Philadelphia Women's History Trail

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Built in 1870, this residence would later be home to an opera singer and civil rights advocate Marian Anderson. The home was built as a two-story brick building in the Italianate architectural style. Marian purchased the home in 1924, which is the same year she became the first African-American concert artist to record the genre of spirituals for a record company. She resided in this house until 1943.

2. Billie Holiday Historical Marker

Billie Holiday, also known as "Lady Day," is said to be one of the greatest American jazz singers of her time. She stood out in the jazz industry due to her unconventional music styles and improvisation. Although she was faced with many hardships throughout both her life and career, Holiday will always be remembered as a very influential figure in the jazz music industry. She was known to bring life to her music and always performed music the way she wanted to, even if others did not agree. She is best known for her songs "Lover Man" and "Strange Fruit" as well as her many collaborations with various famous jazz musicians. The historical marker located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania serves as a tribute to her accomplishments in the jazz industry.

3. Frances Ellen Watkins Harper House

This historic Philadelphia home is where poet, fiction writer, journalist, and activist Frances Ellen Watkins Harper spent her later years and the location where she passed away on February 22, 1911. Born in Baltimore in 1825, she was the only child of free African American parents. After growing up in difficult conditions, she embarked on a career as a traveling speaker on the abolitionist circuit. Frances Ellen Watkins Harper also helped slaves escape through the Underground Railroad and wrote frequently for anti-slavery newspapers. As a journalist and activist, she worked with Frederick Douglass and other reformers, earning a reputation for her writing which led some to refer to her as the "mother" of African American journalism. The house has since been named a National Historic Landmark and is open to the public during special events.

4. William and Letitia Still Underground Railroad Way Station

The child of formerly enslaved parents, William Still (1821-1902) dedicated his life to the abolition of slavery and protection of fugitives from slavery. His house at 625 South Delhi Street (then called Ronaldson Street) in Philadelphia was a stop on the Underground Railroad from 1850 to 1855. As chair of the Philadelphia Anti-Slavery Society's Vigilance Committee, Still organized Underground Railroad efforts in the city and further afield. After the abolition of slavery, he wrote an extensive book on the Underground Railroad. In 2017-2018, preservationists positively identified the house as one of the places Still and his wife Letitia (1821-1906) had lived and sheltered those who had escaped slavery. The Keeping Society of Philadelphia nominated the site to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places.

5. Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield Historic Marker

Viewed as one of the greatest musicians of her time, Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield was an exceptional, well-known African American singer. Although Greenfield was born into slavery, she was emancipated not long after her birth. With the support of her former owner and dedicating her time to studying and learning, Greenfield excelled in her musical abilities. Once Greenfield gained popularity, she advocated for anti-slavery and equality laws through her voice and numerous performances.

6. Sarah Josepha Buell Hale Historical Marker

This historical marker is located approximately where author, poet, women's rights advocate, and one of America's first woman editors, Sarah Josepha Buell Hale (1788-1879), lived from around the 1840s to her death in 1879. As editor of the women's magazine "Godey's Lady's Book" for four decades, Hale played a highly impactful role in shaping women's lives across the country. She is also famous for successfully promoting a national Thanksgiving Day to President Abraham Lincoln. The historical marker was placed here by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission in 2015.

7. Annual Reminders Historical Marker (Gay Pioneers Historical Marker)

From 1965 to 1969, gay rights activists from Washington, DC, New York, and Philadelphia met each July 4th to picket in front of Independence Hall to demand legislation that would protect the rights of LGBT citizens. The event came to be known as the “Annual Reminder” that many American citizens were denied the basic rights enshrined in the Declaration of Independence. The events were commemorated in 2005 with the dedication of this historical marker across the street from Independence Hall.

8. Dolley Todd House

Prior to becoming Dolley Madison in 1794, Dolley Todd and her first husband, John Todd, lived at this house from 1791-1793. This 18th century, 3-story, Georgian home was built in 1775 by John Dilworth. John Todd died in 1793 and, soon after, Dolley married James Madison. She remained in Philadelphia until the Madisons retired, temporarily, to the family estate at Montpelier in Virginia in 1797. The house is now part of the larger Independence National Historical Park. It has been restored to how it looked while it was occupied by the Todds with period artifacts and furniture. It is occasionally open as a house museum that provides a window into the life of a solidly middle-class, Philadelphia family at the end of the 18th century.

9. Hannah Callowhill Penn - Historical Site

Hannah Callowhill Penn was the second wife of William Penn, who is credited as Pennsylvania’s founder. The pair traveled from Bristol to Pennsylvania and arrived on December 10th, 1699 (Kelley). There William acted as proprietor until he was unable to due to a series of strokes leading to his death. Afterwards, Hannah had the duty of managing all the province’s official business, being the first and only woman to do so. She can be credited with fixing major problems left behind after her husband's death. The historical marker is placed at the site where she and William stayed after arriving to Pennsylvania.

10. The Betsy Ross House

The Betsy Ross House is a historic home in Philadelphia alleged to be the site where the first American flag was created. The Arch Street residence was built around 1740, and during the 1770s it was home to local upholsterer Elizabeth “Betsy” Ross. According to popular legend, Ross was asked to sew the first Stars and Stripes flag in 1777. Most scholars are highly doubtful that Betsy Ross actually made the first American flag; the story did not emerge until nearly a century later. Today the house has been restored and preserved as a museum. It is open to the public for tours, and contains a large collection of artifacts, documents, and memorabilia relating to both Betsy Ross and the story of her sewing the first flag.

11. Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society Historical Marker

This historical marker commemorates the founding of the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society in December of 1833. In a Philadelphia schoolhouse, the 22 founding members gathered for the first meeting of an organization that would go on to play a pivotal role in the abolitionist movement. The PFASS changed public opinions on the morality of slavery and petitioned government officials to support anti-slavery measures. The work of these women is also acknowledged as an early foundation for the Women’s Rights Movement. One of the key founding members, Lucretia Mott, was a Quaker preacher who went on to lead the Women’s Rights Movement

12. The Fabric Workshop and Museum

Founded in 1977, the Fabric Workshop and Museum was established in order to give artists a space to experiment, as well as to bring the public face-to-face with the artistic process. Within its permanent collection, the Museum holds not just numerous works of art, but also ongoing research, fabric prototypes, videos of the creative processes behind these works, and more. Additionally, the Museum is one of a small number of museums that is part of the Artist-in-Residence Program. Today, the Museum works with artists from all sorts of backgrounds, and encourages artists and the public to experiment with new forms of materials and media.

13. Anna E. Dickinson Historical Marker

This historical marker acknowledges the life of the abolitionist Anna E. Dickinson (1842 - 1932), who was born in Philadelphia to a Quaker family. In addition to her commitment to ending slavery, she was a campaigner for women's rights and universal education, an advocate for labor and prison reform, and the first woman to address Congress. On the public lecture circuit, she spoke to thousands of listeners at prominent venues such as the Cooper Institute (Cooper Union) in New York City. In 1864, in the midst of the U.S. Civil War, she gave an impassioned speech to the House of Representatives and to President Abraham Lincoln, in which she voiced her support for the preservation of the Union while also pressing for equal rights for African Americans. As a white woman, Dickinson was influenced by other white abolitionists such as Lucretia Mott and William Lloyd Garrison, and by Black abolitionists such as Sojourner Truth and Frederick Douglass. She did not hesitate to defy the expectations that were placed upon her as a middle-class woman in the nineteenth century, in which she was expected to remain within the home. Instead, she confidently carried her message to the public sphere. For her deep commitment to the abolition of slavery, she was often called "Joan of Arc of the Civil War."

14. Philadelpia Firsts Public Art

This public art installation outside the Philadephia City Hall building commemorates several of the city's innovators including John Bartram, William Camac, Mary Cassat, Rebecca Cole, Thomas Eakins, John Fitch, Benjamin Franklin, Francis Hopkinson and Betsy Ross.

15. Mother's Day Historical Marker

This historical marker notes that Mother's Day was first observed in the U.S. in 1908 and was signed into law through an executive measure by President Woodrow Wilson in 1914. Anna Marie Jarvis (1864 - 1948) campaigned to establish Mother's Day as a national holiday after the passing of her own mother, Anna Reeves Jarvis. Her mother was a resident of West Virginia who had, in an earlier generation, founded a "Mother's Day Work Club" in her hometown during the Civil War. Although Mother’s Day was granted federal recognition in 1914, Anna Marie Jarvis eventually grew to regret the commercialization and secularization of the holiday, as retailers sought to profit from the special occasion, and it lost its contemplative and religious connotations. In 1933, Jarvis even petitioned President Franklin D. Roosevelt to remove Mother's Day from the federal calendar. However, she could not undo what she had helped to create; the holiday remains a part of the American culture and economy to this day. This historical marker, installed by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, describes the first observance of the holiday in the U.S. as honoring "motherhood and family life at a time of rising feminist activism." The marker also notes that an early supporter of the effort was John Wanamaker, who owned a store across the street.

16. Joan of Arc Statue

Joan of Arc Statue is a gilded bronze equestrian sculpture of Joan of Arc by Emmanuel Frémiet. Bought by the Fairmount Park Art Association in 1890, the monument was at first placed at the east end of the Girard Avenue Bridge. Unappreciated at that location, it was moved to its present one in 1959, after being given its gilt coat in the basement of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The sculpture represents Joan of Arc, a heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint, astride a horse. Her proper right hand is raised and she holds up a flag in her proper right hand. In her proper left hand she holds the reins. She is crowned with a laurel wreath and clothed in armor. A sword hangs by her proper left side. The horse is walking with its front, proper left and rear, proper right hooves raised.

17. Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania

According to the Bulletin of the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania lists the crossroads, 21st Street and North College Avenue as their location in 1918. It served as an important location throughout the Flu Pandemic. Students stopped attending their classes to better support the surronding community. Freshmen worked as ambulance drivers while older students supported patients in the college hospital.

18. Laurel Hill Mansion

Situated on a bluff overlooking the Schuylkill River, Laurel Hill Mansion is a two-story Georgian home constructed primarily of brick. It was built in 1767, most likely at the behest of Rebecca Rawle. It had additions added in the first half of the 18th century and was owned by prominent Philadelphia lawyer, William Rawle, beginning in 1819. It was also known as Randolph House after it was acquired by Dr. Jacob Randolph and his wife Sarah, in 1837. It was purchased by the city, along with other estates, in 1869 when Fairmount Park was established. It is now a historic home museum and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

19. Louisa May Alcott - Pine Place Historic Marker

On November 29, 1832 (on her father's thirty-third birthday), Louisa May Alcott was born at Pine Place, in the Germantown neighborhood of Pennsylvania [2; 4]. The family left Germantown to live in Massachusetts when Louisa was two years old, where her abolitionist father, Amos Bronson Alcott, began a progressive school and educated his daughters along with the students. Louisa grew up to become an abolitionist in her own right, as well as a suffragist, Civil War nurse, and authoress (under the pen name A. M. Bernard) of Gothic thrillers and children's literature including Little Women [2; 3]. Pine Place is now home to the Cunningham Piano Company [2].

20. Lucretia Mott Historical Marker

Lucretia Mott was a Quaker abolitionist and feminist who dedicated the majority of her life to the abolition of slavery and the equality of women. After the Civil War, Mott fought for economic and political equality for women and African Americans. Throughout her life she supported organizations such as the American Equal Rights Association, the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society, and other groups associated with the American women’s rights movement. Her home in Pennsylvania also served as part of the Underground Railroad. In honor of her efforts, a historical marker was placed close to the former location of Mott’s home in May 1974. The location is within the La Mott Historic District, a community named after Mott in 1885.

21. Ora Washington Historic Marker

Ora Washington was one of the premiere female athletes of the early 20th century. She excelled in both tennis and basketball, but because of racial discrimination, she was rarely able to compete with white athletes. According to Arthur Ashe, Washington may have been the best female athlete of the 20th century.

22. The Baldwin School of Bryn Mawr / The Bryn Mawr Hotel

The Baldwin School of Bryn Mawr is one of the United States’ most prestigious all-girls schools. Since 1888, the Baldwin School has served the Greater Philadelphia area and it has been located here in the former Bryn Mawr Hotel for most of those years. While the building has undergone some modifications since its original construction in 1890, the school still calls this building home and has overseen and contributed significantly to its preservation as a historical landmark.

23. M. Carey Thomas Library, Bryn Mawr College

This structure, completed in 1907, served as the campus library until 1970. In 1991, the building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Not only is this architecturally significant building one of the most visible places on the historic Bryn Mawr campus, it continues to serve a gathering place. The building's Great Hall hosts performances and lectures, as well as campus and public events throughout the year. Quita Woodward Memorial Room for recreational reading with recent books on literature, art, religion, current affairs, as well as many classics. The building is named in honor of M. Carey Thomas, the first dean of the school and it's second President. The building and its signature Great Hall were inspired by campus buildings at Oxford University.

24. The Deanery (1885-1968) and Canaday Library, Bryn Mawr College

Constructed in 1968, Canaday Library is located at the former site of Bryn Mawr College's Deanery, which was home to college leaders from the time of the college's first dean and second president, Dr. Martha Carey Thomas. Thomas lived at the home from 1885 to 1933, and at that time, the structure held only five rooms but contained works by Louis Comfort Tiffany and other influential designers and artists. The home was also full of items from Dr. Thomas' global travels and the college inherited the home and these items when she passed away in 1935. The home was later expanded significantly for entertaining guests and hosting events but demolished in 1968 above the protests of many students, faculty, and alumni in order to make room for the modern Canaday Library.

25. Bryn Mawr / The Harriton House

Bryn Mawr, now known as the Harriton House, was once the home of Rowland Ellis, a Quaker hailing from Wales who was heavily involved in the local community of Quakers. The borough of Bryn Mawr was named after Ellis' estate, a 700-acre plot which was gifted to Ellis by William Penn himself in the late 1600s. While much of the original estate of Bryn Mawr is now incorporated into the modern borough, the original house still stands, open to the public by appointment and maintained by the Harriton Association, a non-profit, membership corporation devoted to preserving the history of the estate and local area.

This Tour is a Thematic Tour or Heritage Trail.

Philadelphia Women's History Trail

Created by Hailey Jones on March 31st 2019, 5:48:15 pm.

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Description

This trail includes twenty-five monuments, historical markers, museums, and other historical and cultural sites that are primarily related to the history of women and gender. The trail starts in the center of the city and then expands to the north to include a handful of other sites such as a cluster of landmarks on the campus of Bryn Mawr that were selected for their proximity to other landmarks so that the trail can be driven in a few hours.

Entries on This Tour

Philadelphia Women's History Trail

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