The Famous Firsts: Women of the Past Who Shaped the Opportunities of Today.

Written by WIN Staff

As far as history goes, there is no better time than today to be a woman – especially if your birthplace happens to be the United States. One only need to look at the faces of the newly elected women in congress, or watch the Academy Awards last month to realize that we have come a very long way.  We are raising our daughters with the conviction that they can be whomever they want to be and do whatever they choose to do. They only need to step onto the ladder and start climbing.  But it’s worth remembering that the only reason this ladder is even available to us is because of all the women who came before us, and trail-blazed the path, chipping away at those walls and barriers that for centuries held us back… let’s call these women the Famous Firsts.  

In honor of International Women's Day here are 10 famous firsts we would like to acknowledge and applaud!

Famous Firsts:

1.   Raymonde De Laroche - First woman to get a pilot license

A French born actress, Raymonde De Larcohe, quit her acting career to learn to fly.  She received her pilot license in 1910 from the Aeronautics Federation by the Aero-Club of France, making her the first female pilot in the world.  If you ever visited the Le Bourget Airport in Paris you can find a statue of Raymonde commemorating her accomplishments and the groundbreaking role she played for women.

2.   Joan Benoit - First female olympic marathon winner

Joan Benoit is a true example of perseverance.  After breaking numerous marathon records she injured her knee while training for the very first women’s Olympic marathon trials.  Only 17 days after getting surgery, she ran and won the Olympic trial runs.  Later that year, in 1984 she took home the gold with a time of 2:24:52.

3.   Emeline Roberts Jones - First female dentist in the USA

In 1855, Emeline Roberts Jones was met with resistance when she expressed her interest in her husband’s dentistry practice.  She was told that women’s hands were too frail and clumsy to do dentistry work.  But that did not stop her.  She secretly filled and extracted several hundred teeth before her husband realized her ability and allowed her to become a partner in his practice.  In 1914, the National Dental Association made her an honorary member.

4.   Mary Kies - First woman to receive a U.S. patent

The Patent Act of 1790 allowed women and men to legally own their inventions. In certain states women weren’t allowed to own property so therefore none of them bothered to patent their inventions.  It wasn’t until 1809 when Mary Kies patented her unique technique for weaving straw with silk and thread, making her the first woman to receive a U.S. Patent. Although she wasn’t the first to improve the hat making industry, she paved the way for women to protect their intellectual property.

 5.   Katharine Graham - First female CEO of a Fortune 500 company (The Washington Post)

As re-told in the Oscar nominated film, The Post, Katharine became CEO of the Washington Post in 1959, after her husband passed away. Despite everyone’s low expectations of a female CEO, the Washington Post’s revenue rose by over 1 billion dollars, making her a true legend in the publishing industry.

 6.   Alaska P. Davidson - First female FBI Special Agent

On October 11, 1922, Alaska Davidson was appointed special agent of the FBI. She was 54 years old and the first ever female FBI agent. She was an agent for less than two years when a new director asked her to resign because there was “no particular work for female agents.” Although her service was short she challenged ageism and gender inequality. 

7. Sharon Pratt Dixon- First woman to serve as Mayor of Washington DC 

Sharon Platt Dixon welcomed the challenge of being mayor of Washington DC in 1991.   Despite running against three opponents with larger name recognition, she won the vote by 86 percent.  She not only became the first female mayor in Washington DC, she was also the first African American woman to serve as a mayor of a major American city.

8.   Kathryn Bigelow – First woman to win an Oscar for Best Director 

In 2010, Bigelow’s film, “The Hurt Locker,” won 6 Academy Awards.  She was the first female winner and only the 4th woman nominated in the 82 year history of the Oscars.

 9.   Muriel “Mickey” Siebert - First woman to own a seat on the New York Stock Exchange

For 10 years she was the only female among over 1000 men after purchasing her seat at the NYSE in 1967.  She was the first woman to own and run a brokerage firm that was owned by the NYSE.  It was called Muriel & Co. now renamed as Siebert Financial Corp.  She is referred to as the first woman of finance.

10. Sarah Breedlove - First female self-made millionaire

Also known as Madam C.J. Walker, this African American entrepreneur started from poverty in the south and died the richest self-made woman in America at that time in 1919.  How did she do it?  She became a sales agent selling a product called, “The Great Wonderful Hair Grower.” She hustled and with $1.25 she opened her own company.  Her company supplied her own line of hair products and straighteners specific to the African American woman, called Madam Walker’s Wonderful Hair Grower.  She eventually opened a factory and employed over 40,000 African American men and women.