Women's History Resources

The following books and multimedia items are found in the State Library’s collections.  State employees may request materials on site, by phone at 800-928-7000, ext. 342, or by emailing Ask a Librarian.  Members of the general public may request materials on site or by contacting the local public library for interlibrary loan services.

Books

Birchfield, James D.  Kentucky Countess:  Mona Bismarck in Art & Fashion.  Lexington: University of Kentucky Art Museum, 1997.  Call number:  K 976.904092 Birc 

This book describes the life of Countess Mona Travis Strader Schlesinger Bush Williams von Bismarck de Martini Bismarck, born in Louisville, Kentucky, a society celebrity known for her couture wardrobe, her collections, and her lavish lifestyle.

Clooney, Rosemary.  Girl Singer: An Autobiography.  New York: Doubleday, 1999. Call number:  K B Cloo

The legendary singer and actress shares the ups and downs of her life and career, detailing her rise to success in the entertainment world, her troubled marriage to Jose Ferrer, her battle with addiction and depression, and later triumphs.

Clooney, Rosemary.  This for Remembrance.  New York:  Playboy Press, 1977.  Call number:  K B Cloo

Clooney’s first autobiography chronicles her unhappy early life; her career as a singer, which started as a sister act alongside sister Betty and led to Big Band fame; her fateful marriage to actor Jose Ferrer; her subsequent mental breakdown; and her comeback and personal happiness.

Conner, Catherine.  From My Old Kentucky Home to the White House: The Political Journey of Catherine Conner. Lexington:  University Press of Kentucky, 1999.  Call number:  K B Conn

With colorful anecdotes, Catherine Conner tells readers what it was like for a beautiful and intelligent Kentucky girl to become an influential political figure.

Cromwell, Emma Guy.  Woman in Politics.  Frankfort, KY: The Kentucky Commission on Women, 1996.   Call number:  K B Crom

Cromwell began her political career when elected by the Senate as state librarian in 1896.  In 1924 she successfully campaigned for and was elected Secretary of State, making her the first woman elected to statewide office in Kentucky.  In 1927 she was the first woman elected state treasurer and later appointed state parks director in 1932.

Crowe-Carraco, Carol.  Women Who Made a Difference.  Lexington:  University Press of Kentucky, 1989.   Call number:  K 305.40922 Crow

The author provides short biographies of some of Kentucky’s unsung heroines—women who had a vision of a better life for themselves and for others.

DeRosier, Linda Scott.  Creeker: A Woman's Journey.  Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1999.  Call number:  K B DeRo

Linda Scott DeRosier’s humorous yet poignant autobiography is the story of an educated and cultured American woman who came of age in Appalachia and remains unabashedly honest about and proud of her mountain heritage.

Giles, Janice Holt.  The Kinta Years.  Boston:  Houghton Mifflin, 1973.  Call number:  K B Gile

This noted Kentucky novelist gives an account of life in small town Oklahoma at the beginning of this century.

Gish, Shirley.  Country Doctor:  The Story of Dr. Claire Louise Caudill.  Lexington:   University Press of Kentucky, 1999.  Call number:  K 610.976957 Gish   0813120772

The first part of Country Doctor tells Dr. Caudill's story through interviews with Dr. Caudill, Nurse Halblieb, and the people who knew them best. The second reproduces a one-woman, two-act play entitled Me 'n Susie, inspired by Dr. Caudill's warmth and humor. Together, the play and interviews provide a vivid picture of life in the hills of Eastern Kentucky and a remarkable portrait of two great women in medicine.

Hall, Wade H.  Passing for Black: The Life and Careers of Mae Street Kidd.  Lexington:  University Press of Kentucky, 1997.  Call number:  K B Kidd

Kidd, born in 1904 in Millersburg, Kentucky, was raised by her black mother and stepfather, ignored, indeed never even acknowledged, by her white father, a wealthy landowner and neighbor.  She became not only an innovative businesswoman and civic leader but also a skilled politician. Kidd served in the Kentucky General Assembly for 17 years, overseeing the passage of important civil-rights-related legislation.

Hooks, Bell.  Bone Black: Memories of Girlhood.  New York : Henry Holt, 1996.  Call number:  K 305.48896073 Hook

In this moving memoir of her childhood bell hooks explains the roots of her forceful and rigorous attitude to life and literature.

Hooks, Bell.  Wounds of Passion: A Writing Life.  New York:  H. Holt, 1997.  Call number:  K B Hook

In this sequel to Bone Black, hooks reveals her passion for poetry, feminism, and the man with whom she spent 15 bittersweet years of her life.  

Jonza, Nancylee Novell.  The Underground Stream:  The Life and Art of Caroline Gordon.  Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1995.  Call number:  K B Gord

Jonza presents a biography of writer Caroline Gordon (1895-1981) which reclaims her integrity, individuality, and artistic vision from beneath a self-effacing, sometimes detractive, public image carefully fostered by the artist herself.  

Kentucky Women: Two Centuries of Indomitable Spirit and Vision. [Louisville, KY]: Big Tree Press, 1997.  Call number:  K 305.409769 Kent

The book includes biographical essays of 95 women whose contributions are part of Kentucky’s history and heritage.

Klatte, Mary Ellen.  Kentucky Woman: The Life of Viebie Catron Cantrell.  Ashland, KY: Jesse Stuart Foundation, 2000.  Call number:  K B Cant

The author has captured the quiet strength of southern Kentucky and it's people. Through Mrs. Klatte's conversations with Viebie Lee, diary entries, letters and family remembrances, a life story unfolds—a  story of hardship, friendship, determination, affection, persistence, and above all, love.

Lynn, Loretta with George Vecsey.  Loretta Lynn: Coal Miner's Daughter.  Cambridge, MA : Da Capo Press, 2001, c1976.  Call number:  K B Lynn

Loretta Lynn tells the story of the dirt-poor Kentucky girl who married at 14, had four of her six children before she was 21 and went on to become one of country music's most successful recording artists.

Lynn, Loretta with Patsi Bale Cox.  Still Woman Enough: A Memoir.  New York: Hyperion, 2002.  Call number:  K B Lynn

In this riveting follow-up to her Coal Miner’s Daughter, Loretta Lynn continues her captivating story about triumph over the odds.

Lyon, George Ella.  A Sign.  New York: Orchard Books, 1998.  Call number:  KJ B Lyon

The author simply describes how she considered various careers as she grew and how she combined them all into her work as a writer.

Lyon, George Ella.  A Wordful Child.  Katonah, NY: Richard C. Owen Publishers, 1996.  Call number:  KJ B Lyon

The author describes how her love of words and her personal experiences evolved into a career as a writer.

Majozo, Estella Conwill.  Come out the Wilderness: Memoir of a Black Woman Artist. New York: Feminist Press at the City University of New York, 1999, c1998.  Call number:  K B Majo

This book presents a  powerfully written memoir by a black woman artist in search of meaning and "grace" as she testifies to the importance of a life lived in pursuit of cultural heritage, spiritual growth, and personal integrity.

Mason, Bobbie Ann.  Clear Springs:  A Memoir.  New York:  Random House, 1999.  Call number:  K B Maso

Examining her roots in rural Kentucky, where she was born in 1940, Mason unravels her family's history and considers its impact on her as a person and a writer.

Peter, Frances Dallam.  A Union Woman in Civil War Kentucky:  The Diary of Frances Peter.  Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2000.  Call number:  K 976.94703092 Pete

The only first-hand account written by a Kentucky woman and Union sympathizer. . . . provides insight into attitudes and relationships of Unionists and Confederates in a divided city and state.  (Revised edition of Window on the War, 1976)

Powers, Georgia Davis.  I Shared the Dream: The Pride, Passion and Politics of the First Black Woman Senator from Kentucky.  Far Hills, NJ: New Horizon Press, 1995. Call number:  K B Powe

In this autobiography by one of the very few women treated as a peer by the leaders of the Civil Rights Movement, former Kentucky State Senator Georgia Davis Powers breaks her long silence to reveal her fascinating life story.

Runyon, Randolph.  Delia Webster and the Underground Railroad.  Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1996.  Call number:  K 973.5092 Runy

This book explores the conflicting reports surrounding the roles of a mild-mannered school teacher and a Methodist preacher in transporting slaves for the Underground Railroad.

Stuart, Dianne Watkins.  Janice Holt Giles, a Writer's Life.  Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1998.  Call number:  K B Gile

In this admiring biography, Stuart draws from Giles's personal papers to trace her progression from observer to chronicler.

Thomas, Helen.  Front Row at the White House:  My Life and Times.  New York : Scribner, 1999.  Call number:  K B Thom

The veteran Washington reporter gives her account of instant history at the White House, the result of her covering the administrations of every president since JFK for United Press International.

Videos and DVDs

Women of Vision: Dreaming in Color
1997 28 min. H-A
Call number:  VC B Pobi VC8805

Pilar Pobil left Spain as a young woman and became an American housewife in Utah.  At 43, she decided to begin her career as a sculptor and painter.

Mary Cassatt, American Impressionist
1999 56 min. I-A
Call number:  VC B Cass VC7227

Visit to Paris gives a self-centered teenager a lesson in art, life and love.

Mary Jane Colter: The Desert View
1996 53 min.H-A
Call number:   VC B Colt VC7647

Explores the architecture designed to blend with the environment and to reflect the history of indigenous cultures of Mary Jane Colter in the Grand Canyon National Park.

Mary Pickford, a Life on Film
2000 99 min. H-A
Call number:  VC B Pick VC8930

Definitive documentary combines previously unseen footage from Pickford's own archive with exceptional research to demonstrate why she and her films remain touchstones of film history.

Maya Lin, a Strong Clear Vision
1995 98 min. H-A
Call number:  VC 731.76 Maya VC5752

Portrays the career of Maya Lin as an architect/artist as told by her and others, with special focus on the design and emotional impact of the Vietnam Veterans and Civil Rights Memorials.

Mountain Shadow:  Four Appalachian Artists
1997 57 min. J-A
Call number:  VC 700.82 Moun VC8772

Four Appalachian women artists discuss their lives, their art and their Appalachian heritage.

Patricia Polacco, Dream Keeper
1996 23 min. P-I
Call number:  VC B Pola VC6958

Author-illustrator talks about her childhood, family and sources of inspiration for her stories.

Sylvia Plath:  The Growth of a Poet
1997 30 min. H-A
Call number:  VC 811.54 Sylv VC867

Follows the development of this gifted young American poet, who ended her life in 1963 at the age of thirty, through thirteen of her poems and excerpts from her letters.

Zora Is My Name!
2003 88 min. H-A
Call number:  VC B Hurs VC9718

Dramatization of the life of Zora Neale Hurston, who wrote of the folklore of the rural south.

Women of Courage: Amelia Earhart
2003 23 min. P-I
Call number:  VC B Earh VC8305

Examines the life of this pioneering aviator, whose daring flights set records and amazed the world.

Around the World in 72 Days
1997 60 min. H-A
Call number:  VC B Bly VC5679

Story of a remarkably ambitious woman who, in an era of Victorian reserve, became a household name by doing things a woman wasn't supposed to do.

Breakin' the Glass: The American Basketball League, 1996-1998
2000 28 min. H-A
Call number:  VC 796.323082 Brea VC8123

Documentary about the American Basketball League, the professional basketball league for women players.

Equality: A History of the Women's Movement in America
1996 30 min. J-A
Call number:  VC 324.623 Equa VC5411

Chronicles the lives of women who were prominent in the various women's movements that emerged in response to a variety of injustices perpetrated against women in their personal, public, and professional lives.

Harriet Tubman
1996 30 min. P-I
Call number:  VC 920 Harr VC6171

Profiles Harriet Tubman, "The Moses of her people," who helped more than 300 slaves escape to freedom between 1849 and 1860.

Helen Keller
1995 30 min. I-A
Call number:  VC B Kell VC183

Describes how a woman left blind and deaf from a childhood illness overcame her handicaps to become a noted writer and humanitarian.

Her Own Words
198615 min. J-A
Call number: VC 977.503 Her VC4576

Memoirs, diaries, and personal stories of several Dane County, Wisconsin pioneer women bring to life the history of Wisconsin in the 1830s, 40s, and 50s.

Ida B. Wells, a Passion for Justice
1990 58 min. H-A
Call number:  VC B Well VC1579

Chronicles the life of Ida B. Wells, an early Afro-American activist who protested lynchings, unfair treatment of Afro-American soldiers, and other examples of racism and injustice in early 20th century U.S.

The Loretta Claiborne Story
2000 90 min. I-A
Call number:  VC B Clai VC7842

Loretta Claiborne garnered numerous awards throughout her lifetime while overcoming all odds.

Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory: The Women's Army Corps
1997 30 min. J-A
Call number: VC 355.3480973 Mine VC8940

Establishment of the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps allowed to augment the U. S. Army. One year later Congress granted full military status to women through the creation of the Women's Army Corps (WAC), and from that time until its disestablishment in 1978, the WAC proved to be an essential component in the U.S. defense effort.

Not for Ourselves Alone:  The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Susan B. Anthony
1999 210 min. H-A
Call number:   VC 305.42092273 Not VC9354

Dramatic story of the most compelling friendship of Elizabeth Stanton and Susan Anthony. Their personal relationship was often turbulent but they never wavered in their shared belief that equality was the birthright of every woman.

One Woman, One Vote
1995 109 min. H-A
Call number:  VC 324.623 One VC4410             

Documents the 70-year struggle for women's suffrage which culminated in the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920.

Pocahontas, Ambassador of the New World
1995 50 min. J-A
Call number:  VC B Poca VC5171

Intimate portrait of a remarkable young woman whose brief life left an indelible mark on a fledgling nation.

Revolutionary War Heroes
2003 23 min. H-A    
Call number:  VC 973.30922 Grea VC8310

Focuses on the daring acts of patriotism from people such as Nathan Hale and Sybil Ludington and the brave military feats of Colonel Francis Marion, Captain John Paul Jones and Molly Pitcher.

Sacagawea
2003 23 min. P-I
Call number:  VC B Saca VC8312

Tells of Sacagawea, who joined American explorers, Lewis & Clark, on a world-famous expedition through the American West.

Secret of Photo 51
2003  60 min. H-A
Call number:   VC 572.8609 Secr VC10062

The crucial breakthrough discovery of the double helix structure of DNA depended on the pioneering work of  biologist, Rosalind Franklin. She would never know that others had seen a crucial piece of her data without her permission. This was an X-ray image, Photo 51, that proved to be a vital clue in their decoding the double helix. Contains interviews, historical photographs and reenactments.

Seven Brides for Uncle Sam
1997 52 min. H-A
Call number:  VC 355.120922 Seve VC8807

Story of seven Newfoundland women who married American servicemen.

Steal Away: The Harriet Tubman Story
1997 28 min. I-A
Call number:  VC B Tubm VC6316

Presents dramatic reenactments from the life of Harriet Tubman, who led slaves to freedom on the Underground Railroad. Features songs sung by the slaves as signals of hope.

Susan B. Anthony
2003 23 min. P-I
Call number:  VC B Anth VC8303

Follows Anthony's life through vivid reenactments and historical stills, and sees how her lifelong dedication to the fight for equality changed the lives of women in America forever.

Susan B. Anthony Slept Here
1995 56 min. H-A
Call number:  VC 305.40973 Susa VC5370

Looks at the lives, landmarks and famous places of seven famous American women.

We Were WASP:  Women Airforce Service Pilots
1990 23 min. H-A
Call number:  VC 940.544973 We VC1808

Decribes the training regimen of the Women's Air Service Pilots during World War II and their activity in the war.

You Forgot Your Skirt, Amelia Bloomer!
2000?13 min. P
Call number:  VC B Bloo VC7854

Tells of Amelia Bloomer, who introduces pantaloons to American women to save them the discomfort of their heavy, tight dresses.

Women of Determination: The Captain Is a Lady
199? 13 min. J-A
Call number:  VC B Hopp VC1472

A cameo portrait of U.S. Navy Captain Grace Murray Hopper, who was a pioneer in the development of computers during World War II.

Eleanor Roosevelt
2000 150 min. H-A
Call number:    VC B Roos VC8176

Film reveals the hidden dimensions of one of the century's most influential women.

Madam C.J. Walker, Entrepreneur
1992 30 min. J-A
Call number:  VC B Walk VC6497

Story of Madam C. J. Walker, who developed a formula for restoring falling hair and built a successful business from it and became a positive role model for black women across the country.

Mi Vida:  The Three Worlds of María Gutiérrez
1992 28 min. J-A
Call number:  VC B Guti VC8937

Recounts her life as the illiterate daughter of a Mexican migrant farm worker, who through her determination and hard work, wins a four-year college scholarship to the University of California.

A Woman's World:  Women in Politics
2000 30 min. A
Call number:  VC 320.082 Woma VC9224

Discusses how women have influenced American politics, illustrates how women's lives are improved when women are elected to positions of power, and encourages girls and young women to explore public office.