Women - Women's Innovations

Berenice Abbott

📷 Photography 💡 Inventor

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📷 Photography 💡 Inventor

Studied sculpture & theater in Paris
Took portraits of people in the arts & literary worlds like Jean Cocteau & James Joyce
Was an apprentice to Man Ray
Preserved the works of Eugene Atget
Documented changes in NY through pictures
Travelled US 1 from Florida to Maine taking over 2500 pictures of antebellum architecture & automobile related architecture
Invented a distortion enlarging easel & the telescopic lighting pole (now called autopole)
Produced photos for a physics textbook
Held 4 patents

Born: 1898

Country: USA

Education: 2 semesters at Ohio State University; Academie de la Grande Chaumiere; Prussin Academy of Arts

Eleanor Reynolds Abbott

💡 Inventor

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💡 Inventor

Inventor of Candy Land
Original game featured a boy in a leg brace because braces were common apparatuses for polio patients
She created the game to entertain children in the hospital ward she was in who had polio like her; the game was meant to distract them from their pain
she donated all the money she received from the game to charities dedicated to serving children in need
the game was inducted into the National Hall of Fame in 2005
she contracted polio at age 36
she scratched out the original game on butcher paper
she sold the game to Milton Bradley & it went on sale in time for Christmas 1949
almost nothing is known about her life except for her illness, hospital stay & creation of Candy Land

Born: 1910

Country: Canada

Education: Unknown

Charlotte Abrams

💡 Inventor

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Julie Aigner-Clark

📚 Educator 💡 Inventor 🔍 Enrepreneur

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📚 Educator 💡 Inventor 🔍 Enrepreneur

is a former English & art teacher & as a stay-at-home mom wanted to expose her children to classical music, poetry, colors, shapes, and more so she created I Think I Can Productions which evolved into Baby Einstein
2004 diagnosed with breast cancer twice but is now cancer-free
after winning her cancer battle wrote a children's book published by Harper Collins called You Are The Best Medicine in 2010
was recognized by George W. Bush in the 2007 State of the Union Address
has appeared on TV shows including Oprah, The Today Show, Good Morning America, and The View, along with feature articles in USA Today

Born: 1966 or 1967

Country: USA

Education: Michigan State University BA English Literature & Secondary Education 1988; Trinity College-Hartford MA English Language & Literature/Letters 1991; University of London English Language & Literature/Letters

Maria Allen

💡 Inventor

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Randice-Lisa "Randi" Altschul

💡 Inventor 💼 Entrepreneur

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💡 Inventor 💼 Entrepreneur

millionaire by the age of 26
her first successes were with toys and games
her other successful toys & games included a Barbie's 30th Birthday Game, and a wearable stuffed toy that could give hugs under the control of the child who was wearing it
invested a portion of her profits into super-thin technology
has sold licensing rights to some 250 products over the past 35 years
after losing her fortune via an unscrupulous financial adviser, she reinvented herself as a baby night nurse despite no prior experience with infants
wanted to drop out of school after the first week of 7th grade because she was bored but instead the local school board provided a tutor for one hour each day after IQ testing determined a high IQ
dropped out of Montclair State College after one semester & began inventing
holds 64 patents

Born: 1960

Country: USA

Education: Montclair State College 1 semester

Blanche Ames Ames

🔍 Botanical Illustrator 🎨 Artist 🔍 Suffragette 💡 Inventor

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🔍 Botanical Illustrator 🎨 Artist 🔍 Suffragette 💡 Inventor

designed and created plans for many of the dams and ponds surrounding her home at Borderland
worked on ways to breed a more disease-resistant turkey
was president of her college graduating class
illustrated her husband's botanical research on orchids
her family estate, Borderland, is now a State Park opened to the public in Massachusetts
hired a newspaper clipping service to save suffrage news from 1915 to 1916
designed the orchid decorations on the graves of her husband & herself
during the 1910s she produced a number of political cartoons promoting women's suffrage, which appeared in publications including Woman's Journal, and the Boston American
her work called, "Cradle of Liberty", was selected to be Massachusetts' suffrage poster
her etchings are on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and her oil painting can be seen at Harvard, Dartmouth, and Columbia University
supported birth control
held patents for inventions which included a hexagonal lumber cutter and a method for entrapping enemy aircraft
at age 80 wrote a biography about her father, Adelbert Ames, called: "Adelbert Ames, 1835-1933; General, Senator, Governor, the story of his life and times and his integrity as a soldier and statesman in the service of the United States of America throughout the Civil War and in Mississippi in the years of Reconstruction" (1964)
had an athletic childhood & learned golf, tennis, football and sailing
created formulas for spermicidal jellies and provided instructions on how to make a diaphragm by using such everyday objects as a baby’s teething ring
established a fund in her name for the medical education of women at the New England Hospital for Women and Children
designed and the abandoned a swimming pool at Borderland with pipes so complicated that the secret of their operation died with her
husband was a botanist who discovered over 1,000 new species of orchids in the Caribbean, the Philippines, & Central & South American which she drew & illustrated for his 7-volume compendium of orchids
was arrested after carving a wooden penis & using it to demonstrate proper condom usage in the middle of boston's busy Commonwealth Avenue
the Ames Charts of Economic Plants she created for herhusband's botany classes are still in use today
designed Borderland which was the family home until her death & was featured in the 2019 movie "Knives Out"

Born: 1878

Country: USA

Education: Smith College & School of Art AB Art History 1899

Virgie M. Ammons

💡 Inventor

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Mary Anderson

💡 Inventor

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💡 Inventor

Invented windshield wipers for cars
Born in Alabama at the start of Reconstruction in 1866
1889, moved to Birmingham, AL & built Fairmont Apartments, an oddity for a Black female of the time
1893, moved to Fresno, CA to operate a cattle ranch & vineyard
1902, visited NYC; while riding in a trolley car during a sleet storm observed the driver had difficulty seeing out of the windshield due to falling sleet; he had to stop frequently to wipe the windshield; this observation led to her inventing windshield wipers
Never financially profited from her invention & allowed the patent to expire in 1920
1922, Cadillac became the 1st auto manufacturer to adopt wipers as standard equipment on their vehicles

Born: 1866

Country: USA

Education: unknown

Sarah Tabitha Babbitt

💡 Inventor 🔍 Tool Maker

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Anna Maria Bailey

⚕️ Medicine 💡 Inventor

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Anna Deane Bailey

💡 Inventor

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Sarah A. Baldwin

💡 Inventor

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Janet Rita Emerson Bashen

💻 Software Inventor

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💻 Software Inventor

family moved to Huntsville, Alabama from Ohio when she was very young
attended segregated schools until the 5th grade in Huntsville
her mother was the 1st African-american er nurse in Huntsville
after graduation from the University of Houston worked for an insurance company handling EEO-related claims
1994 received a $5,000 loan from her mother & started Bashen Vorp to investigate discrimination claims filed by employees from her home
testified before the US House of Representatives in 2000 that civil rights & employee misconduct investigations should be exempt from the Fair Credit Reporting Act

Born: 1957

Country: USA

Education: University of Houston BS Legal Studies & government; Harvard University Women & Power: Leadership in a New World certificate; USC Doctor of Social Work 2023; Tulane University Law School Master of Jurisprudence, Labor & Employment Law; University of Houston Law Center 40 hours of Mediation training; Alabama A&M (did not graduate); Postgraduate work Rice University Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Administration

Ayah (Aya on patents) Bdeir

💡 Inventor

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💡 Inventor

born in Montreal to a Syrian immigrant family & raised in Beirut with her 3 sisters
as a child would take things (especially electronics) apart & break them open to see what was inside
was given cehmistry sets & programming lessons at age 12
her mother attended University at the same time as her daughters to get her degree
2010 was a design mentor on the reality TV show Stars of Science
before founding littleBits was an interactive artist & held several installations
founded littleBits to make engineering & inventing more fun &her prototype (or little bits) is a system of color-coded, magnetic, electronic building blocks, blurring the boundary between a toy & a tool kit
the bits are thin rectangles between 1 & 4 inches in length & the blue ones provide power, pink allow for inputs like switches, microphones, & motion sensors, green are outputs like lights, motors, & speakers, and orange provide wires or logic functions & all pieces fit together magnetically
the prototype littleBits is in the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)
the company produces over 10 different kits & has over 70 interoperable bits & are gender neutral
there are over 300 littleBits Inventor Clubs around the world from San Paolo to San Francisco to Bangkok
littleBits was acquired by Sphero in 2019
she holds 16 patents

Born: 1982

Country: Canada

Education: American University of Beirut BEng Computer Engineering & Sociology 2004; MIT Media Lab MS Media Arts & Sciences 2006

Maria E. Beasley

💼 Entrepreneur 💡 Inventor

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💼 Entrepreneur 💡 Inventor

1882, received a patent for an improved life raft
1978, received a patent for a barrel hooping machine
Between 1878 & 1898, received 15 patents-those listed above plus a footwarmer, anti-derailment device for trains, 7 for barrel making machines, 2 for life raft improvements, a steam generator for trains, & baking & roasting pans
Was actually able to earn a living from her inventions
Founded 2 companies for the design & manufacture of barrels; later sold one factory for $1.4 million, the equivalent of $42,222,963 in 2021)
Age 13, built a sailboat that could safely transport her & her dog; also built several functioning watermills by herself
Her paternal grandfather was a distillery owner & told her of the need for better barrel making
Licensed her 1st barrel making patent to the Standard Oil Company for $175/month for a single machine
Mid-1890s, built a short experimental train line around her property in chicago to be able to study ways to redesign trains to support & sustain speeds up to 100 mph

Born: 1836

Country: USA

Education: unknown

Ruth Mary Rogan Benerito

🔬 Physical Chemistry 💡 Inventor

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🔬 Physical Chemistry 💡 Inventor

Held 56 patents
Was known for her work related to the textile industry, notably the development of wash-and-wear cotton fabrics
Completed high school at 14 & entered college at 15
Worked at USDA 1954-1986
Discovered wrinkle-resistant, stain- & flame-resistant fabrics
Her inventions were said to have "saved the cotton industry"
Was very humble about her discoveries & often said they were the work of many people
Her research led to the development of glassy fibers that proved useful in the manufacture of lab equipment
During the Korean War she developed a way to give fat intravenously to patients too sick to eat; it was a method used to feed seriously wounded soldiers

Born: 1916

Country: USA

Education: 1935, BA Chemistry, H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College; 1938, MA Physics, Tulane University; 1948, PhD Physical Chemistry, University of Chicago; 1972, Post-doctoral Fellowship in Biophysics, Tulane University

Miriam Elizabeth Benjamin

💡 Inventor

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💡 Inventor

Was the 2nd Black female to receive a patent in the US
1888, invented the Gong & Signal Chair used in hotels
1st Black female to practice as a patent attorney
1888-1895, was a teacher in the DC segregated municipal school system
1888 census lists her as living at 1736 NY Ave, NW in DC
1917, she received a patent for her Sole for Footwear, intended to help with temperature regulation in the foot
1903, reportedly received a patent for a pinking device for dressmaking (confirmation & patent number not found)
Under the pseudonym E.B. Miriam composed musical pieces, including songs & marches for piano & band; "Boston Elite Quickstep" was reportedly performed by Sousa's band & another of her compositions was used by Theodore Roosevelt's presidential campaign in 1904

Born: 1861

Country: USA

Education: Howard University, Medicine & Law, 1894-1895

Amalie Auguste Melitta Bentz

💡 Inventor 💼 Entrepreneur

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💡 Inventor 💼 Entrepreneur

Invented paper coffee brewing system in 1908
She 1st used blotting paper from her son Willy's school exercise book & a brass pot punctured with a nail
Was granted a patent by Kaiserliche Patentamt (Imperial Patent Office) June 20, 1908
Her husband, Hugo, and their 2 sons, Willy & Horst, were her employees working at home to assemble, package & sell the filters
Sold 1200 filters in 1909 at the Leipzig Fair
1910, won a gold medal at the International Health Exhibition & silver medal at the Saxon Innkeeper's Association
Couldn't make the filters during WWI because paper was rationed; supported the family by selling cartons
Set up Melitta Aid Systems, a social fund for company employees it offered Christmas bonuses, increased vacation days from 6 to 15 per year, & reduced the work week to 5 days
Her grandchildren still run the company & it is still in Minden, Germany

Born: 1873

Country: Germany

Education: unknown

Bertha "Bert" Dagan Berman

💡 Inventor

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Patricia Billings

💡 Inventor 🔍 Sculptor

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💡 Inventor 🔍 Sculptor

worked as a medical technologist & TB researcher before switching to sculpture
studied fungal & bacterial diseases at Kansas City Junior College
began studying art in 1956 & made plaster of Paris Sculptures
decided to make a stronger sculpture medium after a swan sculpture she was in the final stages of making collapsed & shattered
studied the chemical composition of Renaissance Era frescoes &, after 8 years of experimenting in her basement, came up with Geobond, it took her almost 8 more years to perfect & patent it
has turned down a $20 million buyout offer because she feared the company would bury the technology
a collection of visual aids, newspaper clippings, photos, awards, & certificates concerning her & her inventions are housed at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Special Collections & Archives/Pat billings Collection identifier MS-0290

Born: 1926

Country: USA

Education: Kansas City Junior College; Amarillo College

Mary F. Bishop

💡 Inventor

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Sara Treleaven Blakely

💼 Entrepreneur 💡 Inventor 🔍 Philanthropist

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💼 Entrepreneur 💡 Inventor 🔍 Philanthropist

is a minority owner of the Atlanta Hawks
wanted to be an attorney until she did poorly on the Law School Admissions Test
briefly worked as a stand-up comedian after college
between the ages of 27-29 spent $5,000 savings (equivalent to $9,300 in 2023) researching and developing her hosiery idea while she continued to be a salesperson for Danka selling office equipment
November 2000 Oprah named Spanx one of her "Favorite Things" so she quit her job at Danka & began Spanx
Richard Branson was her mentor & provided $750,000 for her to start her Foundation
2013 became the first female billionaire to join the "Giving Pledge," Bill Gates and Warren Buffett's pledge
2020 pledged to give $5 million to support female-run small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic
served as her own model both on television and at in-store public appearances across the U.S.
is a Guinness World Record holder for climbing the side of a hot air balloon and having tea on top even though she is afraid of heights
enjoys making pancakes in crazy shapes for her four small kids
was a guest "shark" on Shark Tank seasons 9 & 10
holds 28 patents
is afraid of flying

Born: 1971

Country: USA

Education: Florida State University BA Communications

Helen Augusta Blanchard

💡 Inventor

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Bessie Virginia Blount Griffin

⚛️ Physical Therapy 💡 Inventor

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⚛️ Physical Therapy 💡 Inventor

Was a nurse
Invented an electric, self-feeding apparatus for amputees using plastic, boiling water to mold it, a file, ice pick, hammer, & some dishes to make the prototype
1st African-American female to train & work as a forensic scientist at Scotland Yard in 1977
Used forensic skills to authenticate documents related to slavery, the Civil War & Native American treaties with the US
1953, appeared on Philadelphia TV show, The Big Idea, to promote her inventions; was the 1st African-American on the show
Attended a 1-room schoolhouse in Hickory, VA built after the Civil War
Originally wrote with her left hand but a teacher reprimanded her & insisted she use her right hand; was ambidextrous
Taught herself to write without using her hands but using her teeth & feet instead
Stopped her formal education after the 6th grade because there were no other educational options for African-Americans
Became self-taught & ultimately earned a GED
As a physical therapist, taught her amputee patients to use their teeth & feet to perform tasks
Cared for & worked closely with Theodore Edison, son of Thomas Edison
The VA Hospital turned down her self-feeding device; she licensed it freely to the French government instead
The VA also declined her invention for a disposable emesis basin so she sold the invention to a company in Belgium
Although it is believed she invented 3 things (self-feeding device, device that held a bowl onto the neck for self-feeding & an emesis basin) only 1 patent was located

Born: 1914

Country: USA

Education: Community Kenney Memorial Hospital Nursing Degree; Union College-NJ Physical Therapy Certificate; Panzer College of Physical Education (now part of Montclair State University) Certified in Physical Therapy

Elyse Blue Corn

🔍 Potter 💡 Inventor

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Sarah Boone

💡 Inventor 🔍 Dressmaker

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Mary Ann Boughton

💡 Inventor

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Danielle Boyer

💡 robotics inventor 📚 youth education advocate

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💡 robotics inventor 📚 youth education advocate

has been teaching children since she was 10
is passionate about making education accessible and representative for her community so that no child is left behind
"Indigenous Robotics" followed her life for a year and premiered at the MIT Museum
has three rescue cats: Yoyo, Yoda, and Rex
taught herself through watching YouTube videos, flipping through old electrical engineering books, examining maker kits on Amazon, and then "reverse engineering" everything
dropped out of college to run the nonprofit full-time
all her robots are able to run without internet and all are 3D-printed from recycled plastic
was homeschooled for most of her life
all her robots are able to run without internet
it took her 2 weeks to develop SkoBots
Her robots are built from biodegradable components
co-hosts the podcast Hands-On Techie Talks, which teaches children about Earth-focused engineering
helped create Benzene Buddies – a weekly after-school program that has implemented programming lessons and robotics field trips, as well as many other programs to engage her community

Born: 2000 or 2001

Country: USA

Education: dropped out of college to start The STEAM Connection

Henrietta M. Bradberry

💡 Inventor

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Anna M. Breadin

💡 Inventor

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Charlotte Bridgewood

💡 Inventor 🔍 Vaudeville Performer

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Norma Brown

💡 Inventor ⚕️ Nursing

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Marie Van Brittan Brown

💡 Inventor ⚕️ Nursing

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💡 Inventor ⚕️ Nursing

Was a nurse
With husband, Albert Brown an electronics technician, received a patent for a video home security system in 1969
Born in Jamaica Queens, NY & remained there her entire life
She & her husband had irregular working hours & she was often home alone with her 2 children; the crime rate in her neighborhood was high & police response time was slow & long; she & her husband came up with their security system for her protection
Their system was the 1st CCTV security system
She was 43 when she patented her invention
Little information was located about her personal life

Born: 1922

Country: USA

Education: Harrison College; DeVry University; University of Phoenix

Harriet Elizabeth "Libby" Brown

📚 Educator ✊ Civil Rights Pioneer

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📚 Educator ✊ Civil Rights Pioneer

worked as a teacher in Calvert County Public Schools & was promoted to Principal for 0ver 30 years
filed her suit against the Board of education after learning she was earning $600 monthly & her White counterparts with the same experience, education & duties were earning $1,100, the suit cited this as a violation of the 14th Amendment
the intersection of Route 2 & Pushaw Station road where the original school she taught at was located bears a historical marker commemorating her suit against the Board of Education
a community Center in Prince Frederick county bears her name
enjoyed the compapy of her sister & fellow teacher & Principal, Regina Brown, & the 2 enjoyed traveling, taking a yearly trip together, following sports, going out with friends, & being active in their communities

Born: 1907

Country: USA

Education: Morgan State University BS Education; University of Maryland M ED

Harriet A. Brown

🔍 Dressmaking 💡 Inventor

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Elizabeth Buckley

💡 Inventor

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Ilene Busch-Vishniac

⚛️ Mechanical Engineer 🔍 University Administrator 💡 Inventor

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⚛️ Mechanical Engineer 🔍 University Administrator 💡 Inventor

served as Dean of the Whiting School of Engineering at Johns Hopkins University from 1998 to 2003
Provost and Vice-President for Academic Affairs at McMaster University from 2007 to 2012
President of the University of Saskatchewan from 2012 to 2014
2018-2022was Chief Innovation Officer at Sonavi Labs (a start-up company that builds devices that can diagnose disease simply by the analysis of body sounds, such as those from the lungs)
has written research papers for the ASME on matters related to tribology
2014was terminated from the University of Saskatchewan, sued them in 2015 & settled out of Court 2019
2015 began as a consultant for BeoGrin consulting
parents wanted her to be a lawyer but she was a music major & studied piano at the Eastman School of Music while taking academic classes at the University of Rochester
1982-88 taught at the University of Texas at Austin
2003-2005 was President of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA); is an authority on electromechanical sensors and actuators
holds 11 patents

Born: 1955

Country: USA

Education: University of Rochester BS Physics & BA Mathematics 1976; MIT MS 1978 & PhD 1981 both in Mechanical Engineering

Nickie G. Campbell

💡 Inventor

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Mary Pamellia Carpenter Hooper

💡 Inventor 📚 Educator

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