Biographies generously sponsored by Susan D. Whiting.
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Every woman has a story.
"The purpose of a storyteller is not to tell you how to think, but to give you questions to think upon."
-Brandon Sanderson, The Way of Kings
Women have always played an active role in history. Explore some of the historical women and contemporary newsmakers that continue to impact the world. New biographies are added regularly, so check back to discover inspiring new stories!
Featured Biographies
Biography
Mary McLeod Bethune
Mary McLeod Bethune was one of the most important Black educators, civil and women’s rights leaders and government officials of the twentieth century.
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Biography
Amanda Blackhorse
Amanda Blackhorse is a member of the Navajo, a social worker, and the plaintiff in Blackhorse et al v. Pro-Football Inc.
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Biography
Elizabeth Blackwell
Elizabeth Blackwell was the first American woman to receive a medical degree.
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Biography
Amelia Bloomer
Amelia Bloomer was a suffragist, editor, social activist, and fashion advocate who worked to change women’s clothing.
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Biography
Nellie Bly
Nellie Bly became a star journalist by going undercover as a patient at a New York City mental health asylum in 1887 and exposing its terrible conditions in the New York World.
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Biography
Frances P. Bolton
US Rep Frances Bolton pursued a life of philanthropy, politics, and social reform, and was a lifelong advocate of education, healthcare, and civil rights.
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Biography
Julia "Judy" Bonds
Judy Bonds led the fight in West Virginia to stop the mountaintop mining that was destroying her Appalachian homeland.
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Biography
Dorothy Boulding Ferebee
The founder of the Mississippi Health Project and the Southeast Neighborhood House, Dr. Dorothy Ferebee provided healthcare to the most vulnerable members of the African American community.
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Biography
Isabella "Belle" Boyd
Isabella “Belle” Boyd was was one of the most famous female Confederate spies, hailed by some as the “Cleopatra of Secession.”
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Biography
Ruby Bridges
Ruby Bridges was only six years old when she became the first African American to attend her elementary school.
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Biography
Pearl S. Buck
Pearl S. Buck produced works of fiction and non-fiction throughout her lifetime, many of which focused on her experiences in China.
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Biography
Selma Burke
Selma Burke discovered her love for sculpture as a young child and followed her passion to Harlem Renaissance New York, Parisian art studios, and even the White House.
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Biography
Tarana Burke
As an activist, community organizer, and executive, Tarana Burke has made quite an impact.
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Biography
Mary Burrill
Mary P. Burrill was a celebrated playwright whose works inspired many prominent writers of the New Negro Movement/Harlem Renaissance.
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Biography
Octavia Estelle Butler
Octavia Butler was one of the first African-American and female science fiction writers, focusing on themes of injustice.
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Biography
Candace Cable
Candace Cable became the first woman to medal at the summer and winter Paralympic Games.
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Biography
Martha Hughes Cannon
Martha Hughes Cannon was the first female state senator in U.S. history.
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Biography
Rachel Carson
Rachel Carson catalyzed the global environmental movement with her 1962 book Silent Spring.
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Biography
Carrie Chapman Catt
Carrie Chapman Catt was a suffragist and peace activist who helped secure for American women the right to vote
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