Badass Women of America
This podcast is about the women in history who broke barriers and made history yet you probably have never heard of them. Join us each week for a new episode about a woman or women who fought in wars, were amazing explorers, were pioneers in aviation – women who weren’t in our history books. These were exciting, brave, adventurous women who helped shaped this country. Join me, Kit and my friend Sherlock, as we share the exciting stories of these women whom you will want to know. These are the Badass Women of America.
Meg Crane - Inventor That Changed Women's Lives
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Before 1977 women had to go to a doctor and wait 2-4 weeks before knowing whether or not they were pregnant.
Meg Crane changed that forever. She wasn't a scientist, she was an artist. But she saw a need for women and took action.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of how Meg Crane gave power to women over their bodies.
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Ordinary Women Doing Extraordinary Things
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There are women who either in the moment or over decades decide to make a difference.
In this episode we talk about four women who in very different ways made a difference that changed the lives of many people around them.
Bravery, philanthropy, social changes, political changes that have saved lives or empowered people for a better life.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of four brilliant, brave women.
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The Bizarre and Inspiring Story of Harriet Strong
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Harriet Strong went from a frail, delicate Victorian woman to the mother of water conservation in America.
After decades of suppression under her father and husband, Harriet found her strength by necessity and changed farming irrigation in America forever.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of Harriet Strong, a revolutionary of California farming.
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Anne Royall - First American Woman Investigative Journalist - 1820s
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Anne Royall was born in 1769 in Baltimore but her family moved to Pennsylvania in 1772 to help settle a new town in what was then considered the migration West. It was the beginning of the expansion of the United States.
In 1782 during the Revolutionary War Anne's town in Pennsylvania was raided by British soldiers and Seneca warriors who burned the town to the ground.
Anne and her mother survived the attack and moved to Sweet Springs, Virginia where they worked for a wealthy man named William Royall. William recognized Anne's in...
Women Lighthouse Keepers in the 1800s!
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Seriously, did you know that hundreds of women were lighthouse keepers in the 1800s? We didn't.
Ida Lewis and Kate Walker were two of the most famous. They kept the light burning through storms and fog. They kept a watch on the waters around them rescuing dozens and dozens of sailors who had the misfortune of capsizing during a storm.
These women were the bravest of the brave.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of Ida and Kate - two of the bravest women in Ame...
Henrietta Wood - Born a Slave, Fought for Her Freedom and Won!
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There's a lesson to be learned, especially today, from Henrietta Wood. Fight for your rights!
Henrietta was born a slave in 1818, freed in 1848 and then kidnapped once again into slavery in 1853.
She endured the hardship but fought to win reparations against the man who illegally enslaved her.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole bizarre story of how Henrietta Wood fought for her rights in 1870.
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Charlotta Bass - One Woman Who Changed Los Angeles - A True American Hero
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Los Angeles didn't start out as a democratic city supporting the rights of all people under the Constitution.
It took people like Charlotte Bass to ensure that ALL people were treated equally regarding jobs, housing and respectful treatment as citizens of Los Angeles
Charlotta Bass is one of the great American heroes that very few people know about.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of Charlotta Bass, a true American hero..
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Katharine McCormick - The Good, The Bad and the Ugly - Part 2-Birth of the Birth Control Pill
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Katharine McCormick did a lot to help women in the 1800s. She smuggled diaphragms from Europe to America by sewing them into the linings of high fashion women's apparel so that American women could have a contraceptive.
She fought tirelessly for women to have contraceptives to control their number of births.
She eventually funded a biologist's quest for a birth control pill which eventually changed the lives of tens of millions of women...
...but she did it at a price of Puerto Rican women.
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Katharine McCormick - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly - Part 1
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Katharine McCormick accomplished amazing things in her lifetime.
The second woman to graduate from MIT in 1904.A major donator and influence in the Suffrage Movement.The reason women have the birth control pill today.But, as always at Badass Women of America, we like to tell the whole story and sometimes that ain't pretty.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of Katharine McCormick, the woman who gave women the freedom of choosing when to have children...but, at a price.
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Women Athletes from the 1870s to the 1970s
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Did you know that women started playing basketball in 1892?
Do you know who co-wrote Title IX?
Do you know about the naked protest of Yale women athletes in 1976?
Do you know Wilma Rudolph had polio as a child and became the winner of three gold medals in the 1960 summer Olympics?
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of these amazing women athletes who changed history.
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Women Inventors and Designers of the Automobile from the 1880s to Today
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Women have been involved in the development of the automobile since the beginning but they're not given enough credit or recognition.
Many of the features for the automobile we use today were invented by women from 1888 to today.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story about women in the auto industry.
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Three Great Stories of Women Who Made History
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Women's Pro Baseball is BACK! 99-year-old Maybelle Blair, one of the women who pitched for the All-American Girls Baseball League back in the 1940s, was present on August 1, 2026 for the first game of the newly formed Women's Pro Baseball League.
Alice Ramsey drove 3,600 miles cross country in 1909 as a promotion for the Maxwell Touring car. Only 152 miles of the journey had paved roads! It was an epic accomplishment.
Febb Burn was instrumental in women obtaining the right to vote in 1920.
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The American Plan - A Horrendous Law Against Women
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In 1918 the government decided that the surge of STDs is America was the fault of women so, they passed a law that allowed the police and health officials to randomly arrest women if it was "suspected" that they had an STD. This law was called The American Plan.
It's not known exactly how many women were rounded up and incarcerated without due process because mysteriously all the records regarding this atrocious law were destroyed but it's believed to be hundreds of thousands over decades.
This episode discusses details about t...
Black Angels - American Nurses Who Helped Stop An Epidemic
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Tuberculosis had killed nearly 6 million Americans. It was spreading fast in New York.
White nurses at Sea View Hospital in Staten Island had fought a galant fight but after many years the challenge of caring for dying patients as well as the tragedy of watching fellow nurses succumb to the disease was too much. They fled their jobs in droves.
Black nurses in the South who were looking for a better life were hired to work at Sea View and they changed the course of the disease.
Jo...
Women Who Revolutionized the Food Movement in the 1970s
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Organic food did not exist in the supermarkets in the mid-20th century.
This episode features four women who were instrumental in changing how Americans shopped and ate and led to the better foods available in restaurants and grocery stores throughout America today.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of how these women changed how America eats.
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Elizabeth Freeman - She Sued Her Slave Owner in 1781
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Elizabeth Freeman, also known as Mumbet, after hearing the reading of the newly ratified Massachusetts Constitution in 1780 which stated that all men were free, she took her slave owner to court to try to win her freedom.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of Elizabeth Freeman, the woman who ended slavery in Massachusetts 80 years before the Civil War.
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Women Bootleggers During Prohibition - Part 2
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In this episode we continue our story of American women bootleggers focusing on two of the most famous rum-runners - Cleo Lythgoe, Queen of the Bahamas and Willie Carter Sharpe, Rum-Running Queen of Virginia.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of these notorious women as well as the story of Mabel Walker Willebrandt, the U.S. Assistant District Attorney who was relentless in bringing bootleggers and their crimes to justice.
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Prohibition and a Famous Woman Bootlegger
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Prohibition began in Maine in 1851, way before federal prohibition in 1920. Mainers had to live with this ridiculous law for 82 years. But they found their way around it.
The only thing that prohibition accomplished for the country in 1920 was make the Mafia a powerful and unstoppable crime organization.
In Kentucky, Maggie Bailey was only seventeen years old in 1920 when she started building her moonshine empire in her home town county of Harlan.
She outsmarted law enforcement and federal agents for 78 years.
J...
Women Who Joined the Navy in 1917 During WWI
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Who knew?! The first women to enlist in a branch of the Armed Services were Yeoman for the US Navy in 1917 during WWI.
Over 11,000 women joined the Navy to work in areas like communications, decoding and encoding messages, designing camouflage to name just a few.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of the women of the Navy and how they not only served their country but changed the course of women in the workplace forever.
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Groundbreaking Women Doctors of the 19th and Early 20th Centuries
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Most people think there were only a few women doctors in the 1800s and early 1900s but there were thousands.
These women found a way around the restrictions of acceptable behavior for women during the Victorian era to pursue their dreams of attaining medical degrees in order to help others.
Join Kit and Sherlock to hear the accomplishments of a few of these Badass Women of America.
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Mary Willard - "Lady Sherlock" of Forensic Science in 1930
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It had to start somewhere and it started with Mary Willard - Forensic Science - the beginning of CSI.
Mary was an assistant professor of chemistry at Penn State University in 1930 when she was first asked to assist with a criminal case. By training and curiosity she became an expert in chemical analysis of evidence from crime scenes.
She became known nationally and internationally for her crime solving abilities by using chemistry.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the story of the interesting, eccentric, brilliant Mary Willard.
Frances Glessner Lee - The Mother of Forensic Science
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Without a medical degree, Frances, at the age of 53, changed the course of crime scene investigation and forensic pathology in the United States.
She was a pioneer in standardizing the methods used in assessing clues of a crime, training police investigators for decades and creating what we now know as Homicide Detectives.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of Frances and how she contributed to improving a very dysfunctional process of "death investigation" of the early 20th century.
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The Story of Dr. Esther Lovejoy - First Woman Doctor in Oregon - 1894
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Esther Lovejoy was one of the pioneering women in the medical field in the late 1890s until her death in 1967.
She not only traveled all over the world helping the sick and injured; not only changed laws regarding health codes but she also saved an American town from an epidemic.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of Dr. Esther Lovejoy.
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The Real Reason Ruth Handler Created "Barbie"!
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Barbie is not a bimbo! Ruth's intention for creating the Barbie doll was so that girls could role play who they could be as adults. She wanted the girls to see that they had choices to be whatever their imaginations created.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the story of Ruth Handler from her co-founding and managing of what became Mattel toy manufacturer through her breast cancer experience and her second invention and business that helped millions of women.
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The Woman Who Took Down the Biggest Mob Boss in New York in 1936!
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Her name is Eunice Carter and she should be in our history books.
First Black woman to receive a law degree from Fordham University.
First African American woman prosecutor in the United States.
First Black woman in the United States to be appointed as Assistant District Attorney.
She saw what no one else saw - that the mob was connected to prostitution in New York. She investigated, prepared a case and because of her work, the biggest mobster in New York was brought t...
Unsung Heroes - Women Who Went to War Without Guns During WW2, the Korean War and Vietnam
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They were called Donut Dollies, a name that doesn't represent who they were or what they did.
Thousands of women volunteers from WW2, the Korean War and the Vietnam War risked their lives to bring a little piece of America to the soldiers in combat.
They dogged bullets, landmines and bombings to bring joy, fun and a little bit of home to the thousands of men entrenched in war.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the story of these brave women who served their country without recognition and...
Women Gangsters of the 19th Century!
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We think that all women in the 1800s were demure housewives and mothers but there were some women who took America by storm with their criminal enterprises.
In this episode Kit and Sherlock cover three notorious East Coast women gangsters who lived lives on the edge as pickpockets, thieves, blackmailers, fences and financiers of major bank robberies in which the stolen money was never recovered.
Join us as we delve into the darker side of women in history.
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Emma Gatewood - First Woman to Complete a 2,050 Mile Hike in 1954 - alone!
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The Appalachian Trail is a brutal 2,050 mile hike that travels through 14 states and takes 4-6 months to complete.
Only 20% of hikers that start the trek actually finish.
Emma Gatewood started her journey when only 6 people before her had completed the trail. She was 67 years old when she started in May 1955.
She reached the end of the trail in September 1955. Reporters were present as she sang America the Beautiful as a tribute to her quest and the beauty that surrounded her.
She saved the Appalachian Trail by...
"Radium Girls" - The job was deadly but they didn't know it.
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We go to work thinking we're safe. That's what women who worked in the paint factories were told in the 1920s. It was a lie.
These women were exposed to high levels of radiation without their knowledge. Their stories of strength and perseverance in fighting the big corporations are inspirational and deeply sad.
Join Kit and Sherlock to hear the details of the Radium Girls' fight for justice.
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"Hello Girls" - Women Who Worked on the Front Lines Were Instrumental in the Success of WWI
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223 young women volunteered in 1917 to be sent to the front of WWI to revolutionize military communication.
These women connected over 26 million calls in 20 months working near the front lines with a speed six times faster than the men they replaced.
While bombs and arial attacks from the enemy whizzed around them, they connected critical calls for artillery support, troop movements, and pilot takeoffs, significantly improving the efficiency of the American war effort.
Their proficiency in English and French was essential for coordinating between...
Women Digging for Gold During the Gold Rush of the 1800s!
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We think it was only men who dug for gold and made or lost a fortune during the multiple gold rushes throughout America in the 1800s but that's not true.
Thousands of women got "gold fever" and set out to claim their fortune. Some established businesses, some were ranchers but...some were prospectors donning pants with a shovel and pick axe over their shoulders digging for the elusive gold.
These were women with brains and brawn making and sometimes losing fortunes in the Wild West a...
Women Who Helped Launch the Space Program at NASA -1940s-1970s
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Women behind the scenes is where all the action and work took place at NASA.
Men at NASA didn't want to have anything to do with computers. They considered complex calculations to be "women's work" so they passed the task of learning IBM's new Fortran computer program to Dorothy Vaughan, a mathematics genius.
She accepted the challenge and brought NASA into the computer age making the space program at NASA possible.
Katherine Johnson was instrumental in sending the first astronauts, Alan Shepard and John Glenn into space. Sh...
Women Human Computers from 1870-1970
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American women were not only instrumental in computing complex mathematical calculations for scientific research starting in the 1870s, they were instrumental in launching the space program that we know today.
Join Kit and Sherlock for an in-depth dive into the history of how women launched the space program.
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Iditarod - Fun or Cruel for Dogs?
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The Iditarod is the annual dog sled race held in Alaska since 1973.
We applaud the women who have competed in this race against all odds while being discouraged by men and encouraged by women.
However, we bring light to the cruelty of the dogs that has endured for 54 years.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the whole story of the treatment of dogs throughout the history of the Iditarod.
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Daisy Bates - Important Civil Rights Leader!
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You may not know Daisy Bates but we all should celebrate the contribution she made to the Civil Rights movement and especially the historic event in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957.
She tore down the wall of segregation in schools in the South. Ms. Bates did what no one had done before. She was instrumental in ensuring that nine black students, the Little Rock Nine, not only were accepted into an all-white high school in Arkansas in 1957 but that they succeeded in continuing their education.
Daisy Bates is an American he...
Little Rock Nine - Who were they?!
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The Little Rock Nine were nine black teenagers who changed history.
They bravely went against the hordes of white people trying to keep them from entering an all white high school in Little Rock Arkansa in search of a better education.
They were assaulted physically and verbally but it didn't stop them.
These kids were the bravest of the brave.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the story of desegregation of schools in the South in the 1950s and what these students had to endure to...
Fanchon Blake vs LAPD
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Fanchon Blake was a Major in the US Army during WW2. After the war she joined the LAPD where she was restricted from not only using her skills as a Major but was sometimes reduced to custodial work.
When she objected to the rule that women couldn't rise above the rank of sergeant, she was ridiculed until she fought by back filing a lawsuit against the LAPD in 1973.
She was ostracized by her fellow "men in blue" until she won her lawsuit changing history for women in the workplace.
Phillis Wheatley - Extraordinary Black Slave Poet Who Is Still Studied Today
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Do you want to know about extraordinary black women in the history of America?
Here's your chance. Phillis Wheatley proved herself to be a one-of-a-kind American extraordinaire.
Her journey starts in West Africa, is transported to Boston and then to London and back to Boston.
It's not a pretty story but it's a story of intelligence and creativity exalted and then squashed.
It's not an easy story but a story that must be heard because through all of it Phillis' poetry is still studied today.
...Sanora Babb vs Steinbeck Part 2
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We promised you in the previous episode that we would offer proof that Steinbeck used the notes of Sanora Babb from interviews with Dust Bowl migrants to write The Grapes of Wrath.
Did he miraculously write The Grapes of Wrath in 100 days after two failed attempts or did he write it after receiving the meticulous notes of Sanora Babb?
We believe Steinbeck stole Sanora's story for his own purposes.
Join Kit and Sherlock for the story of Sanora Babb vs Steinbeck.
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Sanora Babb vs Steinbeck - Part 1
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It's difficult to sum up Sanora Babb's life. Raised in poverty, didn't attend school until age eleven, became Valedictorian of her high school class, became a journalist good enough to receive a job offer from the Los Angeles Times in early 1929 but when she arrives to start the job she's turned away due to the sudden stock market crash.
Where does she go from here? It's an interesting journey. One that takes her all over the country, into Mexico and back to Los Angeles to pursue her desire to write a nove...
