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Helen Avalynne Gibson Tawes
First Lady of Maryland 1959-1967 |
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Martha Murphy
Started in 1892 by Martha Murphy and her husband in 1922, The Afro was the nation’s largest black-owned
newspaper. Elizabeth Murphy Moss and her family ran the newspaper with her serving as vice-president and
treasurer for the newspaper chain. |
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Rebecca Hoffberger
Founded and directed by Maryland leader in the arts, Rebecca Hoffberger, the American Visionary Art Museum opened its doors in 1995. Ms. Hoffberger created a place where the best self-taught artists are recognized and their work explored. |
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Bessie Olive Cole
Bessie Olive Cole was one of the pioneering women pharmacists
in Maryland, earning her degree in 1913. She has been called the “First Lady of Pharmacy in Maryland.” She served as a professor and secretary of the faculty at the School of Pharmacy at the University of Maryland for 27 years. |
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Billie Holiday
Known as “Lady Day,” Billie Holiday is one of the greatest
jazz and blues singers of all times. As noted in her autobiography, Billie faced not only racism as an African American, but also sexism in the once male-dominated world of jazz. She performed in nightclubs and made numerous record albums during her career. |
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Lillie Carroll Jackson
Lillie Carroll Jackson was one of the front-runners who not only dedicated her time as a volunteer, but she also served as president of the Baltimore Branch from 1935 until 1970. She was also the founder of the Maryland State Conference of the NAACP and other organized branches throughout the state. |
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Henrietta Szold
Henrietta Szold is known as the pioneering Zionist who founded the Russian Night School in Baltimore to teach Eastern European immigrants (the first adult education program), as well as Hadassah, the women’s Zionist organization. |
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Admiral Grace Hopper
Rear Admiral Grace Murray Hopper was an American computer scientist and United States Navy officer. A pioneer in the field, she was one of the first programmers of the Harvard Mark I calculator, and she developed the first compiler for a computer programming language |
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Harriet Tubman
Harriet Tubman's life was a monument to courage and determination that continues to stand out in American history. Born into slavery in Maryland, Harriet Tubman freed herself, and played a major role in freeing the remaining millions. After the Civil War, she joined her family in Auburn, NY, where she founded the Harriet Tubman Home |
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Mary Katherine Goddard
Mary Katherine Goddard was a pioneer among women in Baltimore town in the era of the American Revolution. She was a newspaper editor determined to publish the truth as well as a fighter for the right of women to pursue a career. She published the first signed copy of the Declaration of Independence |
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Dr. Helen Brooke Taussig
Helen Brooke Taussig, M.D., (May 24, 1898 - May 20, 1986) was an American cardiologist, working in Baltimore and Boston, who founded the field of pediatric cardiology. Notably, she helped develop the Blalock-Taussig shunt in cooperation with Dr. Alfred Blalock and Vivien Thomas, to treat blue baby syndrome. |
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Margaret Brent
Margaret Brent was the first North American feminist. A British noblewoman, she settled in Maryland in 1638, and became one of its most notable business persons, lawyers and entrepreneurs. She fought for the right to vote as a woman in 1648. |
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Mary Lemist Titcomb
Mary Lemist Titcomb was a thought leader in Library and Information Science. She founded the bookmobile, bringing literacy to rural communities in Maryland. |
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Mary Young Pickersgill
Mary Young Pickersgill is the flagmaker of the famous banner hoisted over Fort McHenry during the Battle of Baltimore in the War of 1812. Major George Armistead, commander of the forces at Fort McHenry, commissioned Mrs. Pickersgill to sew a flag "so large that the British will have no difficulty seeing it from a distance." |
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Anna Ella Carroll
Anna Ella Carroll, who contributed to the Union victory in the Civil War, was a writer of books, pamphlets, and articles on the state of American politics. She was also involved in espionage activities for the Union, which attracted the attention of President Lincoln. |
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Frances Watkins Harper
Frances Watkins Harper became a teacher, an anti-slavery activist, and a writer and poet. She was also an advocate of women's rights and was a member of the American Woman Suffrage Association. She published some of the first African American poetry in the U.S. |
