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Helen Keller was an author, lecturer, and crusader for the handicapped. Born in Tuscumbia, Alabama, She lost her sight and hearing at the age of nineteen months to an illness now believed to have been scarlet fever. Join us at The Lives of Women in History Facebook group. Email womensettlers@gmail.com

Sarah Jane Woodson Early was an African American educator, author, and feminist. For 30 years she was a teacher and school principal in Ohio, and in the South after the Civil War. In 1866 she became the first African American woman professor when she was hired by Wilberforce University to teach Latin and English. email womensettlers@gmail.com Join our Facebook group The Lives of Women in History

Minna Canth was a Finnish writer and social activist. She began to write as a widow raising seven children. Her work addressed issues of women's rights and gender equality, particularly in the context of a prevailing culture she considered against permitting the expression and realization of women's aspirations. The Worker's Wife and The Pastor's Family are two of her best-known plays, but the play Anna Liisa was the most adapted to the films and operas. In her time, she became a controversial figure, due to the asynchrony between her ideas and those of her time, and in part due to her strong advocacy for her point of view. Join us on Facebook at The Lives of Women in History Facebook group. womensettlers@gmail.com

Elizabeth Murray was born in Scotland and orphaned by the time she was 11. She eventually moved to the American Colonies and later became an independent business woman running her own shop in 18th Century Boston. She survived the turmoil of the American Revolution all while teaching young women how to run their own businesses. Join us on Facebook at The Lives of Women in HIstory Facebook group. Email womensettlers@gmail.com.

As a small child, she was stolen from her home. Placed aboard a dank, dark, disease-infested ship and chained to stranges for months. Somehow she managed to survive the journey. The young nameless girl, missing her two front teeth, was purchased by the Wheatley family and given the name of Phillis. The Wheatleys soon discovered how bright the little girl was and decided to educate her. She grew into an amazing Poet at a time when women and especially enslaved black women were seen as inferior and considered ignorant. Her book of poetry inspired a nation and soon after she gained her freedom. Join us on the Facebook Group - The Lives of Women in History- to discuss today's episode. Email womensettlers@gmail.com with show ideas, comments, and questions.

Mary Church was born to enslaved parents in 1863. Her mother and father both had white fathers who took interest in their lives and made sure they were educated. The family was eventually free of their bondage and went on to be business owners and gain significant wealth. Mary attended unsegregated schools and eventually went to college and graduated with both bachelor's and master's degrees. She started her career as a teacher and eventually became an activist for both racial equality and women's suffrage.

Kate Bender gained a reputation as an attractive but dangerous woman in her Labette County community. Living with her mother, father, and brother while helping them run an isolated grocery and roadhouse she felt somewhat like an alien. She was the only one to culture social skills. It was even said that she had an alleged gift for second sight and spiritualism and distributed advertising circulars throughout the county proclaiming her abilities. Her enduring fame wouldn't come from her supposed abilities but that of murder. Kate was the leading member of the "Bloody Benders." The small Bender home was divided into two rooms by canvas cloth. There was a table, stove, and grocery stores in front and beds in the back along with the pit-like cellar covered by a trap door. The Bender family's crimes were considered some of the more gruesome perpetrated on Kansas soil. John, his wife Katherine, son John Jr., and daughter Kate operated an inn outside of Parsons from 1871 to 1873.

Happy Halloween. In this episode, we discuss the history of some of the witch trials and the self-proclaimed Witchfinder General Mathew Hopkins! along with a quick bonus of Faries, brownies, and Hobgoblins.

Ann Hutchinson was an influential Puritan spiritual leader in colonial New England who challenged the religious doctrines of her time. She was one of the earliest American feminists. She challenged male authority and this indirectly challenged gender roles. She preached to both women and men and questioned Puritan teachings about salvation.

Young Martha Canary had a rough early life and didn't make things easier on herself as she grew into womanhood. She traveled from place to place looking for somewhere that she could call home. She quickly found that she preferred men's work to women's work and forgetting was in a bottle. She tried to be respectable but after years of living a life as Calamity Jane, it was hard to settle down and change. She had a heart of gold and a soul meant to wonder. Join the conversation in The Lives of Women in History Facebook group. Email at womensettlers@gmail.com. Twitter @womensettlers