Top 100 Women of History - Introduction |
How I Selected and Sequenced the List |
More Women A-ZWho are the most popular women of history, on the Net? Here's a section of the list of the top 100 in popularity. If the name is underlined, you'll find a biography or article about her.
Are the results what you expected? I had a lot of surprises, myself. If you don't find a favorite, it's likely that I did look her up (I included more than 300 women in my research), but her web popularity, over a number of years, just didn't stack up. Solution? More media exposure, more attention to history standards, more education.
A labor organizer, Mother Jones was born in Ireland and didn't become active in labor causes until she was in her late 50s. She's best known for her support of mine workers in several key strikes.
Mary was the Queen of France (as a consort) and Queen of Scotland (in her own right); her marriages caused scandal and her Catholic religion and kinship with England's
Queen Elizabeth I caused enough suspicion of her motives that Elizabeth had her executed.
Did Lady Godiva really ride naked on a horse through the streets of Coventry to protest a tax imposed by her husband?
Zora Neale Hurston was by profession an anthropologist and folklorist. Her novels, including
Their Eyes Were Watching God, have enjoyed a revival in popularity since the 1970s thanks to the efforts of writer Alice Walker.
66. Nikki Giovanni
Nikki Giovanni is an African American woman poet whose early work was influenced by the black power movement and whose later work reflects her experience as a single mother.A rare woman among the Impressionist painters, Mary Cassatt focused often on themes of mothers and children. Her work gained in recognition after her death.
Julia Child is known as the author of
Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Her popular books, television cooking shows and videos kept her in the public eye. Less well known: her brief spy career.
Barbara Walters is an award-winning journalist specializing in interviews. She was, at one time, the highest-paid woman news anchor.
Georgia O'Keeffe was an American painter of a unique style. In her later years she moved to New Mexico where she painted many desert scenes.
61. Annie Oakley
Annie Oakley the sharpshooter performed with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, at first with her husband Frank Butler and later as a solo act.
