Launched in 2015, the Wisconsin Women Making History project is a collaboration between the UW System Women’s and Gender Studies Consortium, the Wisconsin Historical Society, PBS Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Humanities Council, and the Office of the Gender and Women’s Studies Librarian.
The project grew out of a national, multiyear PBS/Independent Television Service initiative entitled “Women and Girls Lead” that used documentary film to illustrate the profound effects women and girls can have on society when they lead in business, politics, science, and the arts. As that initiative came to an end, partners realized the need and desire for a more permanent home for sharing stories and experiences of women history makers in Wisconsin.
Collaborators came together and shared their resources to create the online database of profiles, which now numbers over 100 and is growing regularly.
Media coverage and more information:
- Klebesadel, H. (2015, Winter). Their stories — Our legacy: New Wisconsin Women Making History website. Wisconsin People and Ideas Magazine 61(1). https://www.wisconsinacademy.org/magazine/their-stories%E2%80%94our-legacy
- Wisconsin Women Making History. PBS Wisconsin. https://pbswisconsin.org/wisconsin-women-making-history/
- Wisconsin’s Women Make History. (2023, Feb. 28). WI Department of Instruction. https://dpi.wi.gov/news/dpi-connected/celebrate-wisconsins-awesome-women-history
- Doris Agnes Thom. The VFA Pioneer Histories Project. Veteran Feminists of America. https://veteranfeministsofamerica.org/vfa-pioneer-histories-project-doris-thom/
- Gateway Technical College Women’s History Month resource guide: https://libguides.gtc.edu/womens_history_month
- Giffey, T. (2018, Mar. 8). 5 amazing Wisconsin women you should know about. Volume One. https://volumeone.org/news/2018/03/08/254139-5-amazing-wisconsin-women-you-should-know-about
- Gretzinger, E. (2023, Feb. 20). Have more Israeli prime ministers been raised in Wisconsin than US presidents? Wisconsin Watch. https://wisconsinwatch.org/2023/02/have-more-israeli-prime-ministers-been-raised-in-wisconsin-than-us-presidents/
- Heynan, N. (2017, Mar. 3). Get to know some of the most important women in Wisconsin history. Wisconsin State Journal. https://madison.com/news/local/get-to-know-some-of-the-most-important-women-in-wisconsin-history/collection_5c58fd02-b39a-5323-8d2e-3e1b00e72edd.html#2
- Lemke, D. (2020, March 10). Women’s History Month: These 11 Wisconsin women made an impact on the state, and the nation. Oshkosh Northwestern. https://www.thenorthwestern.com/story/life/2020/03/10/wisconsin-historys-memorable-women-celebrate-march/4890561002/
- Local history topics: Women’s suffrage centennial. (2020). Vernon County Historical Society. http://www.vernoncountyhistory.org/localhistory/localhistory.php
- Smith, J. (2021, Mar. 24). Wisconsin women to remember. State Senator Jeff Smith. https://legis.wisconsin.gov/senate/31/smith/news/columns/20210324-wisconsin-women-to-remember/
- 50 years of Wisconsin Humanities. (2022). Wisconsin Humanities Council. https://wisconsinhumanities.org/wh50/