Her Half of History

Amelia Earhart was famous as the first woman to fly across the Atlantic (first as a passenger, second as a pilot). She was also the first person to fly from Hawaii to California, as well as any number of other piloting firsts. Sadly, her last grand adventure didn't end in success. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. Sign up for the newsletter...

The words of "America the Beautiful" were written by Katharine Lee Bates after a trip from Massachusetts to Colorado and up to the top of Pike's Peak. This is the story of how they were written and how they became so popular. It's a holiday bonus episode to celebrate the 250th birthday of the United States of America. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and...

Traditional histories give President Franklin Delano Roosevelt a lot of credit for guiding the United States out of the Great Depression. But his best move may have been appointing the first woman ever to join a presidential cabinet. As Secretary of Labor, Frances Perkins won victories on public works for increased employment, 8 hour work days, minimum wage, Social Security, workplace safety stand...

The first woman to serve in UK's Parliament was a surprise to everyone, and most of all herself. Nancy Astor was born American, and of course she was a woman. But when her husband couldn't stand for election after all, the Conservative party needed a quick substitute. Who better than his wife? And she stayed for years. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, an...

Bonus episode from the newsletter On This Day in Women's History! On June 11, 1509, Catherine of Aragon married Henry VIII. It was her second marriage and his first. No one guessed how many weddings he had in his future... There are two ways to sign up for the newsletter: ⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (https://www.patreon.com/user?u=83998235) ⁠Substack ⁠(https://bit.ly/4wpOe5h) Either way, the story about the his...

The House of Representatives had its first woman voting before women were even allowed to vote on a national scale. Jeannette Rankin was elected by the state of Montana in 1916 and again in 1940. She was also firm in her pacifist convictions: she was one of 40 Representatives to vote no on entering World War I and she was absolutely alone in voting no on entering World War II. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠websi...

The ancient Olympics didn't allow women to compete, or even watch. However, there are a few ancillary ways that women participated: as horse owners and in the Heraean games. The modern Olympics made a half-hearted attempt to ban women too, but we snuck in as early as the year 1900. Helen de Pourtales, Charlotte Cooper, and Margaret Abbott were athletes who won that year. It has only grown since th...

Marie Curie was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, the first person to win two Nobel Prizes, and the first person to win Nobels in two separate disciplines. She continues to inspire women in science even today. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. Sign up for the newsletter On This Day in Women's History, available on Patreon or Substack. Ther...

Introducing the brand new newsletter On This Day in Women's History! Every Monday I'll be writing about what a historical woman did on that day in history, such as: On May 14, 1643, Anne of Austria took control of France after her husband's death, even though his will forbade exactly that. Listen to find out how. There are two ways to sign up for the newsletter: Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠ (https://www.patreon.co...

Plenty of women have been rich. Most of them inherited their wealth. Plenty of women have earned money, even in antiquity, but without leaving us detailed records about how much. Madam CJ Walker is different. She made a lot of money, we know exactly how much, and she didn’t inherit any of it. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survive...

Ada Lovelace wrote the world's first computer program before computers existed. Her friend, Charles Babbage, was inventing an Analytical Thinking Machine, even if he all he had at the moment was a small demo model. Ada thought through what such a machine could do for humanity. Her ideas were grand and far-reaching, and in one case, extremely detailed: she published a paper on exactly how to use su...

Caroline Herschel and her brother William are sometimes called the discoverers of the universe. In the 18th century, they observed and catalogued the heavens. They were not the first astronomers, but they started with catalogues of hundreds of stars and expanded it into thousands. Caroline in particular was famous as a discoverer of comets. Along the way she was the first woman to have a scientifi...

Jeanne Baret circumnavigated the globe by disguising herself as a man and working as a servant on a French scientific mission. Along the way, she collected and preserved an incredible array of botanic specimens, many of whom are named after ... the man she was working for. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of...

Shakespeare wrote every word of his plays with the firm expectation that the female parts would be acted by men or boys. No female was allowed to act in a public theater. That would be shockingly indecent. In England, that expectation was dashed in a 1660 production of Othello. We know for sure that Desdemona was played by a woman. We're just not sure which woman it was. This episode explains how...

Abigail Adams was the wife of American founding father John Adams. In 1776, she asked him to "remember the ladies" in the new code of laws for a new country. So much is relatively well known, but much less well known is his response. Listen for the full exchange. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners...

The earliest universities only admitted men. Occasionally a woman was allowed to attend, but not to graduate. The first woman to buck that trend was Elena Cornaro Piscopia. But that didn't mean it was any easier for those who came after her. The battle for women's education had only just begun. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survi...

Annie Londonderry was the first international female sports star. But an unlikely one. When she decided to bicycle around the world, she did not yet know how to ride a bicycle. But her trip was a media sensation because she was even better at self-promotion than she was at bicycling. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the su...

Humanity dreamed of flight for a very long time, but the reality of it was mostly failure. The first woman to truly fly went up in a hot air balloon in 1784. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my ⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon page⁠⁠ (https://www.patreon.com/user?u=83998235) for ad-free ep...

The Greeks invented history in the West, and to my very great surprise there was actually one female Greek historian. Pamphile of Epidaurus's work was still read and well-regarded 800 years after her death. Sadly, we lost it at some point after that. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This is a special bonus episode normally available only to sub...

Anna Komnene is not the absolute first female historian, but she's pretty close. Plus, she wrote a full length book which still exists if you care to read it today. She also lived through the First Crusade, not to mention centuries of slander. It's Women's History Month! If you support the show during March 2026, you'll be entered into a prize drawing for Her Half of History merch. See below for l...

In the 10th century Hrotsvit of Gandersheim was seriously annoyed with the classic Roman playwrights she studied at school. They were all male, and she thought some of their depictions of women were unacceptable. She responded by becoming the first female playwright in the historical record. This is a bonus episode of the type that is usually available only to Patreon subscribers, but it's Women's...

The Tale of Genji is often listed as the world's first novel, but there are naysayers. Is it a novel? Is it the first? That's highly contentious, but whatever you decide, Lady Murasaki Shikibu wrote this classic a very long time ago, and it is a masterpiece. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. It's Women's History Month! I'm running bonus episodes...

It's March and I'm celebrating with free-to-everyone bonus episodes all month, starting with this one on why women's history will always been important. I'm also holding a drawing where a listener like you can win free Her Half of History merch. There are four ways to get entered into the drawing: Sign up as a supporter on my ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon page⁠⁠⁠ (https://www.patreon.com/user?u=83998235). If you'r...

Today's episode is in response to a question from a listener. Peter asked me who was the first non-native woman to reach the Americas? Gudrid Thorbjarnardottir was an Icelandic settler, transatlantic traveler, mother, pilgrim, and possibly the most well-traveled woman of the Viking Age. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the...

Fu Hao married a king, gave birth multiple times, and also commanded troops in battle. (Why not?) Living around 1200 BCE in China, she is the first recorded female military leader in history. Visit the ⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠ (herhalfofhistory.com) for sources, transcripts, and pictures. This show survives on the on the support of listeners like you. Support the show on my ⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon page⁠⁠ (https://www.pa...