Two recent online projects share some fascinating Evanston women’s history. We share them with you. Enjoy! The Women’s Suffrage Movement in Illinois and Evanston Her March to Democracy: Stories Along the National Votes for Women Trail is a new podcast that includes an episode focusing on Illinois and the women’s suffrage movement. Evanston Women’s History Project director Lori Osborne is the featured historian for the episode and she weaves a narrative that includes several sights in Evanston. To listen to the podcast, just search Her March to Democracy in your preferred podcast app. Evanston ..read more

Join us at the Evanston History Center for upcoming talks with a women’s history focus. These talks are part of the new FREE series of talks hosted by the history center – Talks@EHC. Please RSVP (links below or call EHC at 847-475-3410) as capacity may be limited. You can find the full roster of talks on the Evanston History Center website. All talks take place at the Evanston History Center, 225 Greenwood Street in Evanston. Black Health Professionals in Evanston Thursday, February 1st, 12-1 pm EHC kicks off Black History Month with a presentation by historian Rhonda K. Craven who will highli ..read more

There are several upcoming programs at the Evanston History Center (225 Greenwood Street) with a Women’s History focus. See below for brief descriptions and links to find out more. Hope to see you there! The Founding and Evolution of The Infant Welfare Society of Evanston by Arden Handler, DrPH Tuesday, September 12, 2023, from 12 pm to 1 pm Seating is limited. Registration is required. Join us for a lunchtime presentation by Dr. Arden Handler. Dr. Handler will discuss her research on the history of the Infant Welfare Society of Evanston (IWSE), founded in 1913 by volunteers who began distribu ..read more

By Janet Olson, Archivist at WCTU Archives 150 years ago this June Frances Willard became the first Dean of Women at Northwestern University. The story of her taking on this position is interesting and illuminates the broader story of women’s education in Evanston and the U.S. in this time period. Our Educated Women series is created in partnership with the Frances Willard House Museum and Archives. See Part 1 and Part 2 in this series on their website for the beginning of the story. The Evanston College for Ladies (ECL), founded by the Women’s Education Association (W ..read more

When: Saturday, April 29, 2023, 11:00 am–12:30 pm Where: Evanston Township High School Welcome Center, room E112; enter through door 1 or 2 You’re invited to be part of Evanston history! Art Encounter’s Evanston Mural Arts Program is leading an exciting mural project this year, celebrating the lives and legacies of notable women leaders in Evanston history. The mural will be painted by a team of artists led by veteran muralist Dorian Sylvain on a public wall in downtown Evanston. Our partners, the Evanston Women’s History Project at the Evanston History Center and Shorefront Legacy Center, ar ..read more

There are several ways you can connect with women’s stories in March for Women’s History Month.  Edith: the Rogue Rockefeller McCormick On Thursday March 9th at 7 pm, the Evanston History Center is hosting an in-person presentation by Andrea Friederici Ross, Author of Edith: the Rogue Rockefeller McCormick, the first biography of a woman who once played a prominent role in Chicago society. The daughter of oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller, Edith (1872-1932) married into the wealthy McCormick family and was once estimated to be the nation’s richest woman. Edith served as a powerful patron of ..read more

By Lori Osborne, Evanston Women’s History Project Director See Part 1 here for the beginning of the story. North Western Female College thrived in its early years, despite the setbacks of losing its first building to a fire and the multi-year absence of founder William Jones for health issues. It established Evanston as a place where educated women could find a home and where women’s education was important. In 1869, Northwestern University’s new president, Erastus Haven (formerly president of the University of Michigan) brought modern ideas about women’s education. Northwestern resolved to ad ..read more

By Lori Osborne, Evanston Women’s History Project Director 150 years ago, Evanston was at the center of an experiment in education that would define it for generations. Though Northwestern University is the best known today, it was two small women’s colleges that established Evanston as “a paradise for women.”1 As we start the school year in 2022, a look back at this time can bring surprising insight and deeper appreciation for those early explorers in the new world of higher education for women. The Beginnings of Women’s Education in the U.S. First, a very brief background.2 In the early 19th ..read more

By Lauren Dain, EWHP Summer 2022 Intern My name is Lauren Dain. I am a recent graduate of Evanston Township High School (ETHS) and a freshman at Northwestern University. This past summer, I spent a second summer interning at the Evanston History Center (EHC). Along with Meg Houseworth, a senior at ETHS and an EHC intern, we have embarked on a project to bring Evanston history into classrooms.  Evanston has a rich and complicated history that intersects with the political, social, and economic history of the United States. Evanston has been an epicenter for experimentation, from being a pi ..read more

Women’s Equality Day is a good day to recognize the nearly 70 year battle American women waged for full citizenship rights. Occuring on August 26th, Women’s Equality Day marks the passage of the 19th Amendment on this date in 1920. The 19th amendment stated: The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Evanston women were critical players in the fight for women’s suffrage and other rights. They articulated arguments and created strategies that influenced the national movement and made Illi ..read more