On This Day in Herstory, November 11th 1865, Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, an American abolitionist, prohibitionist, prisoner of war, doctor, and the first US Army female surgeon, was the first woman awarded the Medal of Honor. To date, she is the only woman to have been given the military decoration; 1 woman and 3,521 men have received this award.
Dr. Mary Edwards Walker was born November 26th 1832 in Oswego, New York; she and her siblings were raised in a very progressive manner for the time. She was very well educated, and from a young age she would read her father’s medical texts; this interest lead to her enrollment and graduation from Syracuse Medical College, she was the only woman in her class. She married a fellow medical student, Albert Miller, just before she turned 23. Her wedding defied tradition, she wore a short skirt with trousers underneath, would not include the word “obey” in her vows, and she retained her last name. The couple set up a medical practice in Rome, New York, but had little success, as female doctors were not trusted at the time. She and Miller later divorced due to his infidelity.
In 1861 with the start of the American Civil War, Walker volunteered as a nurse, working as the Patent Office Hospital in Washington, D.C.; she then began to work in the battlefields, in tent hospitals. In fall 1863 she was appointed assistant surgeon in the Army of the Cumberland. Unfortunately, not too long after, in April 1864 she was captured and imprisoned by the Confederate Army; and was released in August of that year. Shortly after her release she received a contract as an “acting assistant surgeon,” and began supervision a hospital for women prisoners and then an orphanage. She retired from her government service in June 1865, and on November 11th of that year she was awarded the Medal of Honor for Meritorious, in recognition of her courageous war efforts. Today, 153 years later, Walker remains the only female Medal of Honor recipient.
After the Civil War, Walker lectured on issues such as dress reforms and women’s suffrage. She became infamous for her objections to a traditional female wardrobe. She wrote in 1871, “The greatest sorrows from which women suffer to-day are those physical, moral, and mental ones, that are caused by their unhygienic manner of dressing!” She strongly disagreed with long skirts and petticoats, not just for their discomfort and the wearer’s limited mobility, but also for their collection and spreading of dust and dirt. By 1861 her regular ensemble was trousers with suspenders under a knee-length dress with a tight waist and a full skirt. She believed that women’s clothes should “protect the person, and allow freedom of motion and circulation, and not make the wearer a slave to it.” In February 1870 Walker was arrested in New Orleans and mocked by the police because she was dressed “like a man.” The arresting officer twisted her arm and asked her is she had ever had sex with a man. She was released from custody when she was recognized at Police Court.
Regrettably, in 1917 the U.S. government changed the criteria for the Medal of Honor and withdrew Walker’s medal, though she continued to wear it. She died two years later on February 21st 1919. 60 years after her death in 1977, Walker’s Medal of Honor was posthumously restored.
On This Day in Herstory, November 11th 1886, Alice Huyler Ramsey, the first woman to drive across the United States from coast to coast, was born in New Barbadoes Township, New Jersey.
Alice, born Alice Taylor Huyer, was the daughter of John Edwin Huyler, a lumber dealer, and Ada Mumford Farr. From 1903 to 1905 she attended Vassar College. In January 1906, she married John R. Ramsey, a congressman 24 years her senior, in Hackensack, New Jersey. Together the couple had two children. In 1908 John bought Alice a new Maxwell Runabout. That summer she drover more than 6,000 miles around the New England area. In September 1908, the same year she receiver her car, she drove one of the three Maxwells that were entered in that year’s American Automobile Association’s (AAA) Montauk Point endurance race. She was one of only two women to participate in the event. It was at the event that it was first proposed that Alice attempt a transcontinental journey by car, a fete never before accomplished by a woman. It was arranged that she would have the backing of Maxwell-Briscoe, who supplied her with a 1909 tour car and as many parts as she needed. This drive was originally organised as a publicity stunt for Maxwell-Briscoe, who marketed their cars specifically at women; who at the time were not often encouraged to drive.
On June 9th 1909, at only 22 years old, Alice set off on a 3,800 mile car journey; she was accompanied by two of her sisters-in-law and one of her friends, none of whom knew how to drive. The women started from Hell Gate in Manhattan, New York, in a green, four-cylinder, 30-horsepower Maxwell DA. The trip took 59 days, and on August 7th they arrived in San Francisco, California to much fanfare, though the arrived about three weeks later than had originally been planned. The women navigated the entire journey themselves using a few maps, but mostly using telephone poles, following the poles with more wires with the hope it would lead to a town. Only 152 miles of the 3,800 mile trip was on paved road, which lead to several problems. Over the course of the trip Alice had to change 11 tires, clean all the spark plugs several times, repair a broken brake pedal, and sleep in the car whenever it got too stuck in the mud. Additionally, on their journey the women crossed the trail of a manhunt looking for a murderer in Nebraska, got bed bugs, and at one point found themselves driving in the middle of a Native American hunting party.
Alice loved the adventure so much that between 1909 and 1975 she drove across the country over 30 times. In 1960 she was named the “Woman Motorist of the Century” by AAA, and in 1961 she wrote and published the story of her first trip, Veil, Duster, and Tire Iron. Alice went on to lead a very full life, when her husband died in 1933 she lived with Anna Graham Harris in New Jersey and later California until Anna’s death in 1953. Alice then lived with Elizabeth Elliott from 1968 until September 10th 1983, when Alice Huyler Ramsey died in Covina, California. On October 17th 2000, Alice became the first woman inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame.
On This Day in Herstory, September 12th 1910, Alice Stebbins Wells was sworn in as the first female police officer; she was given the keys to the telephone box, a police rule book, a badge, full powers of arrest, but not a gun.
Wells graduated from the Hartford Theological Seminary, where she conducted a study that proved these was a genuine need for female police officer; and after a substantial amount of campaigning, Wells became the first policewoman, and was classified under civil service, “purity squad”, and not required to wear a uniform. Prior to this, police departments had only employed female officers to care for female prisoners. Wells, however, was a full police officer and was issued badge #398; when she attempted to used this badge for a free trolley ride she was accused of abusing her husbands powers, and so she was issued “Policewoman’s Badge Number One”.
Since she was considered by many to not be of the same caliber as typical officers, Wells was responsible for sewing her own uniforms, which were floor-length dresses and a jacket. Many considered Wells an officer in name only, and much of her duties were less urgent than other officers, like chaperoning dances and monitoring skating rinks. Finally, two years after Wells joined the force, women became more of a force to be reckoned with, as two additional woman joined the LAPD, and 16 other women became police officers across the United States.
Wells went on to found and be the first president of the International Policewomen’s Association. Throughout her life and career she advocated for the need for more female officers, so women would feel more comfortable using police services. Wells also went on to found, and be president of, the LA Social Hygiene Society that promoted sex education in LA.
On This Day in Herstory, August 29th 1926, Helene Ahrweiler, a Greek academic and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Greece, was born in Athens, Greece.
After finishing high school Ahrweiler, the daughter of refugees from Asia Minor, went on to study History and Archaeology at the University of Athens. From there she moved to Paris and earned degrees in History and Classics, and in 1960 she completed her first PhD in History from the University of Sorbonne. By 1966 she had completed her second PhD in Philology, the study of structure and historical developments of languages; and just one year later she became a professor at the Sorbonne.
From here, her career developed rapidly; from 1970-1973 she was Deputy Principal of the Sorbonne, and she was Principal of the Sorbonne from 1976-1981. Ahrweiler was the first woman to ever hold this position in the history of the Sorbonne, and she was the first woman ever to hold the post of Principal at a world-renowned University. In 1982 the French President named her as Rector to the Academy of Paris, and Chancellor of the Universities of Paris.
Ahrweiler was also named Principal of the University of Europe in Paris, President of the Ethics Committee of the National Centre of Scientific Research in France, and Honorary President of the International Committee of Byzantine Studies. Additionally, the President of France offered her the Medal of the Battalion Commander of the Legion of Honor, this is one of the highest awards in France.
Throughout her studies and career, she was also the recipient of several Honorary Doctorates from Universities all over the world. As well, in 2008 she was named one of the 100 Greatest Greeks of all time.
On This Day in Herstory, August 25th 1804, at York Racecourse in York, England, Alicia Thornton became the first female jockey.
Thornton was the first female jockey ever recorded, and she rode two races against men, both in the August Races at York Racecourse. The first race was on this day in 1804, and it was run over four miles with over 100,000 spectators. Thornton ran against Mr. Flint, who was allegedly her brother-in-law. She rode the race side-saddle and was in the lead for the first three miles of the race. In the final mile of the race Thornton’s horse fell lame, and Flint won the race very easily.
The second race was run a year later, on August 24th 1805. This race was Alicia Thornton against Frank Buckle, and again Thornton rode side-saddle. Buckle was in the lead for the first few lengths of the race, but Thornton ultimately won by half a neck. Thornton’s win was hailed by the thousands of onlookers who gathered to watch her race again.
Even though the race was quite well covered for the time, there is not a lot known about Alicia Thornton, even her name is up for debate. In some reports she is listed as Alicia Meynell (often confused with the famous poet Alice Meynell), but she is also referred to as Mrs Thornton, Alicia Massingham, or Mrs T. In one report of the first race, Thornton is reported as being 22 years old, and as being the daughter of a Norwich watchmaker called Meynell. However, there is no record of any watchmaker in or around Norwich at the time. It can be assumed that Thornton is from near Yorkshire, and one report called Mr. Flint her brother-in-law. There is no evidence that anyone named Alicia was married to her reported husband Colonel Thornton, and Colonel Thornton was married in 1806 just one year after ‘Alicia Thornton’s’ second race. It is possible that Thornton died after her second race, which can be one of the reasons she fell out of the public eye, but surely someone of such notoriety would have earned an obituary. We may never know whoexactly the first female jockey was, but on this day, she made herstory.
