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 Great Women of History click on any name, or scroll down, for more information Bertha Palmer Titanic Survivor Violet Jessop Civil War Nurse Clara Barton Abigail Adams Louisa May Alcott Frances Willard Illinois Suffragists CHILDREN'S PROGRAM: Revolutionary Mother Abigail Adams |
| Bertha Palmer
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 Titanic SurvivorViolet Jessop Few survivors of the HMHS Britannic sinking emerged with a toothbrush, but Violet Jessop had hers, remembering what she had missed after surviving the sinking of the Titanic (the Britannic's virtually identical sister ship) several years earlier. The only person to survive both sinkings, Jessop gives eyewitness accounts of the terrifying disasters and shares stories about life as an ocean liner stewardess. Clever and articulate, Jessop not only tells unforgettable stories of the tragedies from the striking viewpoint of a crew member but also gives a fascinating glimpse at life behind the scenes on the most glamorous luxury liners of their day. |
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Abigail Adams In this first-person program, it is 1776, and Adams recounts her life, including her famous call to John to "remember the ladies" in the founding of the new nation. She shares her gossipy opinions of the founding fathers and their plans for revolution, displays her lively wit and offers a glimpse at one of the great love stories of all time. |
| Civil War Nurse Clara Barton
As a single woman determined to make a mark for herself, Clara Barton earned distinction as the first woman to serve as a nurse on the front lines of a battlefield (rather than at a hospital miles from the the battlefield). This first-person program focuses on her childhood and her Civil War work, introducing Barton as a woman of unusual ambition who survived remarkable, often shocking experiences, in her quest to improve conditions for wounded soldiers in the American Civil War. In Sept. 1862, she defied rules and reached the Antietam battlefield while the fight still raged. While raising one soldier's head to give him a drink, a bullet sliced through her sleeve, instantly killing the soldier. This vivid portrayal explores the often brutal medical conditions of the American Civil War and the bravery required from a woman who chose to brave the front lines. |
Louisa May Alcott Generations of readers have cherished Louisa May Alcott's 1868 children's book, Little Women, and the other books she wrote, including Little Men and Jo's Boys. In this program, meet the author behind these beloved works. One of four daughters of an intellectual and non-conventional father, she grew up amidst uptopian ideas in a literary community where Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau were neighbors. As feisty and humorous as the character of Jo, modeled on herself, she championed women's rights, detested slavery and defied convention by volunteering as a nurse during the Civil War. This programs not only explores Alcott's struggles to earn her living as a writer, but also reveals her life to be far more turbulent than the peaceful happiness she often depicted in her semi-autobiographical children's books. |
| Frances Willard Though often forgotten today, Frances Willard was one of the most famous Americans in the 1880s and 1890s. She rose to worldwide prominence in the temperance crusade, working tirelessly to end the sale and consumption of alcohol. Far more than a mere teetotaler, Willard viewed temperance as the core of a mass social reform movement whose effects rippled outward to include numerous progressive causes - votes for women, dress reform, the end of prostitution and even sports for women. Meet the woman whose humor, savvy and intelligence made her “the best loved woman in America.” |
| Illinois and the Winning of Women's Suffrage Few states witnessed a livelier or more dynamic campaign to win women's suffrage than Illinois. Illinois was the first state east of the Mississippi to grant women presidential suffrage and the first state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment. Who were the women behind these victories and how did they win them? Meet some of Illinois' most famous suffragists, including Mary Livermore, Frances Willard, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, and Catherine Waugh McCulloch. Learn about the petitions, lectures, conventions and parades they organized. NOTE: This program is presented partially in lecture format and partially in first-person, using hats rather than full costumes to indicate transitions between the five characters. A podium is required. |
| CHILDREN'S PROGRAM:
Revolutionary Mother Abigail Adams
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Chicago socialite and philanthropist, wife of millionaire real estate magnate Potter Palmer, and pace-setting arts patron, Bertha Palmer is best remembered for her outstanding Impressionist collection, now at the Art Institute of Chicago. But the glamorous Mrs. Palmer has her own fascinating story. As shrewd as she was stylish, Palmer helped recoup her husband's lost fortune after the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and presided over Chicago society for a quarter of a century. At the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893, she served as hostess to the world. Intelligent and witty, the intriguing Mrs. Palmer still compels attention.
