Women's History Calendar

December Highlights in US Women's History

Dec 10, 1869 - Wyoming is the first territory to give women the vote
Dec 5, 1935 - Mary McLeod Bethune creates National Council of Negro Women in Washington, DC
Dec 10, 1938 - Pearl S. Buck is the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature
Dec 7, 1941 - Capt. Annie Fox receives the first Purple Heart awarded to a nurse for her service under attack at Pearl Harbor
Dec 14, 1961 - President's Commission on the Status of Women established to examine discrimination against women and ways to eliminate it
Dec 28, 1967 - Muriel Siebert becomes the first woman to own a seat on the NY Stock Exchange
Dec 19, 1974 - The National Assn. of Women Business Owners is incorporated in Washington, DC
Dec 14, 1985 - Wilma Mankiller is sworn in as principal chief of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma - the first woman in modern history to lead a major Native American tribe
Dec 13, 1993 - Susan A. Maxman becomes first woman president of the American Institute of Architects in its 135 year history
Dec 17, 1993 - Judith Rodin is named president of Univ. of Pennsylvania, the first woman to head an Ivy League institution

December Birthdays

Dec 1, 1830 (1886) - Emily Dickinson - one of America's most famous and prolific poets
Dec 3, 1842 (1911) - Ellen Swallow Richards - First woman to graduate from MIT, 1873; recognized as the creator of the fields of ecology and home economics; founder of Association of Collegiate Alumnae which became the American Assn. of University Women
Dec 6, 1927 (2002) - Patsy Mink - First Japanese-American Congresswoman; wrote the Women's Educational Equity Act; played a key role in the enactment of Title IX which was renamed posthumously as the "Patsy Takemoto Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act."
Dec 9, 1906 (1992) - Rear Admiral Grace Murray Hopper - pioneering computer scientist who invented the compiler and co-invented COBOL programming language
Dec 14, 1897 (1995) - Margaret Chase Smith - First woman elected to both houses of Congress, serving 8 years in the House of Representatives and 24 in the Senate; first in Senate to challenge Senator Joseph McCarthy's anti-communist crusade
Dec 16, 1901 (1978) - Margaret Mead - Anthropologist; one of the most renowned social scientists of the 20th century
Dec 21, 1959 (1998) - Florence Griffith Joyner - Olympic track and field champion winning 3 gold medals and one silver at 1988 Summer games
Dec 22, 1912 - "Lady Bird" Taylor Johnson - First Lady, 1963-1969; expanded role of first lady by actively campaigning for husband; led efforts to conserve natural resources and beautify nation
Dec 23, 1867 (1919) - Sarah "Madam C.J." Walker - Entrepreneur; philanthropist; first African American woman millionaire and first American self-made woman millionaire; revolutionized hair care and cosmetics industry in early 20th century
Dec 25, 1821 (1912) - Clara Barton - Founder and president of American Red Cross, 1881-1904
Dec 26, 1954 - Susan Butcher - Sled dog racer; four time winner of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race