Tough and Tender: Plucky Women From History

A few women in history fought hard for their place in life and defied the odds that kept them from their dreams and success. Whether struggling to make a new life or blaze new trails, their stories are real and fascinating pages from history.

Anne Royall

A no-nonsense female journalist of the early 1800’s, Anne Royall pursued the story anywhere it led — even to the point of sitting of President John Quincy Adams’ clothes while he was swimming in order to obtain an interview. Despite prosecution as a “public scold” in her sixties, her tenacious spirit was untamed and continued to forge new heights for women in writing.

Eleanor Pruitt Stewart

A widow with a daughter to support, Eleanor Pruitt Stewart found herself building a whole new life when she went West in the early 1900s to file her own homestead claim. She later married her employer, a longtime friend and fellow homesteader. A dynamic force, Eleanor’s strong character and firm opinions earned her respect in her new community. Her advice and assistance to those around her and her fascinating day-to-day experiences were chronicled in a series of letters mailed “back home”, later published as a book recounting the life of a determined woman building a home in a strange new place.

Lilias Trotter

Despite Ruskin’s admiration for Lilias Trotter’s brilliant talent as an artist, her dreams of being a missionary took her from her existence as an ordinary Victorian woman to an exotic life among the Islamic population of Algeria. Her work among the people of her new land is preserved forever in her beautiful illustrations reflect her simple but extraordinary existence, as well as religious writings about her faith, many directed towards her missionary goal to convert the Algerians.

Susan B. Anthony

Known as the mother of feminism, Susan B. Anthony invested her time and voice in helping women find basic rights in society. A strong woman who fought for her cause, she held firm to her beliefs on protecting unborn children and preserving the family — all while working to protect women from abuse, manipulation, and degradation. Although conservative in comparison to modern feminist leaders, Susan B. Anthony fought hard to be recognized both as a woman and an equal member of society.

These women were among the many that followed their path into history’s pages. Their accomplishments shine as inspiration to modern women as a sign of what womankind has faced and overcome.