Troux Sheroes Gallery

The term SHERO has been part of US history and etymology for nearly 200 years. Its first known use occurred in 1836 at the beginning of the American women’s suffrage movement.

More than a female version of hero, it was intended to denote women who embodied courage, strength, outstanding achievement, noble qualities, and a determination to change the status quo. It is an apt appellation for the women and girls who pioneered the quest for equality in every walk of life, and who are today breaking new ground and leading all over the world.

The SHEROES we celebrate here are but a tip of the iceberg. We invite you to research, celebrate and promote the sheroes in your life and those who are challenging and changing our world today.

To learn more, check out these sheroic websites.

Be the SHERO and inspiration in your own life!

Sheroes in Activism

Bella Abzug

(1920-1998)

Helen Keller

(1880-1968)

Laura Cornelius Kellogg

(1880-1949)

Gloria Steinem

(b. 1934)

Harriet

Beecher Stowe

(1811 - 1896)

Malala Yousafzai

(b. 1997)

Abolitionist, women’s rights activist, author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin.

Author, political activist, suffragist, lecturer. First deaf & blind person to earn a BA degree (Radcliffe). Helped found American Federation of the Blind and ACLU.

Activist for Native American rights, organizer, orator, author; founding member of Society of American Indians (1911).

Civil rights activist, leader in women’s movement, lawyer, US Representative in Congress (1971-77).

Author, journalist, lecturer, political activist, feminist organizer, co-founder

of Ms. Magazine.

Pakistani advocate for girls’ education. Youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate. 2020 Oxford University graduate in philosophy, politics and education.

Sheroes in Aviation

Sophie Blanchard

(1778-1819)

Katherine Sui

Fun Cheung

(1904 - 2003)

Jacqueline Cochran

(1905 - 1980)

Bessie Coleman

(1892 - 1926)

Amelia Earhart

(1897 - 1937)

Jeanne Geneviéve Garnerin

(1775 - 1847)

French balloonist and parachutist. The first woman to fly solo in a hot air balloon and first to use a parachute.

Pioneer French balloonist. Took her first solo hot air balloon flight in 1804, becoming Napoleon’s Chief of Aire Service in 1811; she died in a balloon crash.

First internationally licensed aviatrix of African American and Native American descent. Pioneer stunt pilot who performed in air shows and promoted flying to African Americans. Crashed and died testing a new plane.

Pioneer aviatrix and author. First woman pilot to fly solo across the Atlantic. Set many flying records, winning many awards, including US Distinguished Flying Cross and Gold Medal from National Geographic Society. Disappeared over the Pacific in 1937 while attempting first round the world flight.

First Asian American aviatrix. Pioneer stunt flyer and racer in air shows. Licensed commercial pilot. Member of Amelia Earhart’s Ninety-Nine Club (the Double Nines). Inducted in Aviation Hall of Fame.

Pioneer in women’s aviation. Founder/Director of Women’s Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) (1940s). First woman jet pilot to fly faster than speed of sound. Retired US Air Force Lt. Colonel. NASA consultant. Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Flying Cross. Aviation Hall of Fame.

Sheroes in Environmentalism

Rachel Carson

(1907 - 1965)

Theodora

(Theo) Colborn

(1927 - 1974)

Dian Fossey, PhD

(1932 - 1985)

Jane Goodall, PhD, DBE

(b. 1934)

Winona LaDuke

(b.1959)

Greta Thunberg

(b. 2003)

Marine biologist, conservationist, lecturer, author of Silent Spring. Advanced global environmental movement. National Book Award (1952), National Women’s Hall of Fame (1773), Presidential Medal of Freedom (1980).

Environmental health analyst, birder, author of Our Stolen Future, founder and President Emerita ofthe Endocrine Disruption Exchange (TEDX).

Conservationist, primatologist, author of Gorillas in the Mist, founder of Karisoke™ Research Center (Rwanda).

Environmentalist. Conservationist. Founder of the Jane Goodall Institute (1971), Roots & Shoots global youth leadership program (1991). UN Messenger of Peace.

Environmentalist and activist for indigenous communities; founder of White Earth Land Recovery Project and Honor the Earth.

Swedish climate youth activist. Sparked international movement to fight climate change (2018).

Sheroes in History

Jane Addams

(1860 - 1935)

Kate Warne

(1833 - 1868)

Julia Morgan

(1872 - 1957)

Harriet Tubman

(1822 - 1913)

Sojourner Truth

(1797 - 1883)

Sacagawea

(1788 - 1812)

(Born Isabella "Belle" Baumfree)

Abolitionist, women’s rights and civil rights activist, lecturer, minister. Her “Ain’t I a Woman?” speech changed attitudes about race and gender.

(Born enslaved Araminta Ross; nicknamed “Moses”)

Underground Railroad conductor, abolitionist, women’s rights advocate. Made 19 missions to rescue 300 enslaved people. As Union spy during Civil War, liberated 700+ slaves in SC.

First female detective. Joined Pinkerton Agency in 1856, heading its Bureau of Female Detectives. Saved President Lincoln’s life on the way to his 1861 Inauguration. Worked undercover as spy in Civil War.

Social worker, reformer, sociologist, public administrator, and author. Founded American Civil Liberty Union and Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. Awarded Nobel Peace Prize (1931).

First American woman architect and civil engineer. Designed over 700 buildings, including Hearst Castle (CA). First woman awarded American Institute of Architects (AIA) Gold Medal (2014, posthumously).

Interpreter (multi-lingual) and guide for the 1804 Lewis and Clark Expedition. Accolades include: Hall of Great Westerners (1959), the National Women's Hall of Fame (2000), and the US Mint dollar coin (2000).

Sheroes in Politics

Hillary

Rodham Clinton

(b.1947)

Kamala Harris

(b.1964)

Nancy Pelosi

(b. 1940)

Frances Perkins

(1880 - 1965)

Eleanor Roosevelt

(1884 - 1962)

Margaret

Chase Smith

(1897 - 1995)

Sociologist and worker rights advocate, Secretary of Labor for President Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1933-1945; first woman to serve on a presidential cabinet.

4-term First Lady. International political figure. Diplomat. Activist. Author. Columnist.

U.S. Congresswoman from California since 1993; Speaker of the House of Representatives, 2007-2011 and

2019 – current year.

2016 Presidential Candidate, US Secretary of State (2001-2009), US Senator (NY) (2009-2013), 2-term First Lady. Author.

First woman of color nominated for U.S. Vice President; former Attorney General of CA, lawyer and politician.

U.S. Senator

(R-ME); first woman to serve as chair of the Senate Republican Conference.

Sheroes in the Suffrage Movement

Susan

B. Anthony

(1820 - 1906)

Alice Paul

(1885 - 1977)

Elizabeth

Cady Stanton

(1815 - 1901)

Lucy Stone

(1818 - 1893)

Mary

Church Terrell

(1863 - 1954)

Ida B.

Wells-Barnett

(1862 - 1931)

Suffrage leader. Feminist. Abolitionist. Author. Leader in women’s rights movement. Principal author, 1848 Declaration of Sentiments and 15 books.

Orator. Abolitionist. Suffragist, first MA woman to earn a college degree (Oberlin), founding editor or Women's Journal weekly periodical.

Women’s rights activist. Founded National Woman’s Suffrage Assoc. and American Equal Rights Association.

National civil rights and suffrage leader. Founder and first president of National Association of Colored Women (1896).

Suffragist, feminist, women’s rights activist. One of main leaders and strategists of campaign for 19th Amendment, author of the Equal Rights Amendment.

Journalist, newspaper editor, author, suffragist, civil rights leader. Co-founded the National Association of Color Women (1896) and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) (1909). Author of The Red Record, which detailed the atrocities of lynching.