Q: Known as “Moses,” this woman helped hundreds of slaves escape to freedom, led a band of scouts during the Civil War, and joined the women’s suffrage movement after the war.

A: Harriet Tubman was a runaway slave from Maryland who became known as the “Moses of her people.”  Between 1850 and 1858, she helped more than 300 slaves reach freedom.  She also became a leader in the abolitionist movement and during the Civil War she was a spy for the federal forces in South Carolina.  After the war, she became a major supporter of the women’s suffrage movement.

In 1990, President George H.W. Bush designated March 10th Harriet Tubman Day.

Q: Who was the first black woman elected to Congress?

A: Shirley Chisholm became the first black woman elected to Congress in 1968.  She served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1969-1982.  In 1972, she became the first major-party black candidate for President of the United States and the first woman to run for the Democratic presidential nomination.

A native New Yorker, Chisholm began a career in elementary education before being elected to the New York State Legislature in 1964.  In 1968 she was elected to the  U.S. House, representing New York’s 12th District congressional seat.  All of the staffers she hired for her officer were women and half of them were black.

During her presidential campaign, she survived three assassination attempts.  During the Democratic National Convention, she received 152 first-ballot votes for the nomination.

During her tenure in the U.S. House, Chisholm championed several issues including education, civil rights, aid for the poor and women’s rights.  She retired from Congress in 1982 and went back into education, teaching politics and women’s studies.

Q: Who was the first American First Lady to run for public office?

A: Hillary Rodham Clinton became the first American First Lady to run for public office when she entered — and won — the election for U.S. Senator for New York in 2000.  In the 2008 presidential election, Clinton was also a leading Democratic candidate, ending her run after losing a string of primaries in the spring.  She is currently U.S. Secretary of State.  In this capacity she travels extensively and undertakes diplomatic efforts as part of the Obama Administration.

Earlier this week she launched the “100 Women Initiative: Empowering Women and Girls through International Exchanges” to coincide with the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day.  As part of the initiative 100 women from 92 countries are participating in a three-week professional exchange program in the U.S.  Clinton is also on the current cover of Newsweek.

Q: Who was the original author of the first version of the Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution?

A: Alice Paul helped lead a successful campaign for women’s suffrage that resulted in the passage of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution.  Paul went to undergrad at Swarthmore College and went on to earn an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, her LL.B from the Washington College of Law and and LL.M and a Doctor in Civil Laws from American University.  In the midst of all of that, she joined the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA).

She later helped found the National Woman’s Party in 1916.  She wrote the first version of the proposed Equal Rights Amendment — also known as the Lucretia Mott Amendment — to the Constitution in 1923.  The ERA didn’t make it through the House and Senate until 1972.  After being passed by the Senate, the ERA needed 38 states to ratify it, but only 35 voted in favor by the June 30, 1982 deadline.  Efforts to pass an equality movement continue to this day, although nearly half of U.S. states have adopted the ERA into their constitutions.

Q: Who was the first black woman from a Southern state to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives?  Hint — she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994.

A: Barbara Jordan was the first African-American elected to the Texas Senate after reconstruction and the first Southern black woman ever elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.  In 1976, she became the first African-American woman to deliver the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention. Her speech is ranked 5th in Top 100 American Speeches of the 20th Century list and is considered by some historians to have been the best convention keynote address in modern history.  She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, among numerous other honors.

Q: Which First Lady arranged the planting of the 3,000 cherry trees that bloom every year in the Tidal Basin?

A: First Lady Helen Taft arranged for the planting of 3,000 Japanese cherry trees in the Tidal Basin in March, 1972.  She planted the first two trees and was joined by the wife of the Japanese ambassador.

A Cincinnati native, Helen Taft married William Howard Taft in 1886.  Mrs. Taft was a major champion of her husband’s political career.  Two months after Taft became president in 1909, Mrs. Taft suffered a stroke which impaired her speech.  She continued to entertain and served alcohol at White House events, even though prohibition was a major issue of the time.

Mrs. Taft died in 1943.  She is buried at Arlington National Cemetery next to her husband.  Her legacy lives on today in the thousands of cherry trees that blossom every spring.

Q: Who was the first known American woman to enlist in the Army?

A: Deborah Sampson Gannett enlisted in the Continental Army in 1778.  Because women were not able to enlist at the time, she disguised herself as man and used her brother’s name, “Robert Shurtliff.”  A tall and strong woman, Deborah wanted “to become one of the severest avengers of the wrong.”  She was chosen for the Light Infantry Company of the 4th Massachusetts Regiment.

Deborah fought in several skirmishes.  In the first, near Tarrytown, New York, she was injured by two musket balls in her thigh and a cut on her forehead.  She begged to be left on the battlefield to die, but was taken to a hospital where doctors treated the cut on her head.  She left before they could get to her other injury and discover her secret.  Deborah ended up removing one of the musket balls herself using a knife and sewing needle.  The other was too deep for her to extract.

Later, a doctor did end up discovering her secret while he was treating her for a fever, but he did not reveal her identity.  She was honorably discharged in 1783.  After her discharge, Deborah publicly revealed that she’d been in disguise.

Deborah went on to marry and have children but suffered many financial hardships.  Like many soldiers, she had difficulty obtaining the pension she was due and in 1790, she began working publicly to secure her pension.  She was aided by close friend Paul Revere.  She was placed on the pension list in 1805 and was ultimately able to secure a general service pension in 1821.

Q: Which woman was arrested and charged in 1872 because she had the audacity to vote in a presidential election?

A: Susan B. Anthony — a civil rights and women’s suffrage activist — was arrested in 1872 for voting (Serena & Nancy were right!).  On November 1st, she and her three sisters entered a Rochester, New York voter registration office and demanded they be registered.  When election officials refused them, Anthony quoted the Fourteenth Amendment which states that “all persons born and naturalized in the United States… are citizens….” and entitled to citizens’ privileges including, Anthony reasoned, the right to vote, regardless of gender.  When officials still refused her, Anthony threatened to sue them.  She was registered and four days later cast her ballot — a straight Republican ticket.

On November 18th, as U.S. deputy marshal arrived at Anthony’s home to arrest her.  She insisted that he put handcuffs on her before leading her out of the house.  Anthony was among a group of women arrested for voting earlier that month, along with the ballot inspectors who authorized their votes.

She was convicted seven months later after a trial in which the judge refused to allow her to testify or submit statements.  Conveniently, he also wrote his opinion of the trial before it even began, and he read that after her conviction, too.  The sentence was a $100 fine, which she never paid and the government never collected.  She used the publicity from the trial to spread her message.

Throughout Women’s History Month, The Women’s Foundation will be sharing facts, news and commentary about women and the important roles they’ve played in our communities — both yesterday and today.  Visit the blog every morning and check back again in the afternoon for new info!