Women's History

Coya Knutson campaigning for Congress

Friends in the House, Hostility at Home

Coya Knutson won a seat in the U.S. House in 1954 but was undone by a secret she brought to Washington

Violette Szabo was awarded the British George Cross and the French Croix de Guerre.

Behind Enemy Lines With Violette Szabo

She was young, married and a mother. But after her husband died in battle against the Nazis, she became a secret agent for the British

Philippa Fawcett. When she placed first in the Cambridge mathematical tripos in 1890, she forced a reassessment of nineteenth-century belief in the inferiority of the "weaker sex."

The Woman Who Bested the Men at Math

Sofia Kovalevskaya, Emmy Noether and Ada Lovelace are just three of the many famous female mathematicians you should know.

Five Historic Female Mathematicians You Should Know

Albert Einstein called Emmy Noether a "creative mathematical genius"

"Greetings, Britons and everybody." Queen Victoria at about the time she made her Graphophone recording.

In Search of Queen Victoria’s Voice

The British monarch was present when a solicitor demonstrated one of the earliest audio recording devices. But did she really say "tomatoes"?

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Six Secrets of Polonium

This rare and dangerous element, discovered by Marie Curie, is found in cigarettes and was used to poison an ex-KGB agent

One of Dahomeys' women warriors, with a musket, club, dagger—and her enemy's severed head.

Dahomey’s Women Warriors

While Marie Curie dominates the conversation, there have been many other brilliant women who have pursued science over the years.

Ten Historic Female Scientists You Should Know

Before Marie Curie, these women dedicated their lives to science and made significant advances

Marm Mandelbaum, the "Queen of Fences"

The Life and Crimes of “Old Mother” Mandelbaum

She had the eyes of a sparrow, the neck of a bear and enough business acumen to build an empire as the "Queen of Fences"

Mrs. Grace Humiston, a.k.a. "Mrs. Sherlock Holmes"

“Mrs. Sherlock Holmes” Takes on the NYPD

When an 18-year-old girl went missing, the police let the case grow cold. But Grace Humiston, a soft-spoken private investigator, wouldn't let it lie

Anne Bonny (left) and Mary Read, as rendered in A General History of the Pyrates

If There’s a Man Among Ye: The Tale of Pirate Queens Anne Bonny and Mary Read

Renowned for their ruthlessness, these two female pirates challenged the sailors’ adage that a woman’s presence on shipboard invites bad luck

One of the best-documented female soldiers is Sarah Edmonds. She was a Union soldier and worked during the Civil War as a nurse.

The Women Who Fought in the Civil War

Hundreds of women concealed their identities so they could battle alongside their Union and Confederate counterparts

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A Robot That Tells Jokes

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Looking Forward to the International Year of Chemistry

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Caroline Herschel: Assistant or Astronomer?

The Egyptian queen, shown here in a 19th-century engraving, sneaked back from exile and surprised Julius Caesar.

Rehabilitating Cleopatra

Egypt's ruler was more than the sum of the seductions that loom so large in history—and in Hollywood

Field Beach, c. 1850s, Mary Blood Mellen.

The Grand Women Artists of the Hudson River School

Unknown and forgotten to history, these painters of America's great landscapes are finally getting their due in a new exhibition

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50 Years of Chimpanzee Discoveries at Gombe

Fifty years ago today, Jane Goodall arrived at Gombe Stream Chimpanzee Reserve (now Gombe National Park) in Tanzania

Frances Benjamin Johnston could be both ladylike and bohemian, which abetted her career as a photographer.

Victorian Womanhood, in All Its Guises

Frances Benjamin Johnston's self-portraits show a woman was never content playing just one role

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Saying Goodbye to One of America's Earliest Female Aviation Pioneers: Elinor Smith Sullivan

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