Not actually wordless today -- the image is one of many words. Text of the letter is at the link below.

Letter from Sarah Josepha Hale to President Abraham Lincoln
Courtesy Library of Congress

Suggested for further exploration:

• Text of this letter: Sarah Josepha Hale to President Abraham Lincoln, 1863
• 1858 magazine column promoting a national day of thanksgiving by Sarah Josepha Hale: Our National Thanksgiving
• Over the River and Through the Wood: the Story of Lydia Maria Child
• All 12 verses: A Boy's Thanksgiving Day
• An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving

More Wordless Wednesday:

• Wordless Wednesday - Women's History in Pictures
• Wordless Wednesday around About.com
• See more Wordless Wednesday images on the Net

She was the second First Lady of the United States (though that title was not used until much later); she's also known today for her assertions of women's rights in letters to her husband, John Adams. Abigail Adams is one of two First Ladies who were also mothers of presidents.

• Abigail Adams

I know from reading the statistics for this site over the years that most of you will not be reading this next Thursday, which is Thanksgiving in the U.S. So I'm offering these Thanksgiving treats by famous women early so you have time to enjoy them and your holiday -- you can even show off that you know all the verses to the winter song, originally known as "A Boy's Thanksgiving," often now known as "Over the River and Through the Wood":

• Sarah Josepha Hale on Thanksgiving
• "An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving" by Louisa May Alcott
• Over the River and Through the Wood
• Over the River and Through the Wood - Long Version
• About "Over the River and Through the Woods"

I've compiled a list of books about Queen Victoria, plus some biographies of her famous children and grandchildren. Queen Victoria is one of the most-studied, most-written-about women of history -- for good reason. She was one of the most powerful women in history.