Monday – March 1
March is Women’s History Month. Since many of the women's suffrage centennial celebrations originally scheduled for 2020 were curtailed, the National Women's History Alliance is extending the annual theme for 2021 to "Valiant Women of the Vote: Refusing to Be Silenced. Each day during the month of March you will learn about a woman who has made a difference and many of them were involved in the fight for the right of women to vote.
Since February was Black History Month, it seems appropriate this week to focus on women of color who made a significant impact on history and Phillis Wheatley is one of those women. Phillis was captured in Africa and transported to America in 1761. She was purchased by the Wheatley family and became the personal servant of Mrs. Wheatley. The family recognized her intelligence and began nurturing it. Phills began writing and her first book of poems was published in 1773. She corresponded with important men of the times and even traveled to England. She was emancipated in 1767 but struggled financially and lived in poverty for the rest of her short life. Her work was so powerful that the abolitionists used it as an example of the intelligence and promise of black people.
Tomorrow we will learn about Sojourner Truth.
March 2
Today’s historic woman of color is Sojourner Truth. She was born a slave under the name of Isabella Baumfree in upstate New York and was due her freedom in 1827, but her owner planned to keep her enslaved, so she ran away with her infant daughter leaving her son behind. She later filed a court case saying her son had been sold illegally. She became one of the first black women to file a court case in America and she won. In 1843 she changed her name to Sojourner Truth and became a preacher. She traveled the country sharing her message of women’s rights and the abolishment of slavery. Her most famous speech was entitled “Ain’t I a Woman?” She continued to fight for women’s rights until her death in 1883.
Tomorrow we will learn about Harriet Tubman.
March 3
In honor of Women’s History Month, today’s famous woman is Harriet Tubman. She was born into slavery and was fortunate to remain united with her parents throughout her youth. When she was 15, she was hit in the head with an iron weight and suffered from narcolepsy which caused her to fall asleep at random times. She ran away so her owners would not discover her condition. Starting in 1849 and working for 11 years, she returned to the South 13 times and lead more than 70 men, women, and children to safety via the Underground Railroad. During the Civil War she served as an army nurse and spy for the North. She lived in poverty for the rest of her life and donated her time, money, and property to people in need. In the future, her picture is going to be on the $20 bill making her the first woman on the front of US paper currency.
Tomorrow we will learn about Rebecca Lee Crumpler.
March 4
Today’s famous woman is Rebecca Lee Crumpler. She was born in 1831 and raised by her aunt in Pennsylvania. As a young woman of color, she attended a private school in Massachusetts and went to work as a nurse for 8 years. In 1860 she applied to an all-white medical school, the New England Female Medical College. She was accepted and graduated in 1864 as the 1st African American woman physician. She practiced in Boston specializing in the care of women and children. After the Civil War, she went to Richmond, Virginia, and worked with the Freedmen’s Bureau treating former slaves. Rebecca spent her life caring for others, especially women and children and published what may have been the first medical article by a black woman, a two-part text titled A Book of Medical Discourse.
Tomorrow we will learn about Mary Bowser.
March 5
Our famous woman today is Mary Bowser. Very little is recorded about her life. We know that she was born into slavery in Richmond, Virginia, around 1840. She was purchased by the Van Lew family as a companion for their daughter, Elizabeth. The Van Lews were Northern spies and abolitionists involved in the Underground Railroad. Elizabeth granted Mary her freedom and arranged for her to receive her education in Philadelphia. After that Mary wanted to assist the Van Lews in their efforts against the Confederacy so she became a slave spy in Jefferson Davis’s Confederate White House and passed on information about troop movements and army plans to Elizabeth. After the war, Mary educated freed slaves and traveled around the country giving speeches under a variety of aliases. Eventually she disappeared completely. In 1995 she was inducted into the Military Intelligence Hall of Fame.
