Forgotten Females

Did you know: 100 years ago women’s right to vote came to fruition with the passing of the 19th Amendment! Of all years, this year in particular it seems especially important for women to use this right.

Two years ago, in honor of Women’s History Month, I tweeted a series of posts about Forgotten Females of History. I’d like to share those posts again here, collected together, for those who are interested…

Anna Katharine Green

Before Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers, nine years before Arthur Conan Doyle’s infamous Sherlock Holmes, there was a female author of American detective fiction whose stories were so clever and well-informed that when they were published people didn’t believe they could have been written by a woman. This was Anna Katharine Green. Her character Miss Amelia Butterworth would inspire Christie’s creation, Miss Marple, and her novel The Forsaken Inn was the first historical mystery. My favorite novels include The Leavenworth Case and That Affair Next Door.

Mother Joseph of Sacred Heart

Spokane was in need of a real hospital, and Mother Joseph was the nun to lead the charge. After traveling across country collecting donations for the endeavor, she bought the necessary land, oversaw construction, maintained high standards, and succeeded in delivering “one of the most perfect buildings from the point of utility ever constructed” (Spokane Falls Review). Mother Joseph is inspirational in her determination and belief that God would provide—just look at what she accomplished!

May Arkwright Hutton

Amongst the leaders of the suffragette movement, May Arkwright Hutton should be remembered for influencing not one but two states’ decisions to give women the vote: Idaho in 1896 and Washington in 1910. A highly educated, articulate woman, she was known for her speeches, political persuasion, and persistence.

Elizebeth Friedman

Over the course of two world wars, Elizebeth Smith Friedman used her incredible skills in cryptology in support of Allied Forces against the Nazis, including the cracking of multiple versions of the Enigma machine. An expert in Shakespeare, her language skills became valuable in the new field of code-breaking. Although her husband went down in history as the father of cryptology, Elizebeth’s skills—which were just as, if not more, skilled than her husband’s—were forgotten… If you’d like to learn more about her I strongly recommend The Woman Who Smashed Codes by Jason Fagone.