Women's History Stories
It's time to celebrate fascinating American women—many of whom have not gotten the attention they deserve. Women such as Reverend Dr. Anna Pauline “Pauli” Murray, the brilliant legal mind who co-founded the National Organization of Women and became an Episcopal saint. Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, the heiress who rebelled against her high-society upbringing to open a studio and encourage American artists. Jane Jacobs, the urban activist whose work presaged so many of our recent findings about the benefits of older buildings for cities. Madam C.J. Walker, a self-made millionaire who broke gender and racial barriers with her pioneering business models. Ann Pamela Cunningham, who brought Northern and Southern women together after the Civil War to save Mount Vernon, and who is effectively the American founder of the preservation movement. These are just a few of the remarkable women whose stories we at the National Trust strive to tell in recognition of women's role in American history. Explore their stories—and many more connected to women's history in the United States—through the stories and places below.
-
Preservation Magazine Author Willa Cather's Childhood Home Is Restored and Open for Tours -
Where Women Made History Hearing the Life, Artwork, and Environment of Artist Helen Torr -
Where Women Made History Women Deserve More Than Three Percent -
Backing Historic Small Restaurants The Mitla Cafe: Serving the San Bernardino Community for Generations -
African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund Threatt Filling Station: “Grandpa Would Be Proud … Because We Didn’t Give Up” -
Preservation Magazine An Ode to Home: Historic House and Garden Museum Honors Poet Anne Spencer -
African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund Baltimore Law Offices of Juanita Jackson Mitchell to Be Restored -
Preserve Route 66 The Matriarchs of the Mother Road -
Saving America's Historic Sites One Day in History: The Legacy of Aminah Robinson -
Preservation Magazine How Molly Lester Is Helping to Revive the Story of a Trailblazing Architect -
Where Women Made History Women’s Historians Honor Clara Barton at the Nation’s First Women’s History Site -
America's Chinatowns Community Spotlight: The Women of Boston's Chinatown
1 - 12 of 199 stories
The Mother Road turns 100 years old in 2026—share your Route 66 story to celebrate the Centennial. Together, we’ll tell the full American story of Route 66!
Share Your Story