Throughout American history, women in general had fewer legal rights, education opportunities, and career opportunities than men. Dedicating their lives to being a good wife and mother was considered a woman’s top priority. This changed in the 20th century when women gained the right to vote in the United States. Here are five great women from American history that you should learn about. Their significant accomplishments are a great inspiration for all women.
Jane Cooke Wright
The daughter and granddaughter of African American physicians, Jane Cooke Wright was also a physician and researcher who had accomplished many great things in the field of medicine. She was one of the cancer researchers who discovered chemotherapy. In addition to being the only woman out of the seven physicians who founded the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Wright was also the first woman who was elected as the president of the New York Cancer Society.
Maggie Lena Walker
Maggie Lena Walker is most well-known for being the first bank president in the U.S. who was a black woman. From the inception of the St. Luke Penny Savings Bank, Walker led the bank till her death. Due to her great leadership, the bank joined with the IOSL to become a financial powerhouse that provided financial services to more than 100,000 people in the country. This provided many white-collar jobs to black women across the country.
Mamie Till-Bradley
Mamie Till-Bradley was the mother of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old boy who was lynched when on a visit to see his family in Mississippi. Although Till-Bradley was an everyday black woman, she created great impact by choosing to have an open-casket funeral for her son and exposed the brutality behind his death. The gruesome images of her son’s corpse sparked the civil rights movement.
Mary Tape
An immigrant from China, Mary Tape married an ambitious man who built a successful business. Despite her wealth, her family was not exempted from being discriminated due to their race. When her child was rejected from a school due to being Chinese, Tape sued the principal and the local board of education. She won the case, which set the precedence of guaranteeing Chinese children the right to receive education in public schools.
Laura Cornelius Kellogg
As a policy reformer, orator, author, and activist, Laura Cornelius Kellogg was a founding member of the Society of American Indians. She advocated fiercely for Native rights and sovereignty, such as the preservation of Native economic systems, cultures, and languages.
Learn American History with Mind Muzic
If you are looking for an award-winning music education program that can teach American history to your child, look no further than Mind Muzic. Our history lessons with music can make learning fun and effective for them. Contact us today to let us know how we can meet your students’ learning needs with music education.