edith Houghton. In 1946, Houghton was the first woman scout for a major league baseball team.
- Oveta Culp Hobby. In 1960, Hobby became the first woman Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. She also was the first director of the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC), and the first woman recipient of the U.S. Army Distinguished Service Medal.
- Margaret Chase Smith. Chase Smith was the first woman to be elected to both the U.S. Congress and Senate. In 1964, Smith was the first woman to be nominated for President of the United States by a major political party at the Republican National Convention in San Francisco.
- Muriel “Mickey” Siebert. In 1967, Siebert was the first woman to own a seat on the New York Stock Exchange and the first woman to head one of its member firms.
- Diane Crump. In 1970, Crump was the first woman jockey to ride in the Kentucky Derby.
- Dr. Juanita Kreps. In 1972, Kreps became the first woman director of the New York Stock Exchange. In 1977, she was named the first woman U.S. Secretary of Commerce under President Jimmy Carter.
- Sarah Caldwell. In 1976, Caldwell became the first woman to conduct an orchestra at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York.
- In 1977, Janet Guthrie was the first woman to drive in the Indianapolis 500 race.
- Andrea Hollen. In 1980, Hollen was the first woman to graduate from the United States Military Academy, West Point. She was also the first woman Rhodes Scholar.
- Sandra Day O’Connor. Was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1981, becoming the first woman Supreme Court Justice.
- Dr. Sally K. Ride. In 1983, was the first American woman astronaut sent into space.
- Geraldine Ferraro. In 1984, Ferraro was the first woman nominated for Vice President of the United States.
- Dr. Antonio Novello. In 1990, Novello was the first woman and Hispanic U.S. Surgeon General.
- Carol Moseley-Braun. In 1992, Moseley-Braun was the first African-American woman elected to the U.S. Senate.
- Janet Reno. In 1993, Reno was the first woman U.S. Attorney General.
- Madeleine Albright. In 1997, Albright became the first woman U.S. Secretary of State.
- Condoleeza Rice. In 2005, Rice became the first African-American woman to be appointed Secretary of State.
- Drew Gilpin Faust. In 2007, Faust was the first woman to be named president of Harvard.
- Hillary Rodham Clinton. In 2008, Clinton became the first woman candidate to win state presidential primaries, and she did so in twelve states.
- Kathryn Bigelow. In 2010, became the first woman to win an Oscar for Best Director.