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Women in American History

Women lead advancements in science, technology, politics, sports and activism—often fighting against inequity and opposition at every turn.

In this collection, explore films, interviews, articles, image galleries and more for an in-depth look at notable female figures in American history.

Watch Films

  • Zora Neale Hurston: Claiming a Space poster image Zora Neale Hurston: Claiming a Space
    Now streaming

    Zora Neale Hurston: Claiming a Space

    Meet the influential author and key figure of the Harlem Renaissance. Also a trained anthropologist, Hurston collected folklore throughout the South and Caribbean — reclaiming, honoring and celebrating Black life on its own terms.

  • The Vote poster image The Vote
    Film

    The Vote

    One hundred years after the passage of the 19th Amendment, The Vote tells the dramatic culmination story of the hard-fought campaign waged by American women for the right to vote, a transformative cultural and political movement that resulted in the largest expansion of voting rights in U.S. history.

  • The Codebreaker poster image The Codebreaker
    Film

    The Codebreaker

    Discover the fascinating story of Elizebeth Smith Friedman, the groundbreaking cryptanalyst who helped bring down gangsters and break up a Nazi spy ring in South America. Her work helped lay the foundation for modern codebreaking today.

  • Voice of Freedom poster image Voice of Freedom
    Film

    Voice of Freedom

    Explore the life of singer Marian Anderson and her triumphant 1939 concert at the Lincoln Memorial.

  • Sandra Day O'Connor: The First poster image Sandra Day O'Connor: The First
    Film

    Sandra Day O'Connor: The First

    Discover the story of the Supreme Court’s first female justice. A pioneer who both reflected and shaped an era, she was the deciding vote in cases on some of the 20th century’s most controversial issues—including race, gender and reproductive rights.

  • Annie Oakley poster image Annie Oakley
    Film

    Annie Oakley

    As the star attraction of Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, Annie Oakley thrilled audiences around the world with her shooting feats.

Digital Shorts

Past Forward

  •  poster image Clip
    Clip

    Command & Control: The Uterus

    Professor of Law Renée Landers and Professor of Law and Theology Cathleen Kaveny speak with Historian Adriane Lentz-Smith about the history of reproductive rights and future of bodily autonomy in a post Roe v. Wade America.

  •  poster image Clip
    The Codebreaker | Clip

    Breaking the Code

    Author Jason Fagone and CODE-EQUAL co-founders Valeria and Kyara Torres-Olivares speak with professor Adriane Lentz-Smith about pioneering women in STEM—from Elizebeth Smith Friedman, to groups like CODE-EQUAL.

  •  poster image Clip
    Voice of Freedom | Clip

    The Power and Resilience of Black Women

    Opera singer Angela Brown and professor Kira Thurman speak with professor Jessica Marie Johnson about the excellence and power of Black women as they navigate and conquer traditionally white spaces and industries.

  •  poster image Clip
    Test Tube Babies | Clip

    Fertility Science

    Fertility rights advocate and America’s first IVF baby Elizabeth Carr, and university professor at Rutgers University Margaret Marsh speak with historian Monica Muñoz Martinez about the evolution of fertility science—from a niche opportunity to an accepted norm.

Articles

Explore

  •  poster image Interactive
    The Vote | Interactive

    She Resisted: Strategies of Suffrage

    Celebrate the strategies and tactics of the movement in a new interactive experience.

     

  •  poster image Article
    Article

    Helen Keller's Bookshelf

    Dorothy Herrmann, author of Helen Keller: A Life, tells us about the writer and activist’s passion for philosophy, love of Walt Whitman, and devotion to the work of a Swedish theologian.

  •  poster image Image Gallery
    The Vote | Image Gallery

    Suffragist Gender Benders

    A Browse through our selection of historical images of notable gender non-conforming suffragists.