1. Dorothy Kilgallen - I just came across Kilgallen's name on a random podcast but was surprised I hadn't heard anything about her before. She was a reporter who had her own column in 1938 and covered theater and gossip as well as organized crime and politics. She also covered the Sam Sheppard trial as well as the Kennedy assassination as well as appearing on What's My Line. She died at the age 52 under what some believe are mysterious circumstances. I've had a hard time finding books on her but there are a number of online rabbit holes to fall through.
2. Nellie Bly - Another reporter but Nellie is a little earlier. Her work on how the mentally ill were treated is shocking and incredibly brave and she also travelled around the world and wrote a book about her experience. I'd like to read her own work as well as Nellie Bly: Daredevil, Reporter, Feminist by Brooke Kroeger.
3. Lillian Moller Gilbreth - She's better known as the mother from Cheaper by the Dozen but Lillian Gilbreth was a fascinating person in her own right. Left on her own to run the business she and her husband had started as well as support 11 children on her own and send them all the to college she pioneered amazing changes in the field of industrial engineering and every time we cook a meal in a modern day kitchen where we only have to take a few steps to reach what we need we have Gilbreth herself to thank. I'd really like to read Making Time: Lillian Moller Gilbreth - A Life Beyond Cheaper by the Dozen by Jane Lancaster.
4. Princess Charlotte of Wales - I was vaguely aware of her existence but became fascinated by her when she appeared in Murder in Bowery by Victoria Thompson. I haven't found any books on her but I'm still looking!
5. Emily Post - Until I heard a History Chicks podcast about her I kind of assumed she was a Betty Crocker style fictional character. Instead she was a super fascinating woman in her own right. I found Emily Post: Daughter of the Gilded Age, Mistress of American Manners by Laura Claridge.
6. Hedy Lamarr - I've seen several movies starring Heddy Lamarr and she was a stunning woman and a fantastic actress but she was also a brilliant inventor. I have Beautiful: The Life of Heddy Lamarr by Stephen Michael Shearer on my TBR.
7. Theodosia Burr - Aaron Burr is a rather famous name but I really didn't know anything about his well educated and rather tragic daughter who was lost at sea at the age of 29. I thought I'd try Theodosia Burr Alston by Richard N. Cote
8. Louisa Catherine Johnson Adams - She's the wife of John Quincy Adams and was one of two first ladies to have her mother-in-law be first lady too as well as being one of two first ladies to be born outside the US. I can't imagine how difficult it must have been to be an outsider marrying into the incredibly intimidating Adams clan. I'd like to read Louisa Catherine: The Other Mrs. Adams by Margery M. Heffron.
9. Alice Roosevelt Longworth - She's a name I've come across a few times and I'm about to start a historical mystery with Alice as the main character which has made me curious about the real woman. I'd like to give Hissing Cousins: The Untold Story of Eleanor Roosevelt and Alice Roosevelt Longworth by Marc Peyser and Timothy Dwyer a try.
10. Lillian Bland - I heard about her on a Stuff You Missed in History Class podcast and she sounds absolutely fascinating. She was a journalist and aviatrix who also designed and built her own plane. She sounds fascinating but I haven't been able to find any books about her.
Have you read anything about these women? Who would you like to learn morea bout?
Have you read anything about these women? Who would you like to learn morea bout?
Great topic! Thse all sound like fascinating women who deserve to have their stories told, I especially think Nelli Bly sounds interesting because of the mental health angle.
ReplyDeleteI also really like The HIstory Chicks, but I haven't listened to their podcast in a long time. I really need to get back to it. I am definitely curious about some of these women, and some I haven't heard of!
ReplyDeleteI love the new focus on women and their impact on history. There are so many unsung females who need to be given their due.
ReplyDeleteThis is a cool idea for a post! I definitely recognize some of these names from the History Chicks podcast ;)
ReplyDeleteI love this post idea. I would mine reading more about Alice Longworth Roosevelt.
ReplyDeleteMay I suggest Kilgallen by Lee Israel, Alice by Howard Teichmann and Ecstasy and Me, My Life as a Woman by Hedy Lamarr They are probably out of print but should be easy to find used. Enjoy
ReplyDeleteI like this topic. I remember reading comparisons on Charlotte to the late Princess Diana. Both died young and the nation grieved deeply. I'd like to know more about Dorothy Kilgallen for sure.
ReplyDeleteGuess what - I just found out I won a copy of the last book in the Daughters of Ireland series by Santa Montefiore. I am very excited to see this trilogy through. Will let you know what I think.
That's great how there are podcasts that educate the world on things that aren't covered by the standard books and classes.
ReplyDeleteI admit I was curious about Stranger Things with all of the publicity it has out there. We pay for Hulu/Roku and hardly use it. I have all of these shows marked to try out but I'm usually here on the laptop. I do like knitting on the couch better because I have more support for my back.
I have tried Sabrina Jeffries and Laura Lee Guhrke. Jeffries, I liked her Hellions of...series but my library only carried so many of the books. I'll check again. I had given one of Guhrke's book 3 stars but didn't copy/paste my review so I guess I'll have to give more of her books a try.
What a fabulous post, Katherine! As luck would have it, BBC Radio 4 had a fascinating programme on Hedy Lamarr that I recently heard - it was talking about how her inventions were overlooked because of her acting career and appearance and how torn she was. On one hand, she resented the fact that her beauty undermined her evident intelligence and creative mind - on the other, she basked in the power it gave her over both men and women... Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI solidly knew about four of them and mildly knew about two others. One of my great aunts had the Emily Post manners guide at her house when I was younger. I would love to read more about The Cheaper by the Dozen mom. This was a primo post! :D
ReplyDeleteI've only heard of a few of these ladies. Sad. I've always been fascinated by Nellie Bly though, so she's someone I would definitely want to read more about.
ReplyDeleteo i love this! Checking these podcasts out too! My TTT
ReplyDeleteGreat list, Katherine! So many great women we all should know more about. Nellie Bly/Elizabeth Cochrane Seaman has long been a favorite of mine. I did a report on her in elementary school even. LOL
ReplyDeleteWhat a great list - I'm going to have to check out a lot of these, too. I'm always finding new people to learn about from the History Chicks and Stuff You Missed In History Class, too.
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