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Reggie Farina@nobles.edu (student of Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu in Women in America class, Fall 98) writes: I would like to nominate Jane Addams. She was born September 6, 1860 in Cedarville, Illinois. Her father was a wealthy miller, senator, and good friend of Abraham Lincoln. She was the youngest of five children in her family and had relatively good schooling as a child. Jane went to high school and then on to the Rockford Seminary College from which she graduated some years later. In 1883 Addams went to travel and study abroad in Europe where she found misery and poverty among the people living there. While in Europe, Addams stayed in a place called Toynbee Hall, the first settlement house ever established. A settlement house was a place where women and children could venture to find shelter, schooling, and often times nourishment. When Addams returned to the United States, she and Ellen Gates Starr formed the first settlement house of America on the West Side of Chicago. They named this establishment Hull House. In this house were kindergarten classes, nurseries for infants, art galleries, and clubs for both women and children. The funding for all of these activites and the house itself came from students,wealthy people, and professors of nearby colleges. Addams herself fought for garbage removal, street lighting, and playgrounds. From working at the Hull House for 46 years and helping the progression of the women's suffrage movement, Jane Addams was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931. She died four years later in 1935. Unfortunately, Hull House and the property it was on was sold in 1963.
- Ted_Lawson@nobles.edu (student of Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu in Women in America class, Fall 98) writes: I would like to nominate Susan Brownell Anthony who was born in Adams, Massachusetts on February 15, 1820. She was the daughter of a Quaker abolitionist. She went to school in New York. By the age of fifteen, she had become a school teacher. After a few years of teaching, she switched professions, and became the head of her familyıs farm in New York. It was here that she met such people as Frederick Douglass, W.L. Garrison, and Wendell Phyllips. These men had all come to talk with her father, and inspired Susan to become an abolitionist herself. In the beginning of her work as an abolitionist, she was an agent for both the Daughters of Temperance, and the American Anti-Slavery Society. This work frustrated her because she felt as though she was being discriminated against because of her gender. Through these organizations she became friends with Elizabeth Cady Stanton. In 1866 she helped to start the American Equal Rights Association, then in 67 the National Womenıs Suffrage Association. In 1872 she was arrested for attempting to vote, claiming that the Constitution gave her this right. From 1892-1900, she was the president of the N.A.W.S.A. Finally from 1881-1902 she wrote four volumes of The History of Womenıs Suffrage. She died in 1906.
- Isa_Schaff@nobles.edu writes:
I had to struggle a bit to figure out exactly what I meant by "admiring". Some choices seemed obvious: could anybody not admire Mother Theresa and not proclaim her one of the greatest? Yet, I chose to narrow my scope to a more personal one, i.e. to find three women I admire and whose achievement and personality I could wish for myself. I was surprised to realize that, in general, the women I admire most are not famous (for instance, the classroom teacher who was with me from first to fifth grade would have to be one of the top three) but I was able to find 3 women of fame whose life and example I admire.)No surprise to anybody who knows me.... I would like to nominate Jane Austen! I think her command of the English language is beyond compare. The books she wrote are gems that I can read over and over again, and every time they are different books. I never tire of them. I admire the way she lived her life. She was clearly capable and ambitious and yet the constraints of the society she lived in and the reality of her economic position kept her dependent all of her life. Yet she was able to laugh at life, and enjoy it (I don't subscribe to the theory that makes Austen an embittered spinster: I don't see it in her writings). I also admire the sense of privacy she held to all her life long.
- Mardela@aol.com writes: I would like to nominate
Maya Angelou--author and poet--wrote Inaugural Poem for Clinton
- Grace Abbott--politician, 1920s... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- Abigail Adams--early feminist, 1770s... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- Nina DeSimone@nobles.edu writes:
Julia Alvarez contemporary writer who was born in the Dominican Republic, but grew up in N.Y. She was an English professor at Middlebury College for several years before deciding to write full-time. Her most famous novel is How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accents.
- Marian Anderson ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Maya Angelou ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Maya Angelou--writer, present day... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
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- Clara Barton--nurse and founder of Red Cross, Civil War time...
- Harriet Beecher Stowe ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Catharine Beecher--feminist in the 1850s... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- MaryAnn Bickerdyke--nurse, Civil War... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- Elizabeth Blackwell ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Claire Booth Luce ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Belle Boyd--spy in the Civil War... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- Mardela@aol.com writes: I would like to nominate
Melba Pattillo Beals--was one of the nine students who integrated Little Rock,Arkansas' Central High and wrote Warriors Don't Cry
- Diane_Lemay@nobles.edu writes:
I would like to have one CP1 student make a web page about Lizzie Borden -- she was acquitted of "taking the axe and giving her mother 40 whacks .. when she saw what she had done, she gave her father 41."
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Denver_Brown@nobles.edu (student of Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu in Women in America class, Fall 98) writes: I would like to nominate Elizabeth Cady Stanton who was one of the ten children born to Daniel and Margaret Livingston Cady. The Cadys were very conservative Presbyterians so as a result at a very young age, Elizabeth was trained to be ³genteel and domestic². To Elizabethıs mother, teaching her daughters to be submissive to men was important above all. Stanton did not agree with what she was taught so at a very young age, she rebelled against all that her mother had instilled in her. Cady had the strength to do so because she had a strong sense of who she was due to the fact that she grew up with four sisters. Thus, Stanton was a leader from the beginning. In 1939 Stanton met her future husband, Henry Brewster Stanton, at an Anti-Slavery Society meeting. She later married him in London and it was there that her road to Seneca Falls and history began.
While in London, Henry and Elizabeth attended the World Anti-Slavery Convention and there she met Lucretia Mott who was a womenıs rights activist and abolitionist. Sometime after the convention the two met again, this time at Martha Wrightıs house, Mottıs sister. This time the topic was a womenıs convention in which women would seek to resolve the grievances they had with society, and especially men. It was at Wrightıs house that something called the Seneca Falls Convention was conceived. The women (more than just Mott, Stanton, and Wright were there) put down on paper all their complaints and futhermore came up with resolutions for the complaints. These complaints and resolutions formed the Declaration of Sentiments. This document was very much like the U.S. Declaration of Independence; after all, that was what the women were decreeing, independence. Some days later the actual convention occured. On the second day of the convention (it was a two day affair) Stanton, being the fearless pioneer that she was, stood up and called for womenıs suffrage which was totally unheard of and radical, even to the women activists. However, Stanton dared to stand alone even though it cost her her marriage and because of her, women have equal standing with men today.
- Anne Ryter,aryter@western.edu,Internet writes:
I nominate Rachel Carson...
Dr. Anne Ryter
Department of Science
Western State College
- Bruce Toback,btoback@optc.com writes:
Sorry, but I just have to rant, or I'll be pacing my office all morning. Do you want famous, or do you want important? Cleopatra was famous. Be careful what
you ask for: you may get it.
- Mary Cassatt ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Carrie Chapman Catt ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Carrie Chapman Catt--same as Stone... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- Prudence Crandall ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Bill Gilbert@nobles.edu writes:
No list would be complete without that formidable genius, the rennaisance woman, Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz who lived in Baroque Mexico (early 17th Century). She excelled in almost every form of art and science. A fascinating biography. Arguably one of the greatest mids of all times.
- Pauline Cushman--spy, Civil War... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
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- Emily Dickenson ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Dorothea Dix ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Dorothea Dix--worked for the mentally ill in the 1830s... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- Zaurie Zimmerman@nobles.edu writes:
Margory Stoneman Douglas was an author and environmental activist who spearheaded the fight to save the Florida Everglades for over forty years until she was well into her 90's.
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Kate_O'Donnell@nobles.edu (student of Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu in Women in America class, Fall 98) writes: I would like to nominate
Isadora Duncan who laid the groundwork for 20th century modern dance. She had a unique style that included long flowing costumes and bare feet. She danced to modern music, and traveled with a dance company to Europe. There, she influenced major ballet choreographers and changed traditional dance methods. She had an interesting private life; she had affairs with many of her dance teachers and had two children out of wedlock. These two children were killed in an auto accident. Later she married and quickly divorced a choreographer who eventually committed suicide. As if this weren't depressing enough, she was riding one afternoon in July of 1922 in her sportscar and her long scarf caught in the wheel. She was strangled to death.
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Lindsay_Curtis@nobles.edu (student of Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu in Women in America class, Fall 98) writes: I would like to nominate Mildred Ella Didriksen Zaharias, also known as Babeı Didriksen. She was born June 26, 1913 in Port Author, Texas. As a child, she loved publicity stunts that challenged the public's idea of women as the weaker sex and she loved sports. She pitched at spring training for the St. Louis Cardinals, where she earned the nickname Babeı when she hit five home runs in one game. She played donkey softball with men, sang and ran on a treadmill in a one woman vaudeville show and challenged the Kentucky Derby winner to race on foot. By participating in many of these ³unwomanly² events, she gained disapproval from her fellow peers, men and women. It was at this time that she came to the painful realization that her success depended on recasting herself to conform to acceptable notions of femininity at the time.
In 1932, Babe Didriksen began her increased activity in athletics. She played pro basketball and pitched a preseason game for the St. Louis Cardinals. She went to the Olympics for track and field where she earned the gold medal in the javelin throw and the eighty meter hurdles and a silver in the high jump. It was here that she broke world records.
In 1935, she began to play golf, a sport and passion that consumed the rest of her life. In the years of 1946 and 1947, she won seventeen consecutive tournaments. She was the first American ever to win the British Womenıs Armateur. She won the US Open and the All American Open in 1954. In 1950, she funded the LPGA and won thirty-one out of one hundred and twenty eight events in eight years. In 1951, she was inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame and was voted Woman Athlete of the first half of the twentieth century. She was the woman athlete of the year in 1931, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1950 and 1954.
In 1953, Babe Didriksen was diagnosed with cancer but still continued to play golf. It was with cancer, in 1953, that she won the US Open and the All American Open. She died at age forty-six in 1956.
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- Carole Hamilton,carole_hamilton@caryacademy.pvt.k12.nc.us,Internet writes:
Ellie ... Don Berger, head of Cary Academy, gave me your email request for notable
women in history. I would like to nominate
Eleanor of Aquitaine
... Carole Hamilton, Cary Academy
- Amelia Earhart ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Sarah Edmonds--nurse and soldier, Civil War... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
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Stefanie_Noering@nobles.edu (student of Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu in Women in America class, Fall 98) writes: I would like to nominate Amelia Earhart who lived from 1897 to 1937 and was an American aviator. She became the first woman to cross the Atlantic Ocean by air and the first woman to fly across the Atlantic alone. She was also the first woman to receive the Distinguished Flying Cross. She was born in Kansas and developed an interest in flying while working as a nurse aide in Canada in 1918, during WWI. By 1922 she had received a pilot's license and had begun entering flying meets. In 1928 she became the first woman to cross the Atlantic by air, but she flew as a passenger. In 1929 she helped found the "Ninety-Nines," an international organization of women pilots . She served as the first president of the organization from 1930-1933. In 1932 she became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. In 1937 she and a navigator attempted to fly around the world. On the most difficult leg of their trip, their plane vanished near Howland Island in the Central Pacific Ocean and neither she nor the navigator was ever found.
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- Bruce Toback,btoback@optc.com writes:
Sorry, but I just have to rant, or I'll be pacing my office all morning. Do you want famous, or do you want important? Rosalind Franklin
was important. Be careful what
you ask for: you may get it.
- Susy Ferris Rights (e-mail: rights@home.com)
I would also like to nominate another real woman of the 90's, my mother, Ann Ferris, who has been a champion of many groups including the elderly. She is 67 years old and has devoted her efforts toward the League of Women Voters (President of her group 2x), board member of many orgainizations including the YWCA, AAUW etc. She has built "moderate income housing" for residents of her own community. She has also participated in may political campaigns and worked to make the world of today a better place for thechildren of today. This woman is real and may have real answers for questions of the children of today. In addition her energy and devotion is REMARKABLE and EXEMPLARY! Let me know if you would like to make contact with either. Ann Ferris lives in Connecticut.
- Ella Fitzgerald ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- David Strasburger@nobles.edu writes:
M.F.K. Fisher -- wonderful 20th century american writer -- underappreciated until recently, though still pigeonholed as a 'food writer.' If you like food or essays you'll love MFK!
- Betty Friedan--60s and 70s feminist ... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- Colleen Powers@nobles.edu writes:
Perhaps this woman's name isn't exactly worth remembering, but what about Lynette ("Squeaky") Fromme of the Charles Manson group of weirdos? She was convicted of the attempted murder of president Ford- she was caught pointing an uncocked 45 at him! She was released from prison last year, I think. -CP
- Margaret Fuller--feminist in the 1850s... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
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Alexandra_Harris@nobles.edu (student of Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu in Women in America class, Fall 98) writes: I would like to nominate Ella Fitzgerald who was one of the first big jazz singers of her time. She was born in 1917 and died in 1996. She was born in Newport News, Va. She moved to Yonkers, New York with her mother. She sang in her school glee club, but her main forte was dance. She was really good and she loved it. She unfortunately had an attack of nerves and could not dance. She took up singing seriously at age 16. Her mother died and she went to an orphanage. She sang at the Apollo Theatre, and was heard by Benny Carter who was with the Webb Orchestra. She performed with them and gained a lot of popularity. Her first major hit was in 1938, " A Tisket a Tasket". In 1939 she became head of the Webb Orchestra. She had many solos. In 1946 she traveled in Europe and Japan. Fans loved her. Her eyes and heart had many problems, though. This slowed her down a little but she kept on singing. She developed diabetes in the '90's, and she died in her home at Beverly Hills, on June 15, 1996.
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li>Althea Gibson--tennis great in the 50s... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
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Taylor Allen@nobles.edu (student of Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu in Women in America class, Fall 98) writes: I would like to nominate Sarah Grimke and Angelina Emily Grimke who were two of Americaıs first feminists. They promoted women's rights and women's suffrage. Sarah Grimke was born in 1792 and Angelina Grimke was born in 1805. Sarahıs career as a feminist began in 1821 when she moved to Philadelphia. She was part of a group called the Philadelphia Friends (a Quaker organization). Angelina joined her in 1829. In 1838 Sarahıs famous piece of writing,³Letters on the Equality of the Sexes, and the Condition of Women², was published. Later that year she married. Both women attended the Seneca Falls Convention. This was a meeting of mostly women where women's rights were discussed and promoted. Sarah died in 1873. Angelina died in 1879.
Sarah and Angelina Grimke ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
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- Bruce Toback,btoback@optc.com writes:
Sorry, but I just have to rant, or I'll be pacing my office all morning. Do you want famous, or do you want important?
Heidi Hammill is important. Be careful what
you ask for: you may get it.
<
- Alice Hamilton ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
- Anne Hutchinson--rebel colonist in the early 1700s... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- Mike Turner@nobles.edu writes:
one of the most influential women in music history is unquestionably HILDEGARDE von BINGEN, who, incidently, was born 900 years ago this year! there's a bunch of info on her available on the web. Hildegarde was a fascinating woman. the chamber singers actually performed one of her choral pieces in Nobles' winter concert last night!
Zaurie Zimmerman@nobles.edu writes:
Hildegaard von Bingen was an abbess, philosopher, advisor to world leaders, poet, composer of wonderful music, etc., etc. in 11th century Europe.
MariaIriti@aol.com,Internet writes:
I would nominate Hildegard of Bignen (1098-1179) the newly popular abbess,
mystic, and all-around genius of the 12th century, whose writings and music
are now sweeping the charts 900 years later. This was a woman ahead of her
time. She was an astonishing visionary and prophet, artist and healer who
lived in Germany. Hildegard of Bingen, shattered stereotypes of women for all
time.
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Olivia_Achtmeyer@nobles.edu (student of Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu in Women in America class, Fall 98) writes: I would like to nominate
Billie Holiday (1915-59).
Billie Holiday was born Eleanor Fagan on April 1, 1917 in Baltimore, Maryland. Her parents were unwed teenagers, Sadie Fagan and Clarence Holiday. Her father was a guitarist and that is where Billieıs love for music came from. She had an unhappy childhood because she was constantly being moved around with her mother. She struggled with a heroin addiction late in life and it was probably a result of the racial prejudice she came across as a child. She found release in alcohol and heroin. Her great-grandmother was a slave and Billie was taught as a little child the life her grandmother had endured through the stories she was told by her grandmother. Her favorite actress as a child was Billie Dave and this is where her name originated from. Because of her poverty, she had to begin to work at age 6. When Billie was 10 years old her motherıs boyfriend attempted to rape her; however, in the court hearing for her case, because she was a girl she was unjustly treated. The man that tried to rape her was let off and she had to serve in a juvenile home because the judge claimed she looked too mature and old and therefore she had to learn to mend her ways. She was in jail for five years. In the late 1920ıs she became a call girl to help earn money but found the business too risky. So when she was 15 years old she began to sing for money.
Her singing debut was in 1931 in obscure Harlem nightclubs. Her first recording session was with Benny Goodman in 1933. She became widely known after 1935, but her best years were from 1936-1943. She has been known to have created jazz masterpieces in her early years. She was called, ³Lady Day² by Lester Young who also said that she was one of the finest jazz singers of her generation and the 20th century. She died in a New York City hospital due to her heroin addiction on July 17, 1959.
- Patty Wise,Patty_Wise@gfs.org writes:
Here's my nominee ....Grace Hopper, 1906-1992
Mathematics genius, computer pioneer, inventor, teacher - Grace
Hopper's accomplishments encompass a range of achievement that have
helped transform society. The woman who became known as "Amazing
Grace" and "The Grandmother of the Computer Age" was born before Ford
launched his first Model T and before women had the right to vote.
Educated at Vassar and Yale, Hopper joined the Navy during World War II
to help win the War. Her formidable skills in mathematics helped propel
her into the brand new world of "computing machines," and she loved the
opportunities to innovate. She worked on the early UNIVACs, and soon
began to create computer "languages" - mathematical equations computers
could understand. Recognizing the need for more "user-friendly"
language in English to enable more people to work with computers, she
pioneered COBOL, a computer language that promoted easier access. A
leader and pioneer in the technology that has transformed information
flow forever, Hopper was also the first woman to attain the rank of
Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy. In 1991, she won the National Medal of
Technology.
- Bruce Toback,btoback@optc.com writes:
Sorry, but I just have to rant, or I'll be pacing my office all morning. Do you want famous, or do you want important? Hypatia was important. Be careful what
you ask for: you may get it.
Katherine_FitzGibbon@nobles.edu writes:
One of my favorite famous women from the music business (if you're interested in a non-inventor) is Margaret Hillis - quite a character. She was the first woman to conduct a major U.S. Symphony, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. My favorite quotation of hers is "the only woman who couldn't conduct an orchestra is the Venus de Milo." She opened a lot of doors for women like me interested in conducting, even though it's still a male-dominated profession. Anyway, if you have any music buffs, they might be interested in this wacky lady.... Kathy
- Patty Wise,Patty_Wise@gfs.org,Internet writes:
Grace Hopper 1906-1992 ...Mathematics genius, computer pioneer, inventor, teacher - Grace
Hopper's accomplishments encompass a range of achievement that have
helped transform society. The woman who became known as "Amazing
Grace" and "The Grandmother of the Computer Age" was born before Ford
launched his first Model T and before women had the right to vote.
Educated at Vassar and Yale, Hopper joined the Navy during World War II
to help win the War. Her formidable skills in mathematics helped propel
her into the brand new world of "computing machines," and she loved the
opportunities to innovate. She worked on the early UNIVACs, and soon
began to create computer "languages" - mathematical equations computers
could understand. Recognizing the need for more "user-friendly"
language in English to enable more people to work with computers, she
pioneered COBOL, a computer language that promoted easier access. A
leader and pioneer in the technology that has transformed information
flow forever, Hopper was also the first woman to attain the rank of
Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy. In 1991, she won the National Medal of
Technology.
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Patty Wise,Patty_Wise@gfs.org,Internet writes:
You can also check out:
http://www.greatwomen.org/grtwmn.htm
http://www.cs.yale.edu/homes/tap/past-women-cs.html
Patty Wise
Garrison Forest School
- Zora Neal Hurston ... nominated by Mara Lytle,Mara_Lytle@loomis.org
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Janice_Kushner@nobles.edu writes: I would like to nominate Billie Jean King, a famous tennis player about 35 years ago She beat a man, Bobby Riggs in a championship tournament. She was instrumental in the way women were viewed and the women's movement.
- Billie Jean King--tennis great in the 70s... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- Jackie Kennedy Onassis--former First Lady, 1960s... Libby_Budinger@nobles.edu
- Kate Boyle-fac writes:
How about Frieda Kahlo? 20th Century Latino Woman Artist... many of her works reflect her struggle with being a woman and her fight with a painful marriage. She also encorporated many Mesoamerican traditions and symbos into her work.
- Donald Allard-fac writes:
Elizabeth Keckley--slave woman who bought her freedom (and her son's) with earnings from sewing. later worked in the White House for the Lincoln's.
- Gretchen Fish-par writes:
I nominate Nanerly Keohane, President of Duke University. I believe she was the first woman president of a major research university. She was President of Wellesley College before becoming President of Duke University.
- Janice Kushner-vis writes:
Billie Jean King, a famous tennis player about 35 years ago She beat a man, Bobby Riggs in a championship tournament. She was instrumental in the way women were viewed and the women's movement.