In July 1848, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a resident of New York and mother of four, organized a meeting with approximately 100 attendees, consisting largely of women, to draft a “Declaration of Sentiments, Grievances, and Resolutions”. Of the 13 resolutions listed in this declaration, one outlined the vital goal of achieving a universal “sacred right to franchise”. This declaration was the spark that set the flame of the women’s suffrage movement. From fighting for and earning the basic right to vote, to making great strides in every major industry, women are monuments to everything that can be accomplished by never giving up.
With the International Women’s Day celebrations, on March 8th, still fresh in our minds, this is truly the best time to appreciate these women, who were pioneers in their field and stand in history as shining examples of what perseverance, dedication and passion can achieve.
1. Stephanie Kwolek (1923 - 2014), the inventor of Kevlar, a high-strength synthetic material used to make bulletproof vests and combat helmets
(By Science History Institute, Wikimedia Commons)
2. Sarmiza Bilcescu (1867 - 1935), the first European woman to obtain a Ph.D. and license in law from the University of Paris
(Wikimedia Commons)
3. Marina Ginestà (1919 - 2014), a French-born Catalan veteran of the Spanish Civil War
(By Source (WP:NFCC#4), Wikimedia Commons)
4. Milunka Savić (1888 - 1973), a Serbian war hero who fought in the Balkan Wars and World War I, the most decorated female combatant in the history of warfare
(Wikimedia Commons)
5. Hedy Lamarr (1914 - 2000), an Austrian-born American Actress and Inventor, inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame after her passing
(Wikimedia Commons)
6. Khertek Amyrbitovna Anchimaa-Toka (1912 - 2008), the Chairwoman of Little Khural of the Tuvan People's Republic, and the first elected female head of state
(By Source (WP:NFCC#4), Wikimedia Commons)
7. Sarla Thakral (1914 - 2008), the first Indian woman to fly an aircraft, earning her aviation license at age 21
(Wikimedia Commons)
8. Maud Stevens Wagner (1877 - 1961), an American circus performer who became the first female tattoo artist in the United States in 1905
(By The Plaza Gallery, Los Angeles, Wikimedia Commons)
9. Annette Kellerman (1887 - 1975) promoted and fought for the right to wear a fitted one-piece bathing suit and was arrested in 1907 for indecency
(By Bain News Service, Wikimedia Commons)
10. Fearless Female Firefighters at Pearl Harbour in 1941
(digital.library.manoa.hawaii.edu)
11. Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova (1947 - present) became the first and youngest woman to have flown in space in a solo mission onboard the Vostok 6 in 1963
(By RIA Novosti archive, Wikimedia Commons)
12. Sybil Ludington (1761 - 1839), a hero in the American Revolutionary War who rode to alert the colonies of approaching British Forces at age 16
(By Doug Coldwell, Wikimedia Commons)
13. Rachel Carson (1907 - 1964), marine biologist and author of “Silent Spring”, whose many works greatly advanced the global environmental movement
(By U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wikimedia Commons)
14. Irena Stanisława Sendler (1910 - 2008), a nurse who served in the Polish Underground Resistance during World War II and smuggled approximately 2,500 Jewish children out of German-occupied Warsaw
(By Nieznany, Wikimedia Commons)
15. Commander Eileen Collins (1956 - present), the first female pilot and mission commander of a space shuttle
(By NASA ROBERT MARKOWITZ, Wikimedia Commons)
16. Ada Lovelace (1815 - 1852) designed the first computation algorithm and was among the first computer programmers
(By Antoine Claudet, Wikimedia Commons)
17. Eliska Junkova (1900 - 1994), a Czech automobile racer and the first woman to win a Grand Prix Event. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest Grand Prix racers
(By Unknown author, Wikimedia Commons)
18. Billie Jean King (1943 - present), American former World No. 1 professional tennis player
(Wikimedia Commons)
19. Gertrude Caroline Ederle (1906 - 2003), nicknamed Queen of the Waves, Olympic Champion in swimming and the first woman to swim across the English Channel
(By Bain News Service, publisher, Wikimedia Commons)
20. Bertha Von Suttner (1843 - 1914), an Austrian-Bohemian pacifist and the first woman to be awarded a Nobel Peace Prize
(By Martin Maack, Wikimedia Commons)
21. Nadia Elena Comaneci (1961 - present), five-time Olympic Gold Medalist, and the first woman to score a perfect 10 in Gymnastics at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal
(By Unknown (Comitetul Olimpic si Sportiv Roman), Wikimedia Commons)
22. Sofia Ionescu-Ogrezeanu (1920 - 2008) from Romania was one of the first female neurosurgeons in the world
(By Post of Romania, Wikimedia Commons)
23. Komako Kimura (1887 - 1980), a dedicated Japanese Suffragist whose many literary works advanced the women’s suffrage movement, marching in New York in 1917
(Wikimedia Commons)
24. Elisa Leonida Zamfirescu (1887 - 1973), a Romanian engineer and the first woman to earn a degree in Engineering
(By Britchi Mirela, Wikimedia Commons)
25. Margaret Heafield Hamilton (1936 - present), a computer scientist and the Director of Software Engineering for NASA’s Apollo Space Program in 1969
(By Draper Laboratory, Wikimedia Commons)
26. Kathrine Switzer (1947 - present) became the first female numbered entrant runner in the Boston Marathon in 1967, nearly tackled by the Race Manager during the marathon, who was insistent that no women can participate in the race
(Kathrine Switzer)
27. Taramon Bibi (1956 - 2018), one of two Bangladeshi female freedom fighters who obtained the Bir Protik Award
(Youtube)
28. Fatima Al-Fihri (800 - 880 AD), a Muslim Arab woman, the founder of the oldest existing, still operational and first degree-awarding university, the University of al-Qarawiyyin in Fez, Morocco
(Youtube)
29. Maria Teresa De Filippis (1926 - 2016), the first female Formula 1 Racer
(By Unknown photographer, Wikimedia Commons)
30. Ellen O'Neal became one of the greatest female freestyle Skateboarders in the world in the 1970’s
(Twitter)
