Over the course of American history, women have dedicated many years to achieving rights and gaining opportunities most men had taken for granted, from the right to vote to equal access to an education and a paying job.
Going back to Colonial times, widespread opposition to the formal education of women was the norm. But in 1821, Emma Hart Willard succeeded in getting funding from the citizens of Troy, New York, to found the Troy Female Seminary, the first of its kind in the country. It offered what now would be considered college-level courses in science, mathematics, literature, and history. In 1833, Oberlin College opened as a coeducational institution, the first school to grant higher-education degrees to women. In 1861, Vassar was founded as the first private women's liberal arts college. In the second half of the 19th century, women began to gain admission to other coeducational colleges and universities.
Many fields, not just government and politics, remained largely closed to women well into the 20th century, however. Outstanding individuals like physicist Rosalyn Yalow and Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor still found it difficult, at least initially, to gain admission to most universities in disciplines considered "masculine" provinces — science, law, mathematics — or to get a job commensurate with their abilities and training.
Nevertheless, determined women overcame educational hurdles and other obstacles in pursuit of their ambitions and ideals. In the 20th century, they steadily joined the labor force, excelling in professions previously considered out of bounds to their sex. Disparities remain, but women's progress in many areas has been remarkable. Two statistics from the last U.S. Census Bureau illustrate this development. In education, women were expected to earn 59 percent of the bachelor's and 60 percent of the master's degrees awarded for the school year 2005-06. Businesses headed by female entrepreneurs had receipts of $940.8 billion in 2002.
The women featured in this section are just a few among the many pioneers and achievers of the past 150 years. They have been eager to make a difference, to employ their talents to the fullest. They have had the courage to stand up to authority when necessary, or to face controversy. And, in the process, they have made great contributions to the social, economic, scientific, and cultural wealth of their communities, their country, and the world.
For additional information, see:
American Women: A Library of Congress Guide for the Study of Women's History and Culture in the United States. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 2001.
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/naw/nawshome.html
Women's Rights
http://usinfo.state.gov/scv/history_geography_and_population/civil_rights/womens_rights.html
USINFO >
Publications
