Women's History

A worker sews a costume at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in 2021 in Stratford-upon-Avon, England.

A Woman Appeared on the English Stage for the First Time on This Day in 1660, Transforming the World of Theater Forever

Despite this historic first, the identity of the first professional English actress on stage remains a theatrical mystery

Kerry Washington stars as Charity Adams in Tyler Perry's newest film, The Six Triple Eight.

The Real Story Behind Netflix's 'The Six Triple Eight,' a New Tyler Perry Film About the Women of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion

The Black, female unit sorted through a massive backlog of undelivered mail, raising American soldiers' morale during World War II

This year's list includes Clouds in Space, The Manicurist's Daughter and The Ministry of Time.

The Best Books of 2024, as Chosen by Smithsonian Scholars

Staff at the Institution pick their favorite reads of the year, including riveting memoirs, fascinating true histories and fun fiction

Sigmund Freud in the office of his Vienna home in 1930

New Exhibition Unravels Sigmund Freud's Complex Relationship With the Women in His Life and Work

"Women & Freud: Patients, Pioneers, Artists" spotlights the women who influenced the Austrian neurologist—and the field of psychoanalysis more broadly

The 300-carat necklace features 500 diamonds that likely came from India's Golconda mines.

See the Dazzling Diamond Necklace With Possible Ties to Marie Antoinette That Just Sold for $4.8 Million

Some of the gems may have featured in a royal scandal known as the "affair of the diamond necklace" that damaged the French queen’s reputation in 1785

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The Feminist Who Inspired the Witches of Oz

The untold story of suffragist Matilda Gage, the woman behind the curtain whose life story captivated her son-in-law L. Frank Baum as he wrote his classic novel

A dried sample of the original Penicillium mold that Fleming discovered in 1928.

The ‘Penicillin Girls’ Made One of the World’s Most Life-Saving Discoveries Possible

The true, forgotten and sometimes-stinky history of the cohort who took Alexander Fleming's innovation and forever changed the face of modern medicine

Harriet Tubman served in several roles in the Union Army, becoming the first American woman to oversee military action in a time of war.

Harriet Tubman Just Became a One-Star General, More Than 150 Years After Serving With the Union Army

The celebrated Underground Railroad conductor received posthumous recognition for her service as a spy, scout, nurse and cook during the Civil War

Medieval women’s lives were “more vibrant than people expect,” says lead curator Eleanor Jackson, “and [visitors] will be surprised by the sheer variety of roles” that they occupied in the fields of politics, religion and the arts.

These Rare Artifacts Tell Medieval Women's Stories in Their Own Words

A new exhibition at the British Library explores the public, private and spiritual lives of such figures as Joan of Arc, Christine de Pizan and Hildegard of Bingen

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The Enterprising Woman Who Built—and Lost, and Rebuilt—a Booming Empire During the Klondike Gold Rush

With flinty perseverance and a golden touch, Belinda Mulrooney earned an unlikely fortune in the frozen north and reshaped the Canadian frontier

 Portrait de Berthe Weill (Portrait of Berthe Weill), Émilie Charmy, 1910-14

This Art Dealer Paved the Way for Picasso, Matisse and Modigliani. So Why Haven't You Heard of Her?

A new exhibition in New York celebrates Berthe Weill, an often overlooked but visionary figure who jumpstarted the careers of many of modern art's giants

With its exquisitely vaulted ceiling and inlaid walnut bookshelves covering three floors, the East Room was designed as a treasury and showroom for Morgan's rare book collection.

This Savvy Librarian Was the True Force Behind New York’s Iconic Morgan Library

It fell to Belle da Costa Greene, a Black woman whose racial identity was kept secret for decades, to catalog J.P. Morgan's immense collection of books and art

A wall painting of a crowned woman with scepter (upper left), a procession of men behind her carrying objects (upper right) and a textile workshop (below)

See a Newly Uncovered Throne Room in Peru That May Have Belonged to an Ancient Queen

Built by the Moche people in the seventh century, the stunningly painted space shows signs of heavy use, including an eroded throne and traces of human hair

Kate Winslet as Lee Miller in Lee, a new film directed by Ellen Kuras

The Real Story Behind the 'Lee' Movie and Lee Miller, the Legendary Surrealist Photographer and World War II Journalist Who Inspired It

In a new biopic starring Kate Winslet, Miller's many lives—as an artist, model, muse, cook and war correspondent—need little embellishment

Sarah Emma Edmonds is often credited as one of the handful of hidden female fighters who participated in the Battle of Antietam. But her account doesn’t match up with the historical record.

This Female Civil War Soldier Participated in the Bloodiest Battle in American History and Spied on the South—or Did She?

Historians say that Sarah Emma Edmonds exaggerated many aspects of her wartime experiences. Still, she bravely served in the Union Army, becoming one of hundreds of women who fought in the conflict in secret

Stella Stimson, a suffragist and temperance crusader, led an all-women campaign to document fraud at the polls and bring down a corrupt mayor.

When a Trailblazing Suffragist and a Crusading Prosecutor Teamed Up to Expose an Election Conspiracy

An unlikely duo exposed political corruption in Terre Haute, Indiana, in 1914—and set a new precedent for fair voting across the country

Vice President Kamala Harris greets members of the sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha after speaking at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center on July 10, 2024 in Dallas, Texas

Discover the Special Meaning Behind Kamala Harris’ Pearls

The vice president, who will give a speech at the Democratic National Convention to accept the presidential nomination Thursday night, often wears jewelry connected to her historically Black sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha

Frustrated residents of Sheridan, Wyoming, coalesced around the idea of secession, allying with nearby communities to petition for their own state.

How the Great Depression Fueled a Grassroots Movement to Create a New State Called Absaroka

In the 1930s, disillusioned farmers and ranchers fought to carve a 49th state out of northern Wyoming, southeastern Montana and western South Dakota

In the first century B.C.E., Fulvia, Octavia and Cleopatra competed for Mark Antony's heart.

Who Were Cleopatra’s Rivals for Mark Antony's Love?

The Roman general’s third and fourth wives, Fulvia and Octavia, adopted varying strategies for luring their husband away from the queen of Egypt

The Dolphin Hotel is a historic structure dating in Southampton, England.

Inside the Controversial Plan to Turn a Hotel Where Jane Austen Attended Balls Into Student Dorms

Devoted readers are worried about the fate of the historic Dolphin Hotel in southern England

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