Women Entrepreneurs, Inventors, and Innovators

Across the collections of the Hagley Museum and Library, from manuscripts to audiovisual materials to published works to objects, there is evidence of women taking on important roles within companies, exploring new horizons, and creating items to make the human experience easier. Often these women and their contributions have been overlooked, but through this subject guide, we hope to give space to several women and their accomplishments within their respective fields.  

Hagley Museum and Library’s collections hold various mentions of women entrepreneurs, inventors, and innovators. Through the institution’s expansive manuscript collection, there are materials on women that date back to the eighteenth century. Oral history interviews produced through Hagley’s Oral History Program preserve women’s voices and bring their stories to life. Audiovisual resources like photographs and videos which can be found in the Hagley Digital Archives give a peek into the lives of innovative women within the workplace. Additionally, the museum collections draw attention to the material culture of invention in its holdings related to women inventors. 

ENTREPRENEURS

Elizabeth Paschall (1702-1768?) was a merchant in the Philadelphia area. She married Joseph Paschall in 1721 and continued her husband’s business following his death. Information on Paschall is in the William Henry Russell collection of Morris family papers, which includes some of her papers and two receipt books used to record business and personal expenses. 

Ann Talley worked as a part of the millinery business in Wilmington, Delaware. Talley’s sales are found in two daybooks with entries dating from 1820 to 1847 from Wilmington, Baltimore, and Petersburg in the collection of Mid-Atlantic business records.  

Following her husband’s death, Lydia R. Bailey (1779-1869) took over their Philadelphia printing business which created certificates for ships. Under her management, the establishment thrived and obtained contracts from government agencies, the University of Pennsylvania, and even the city of Philadelphia.  

Following the death of her husband in 1825, Rebecca Webb Pennock Lukens (1794-1854) took over the Lukens Steel Company (previously the Brandywine Iron Works and Nail Factory) in Coatesville, Pennsylvania, as the first woman in the United States to run an iron works.  

Madam C. J. Walker (1867-1919), born Sarah Breedlove, was a self-made millionaire who made her fortune through her making and selling of hair care products for Black women in Indianapolis, Indiana. Hagley’s Digital Archives have two of her publications, The Walker 1949 Almanac and The Key to Beauty, Success, Happiness, available to peruse. Examples of her product packaging reside in the museum collection. 

Alice Steinlein (1880-1965) founded the Greenwood Book Shop in Wilmington, Delaware following her husband’s death. Alongside Gertrude Kruse, they ran the independent bookstore. Photographs of the Greenwood Book Shop’s interior and a used shipping label from the shop are housed in Hagley’s collection.

Edith N. McConnell (1880-1968), the successor to the D.B. Jones Company, was a caterer and confectioner that worked in Wilmington, Delaware. McConnell took over the business in 1921 and ran it until her leave in 1957. Her address and birthday book in addition to a customer ledger can be found in the D.B. Jones Company records. The Edith N. McConnell business records hold expense and accounts receivable books as well as an advertisement while the digitized E.N. McConnell Restaurant photographs depict cakes, table settings, and the inside of McConnell’s business.

Women's Department booth (1967)Victorine du Pont Homsey (1900-1998) and her husband Samuel Homsey were both architects. Together, they opened Homsey Architects, Inc., an architectural firm, one of the first husband-wife firms in the United States. The collection includes the firm’s records and a photograph collection of an estate. Also, Hagley has received an addition to this collection scheduled to be available to researchers by 2026.

Louise Bushnell (1909-1986) led the Women’s Department of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) from 1944-1973. The article “Who’s Who...Louise Bushnell” chronicles her life including her time at the NAM, her marriages, and experience as a spy during World War II. Information on Bushnell can be found in the National Association of Manufacturers records, specifically in the section on the Women’s Department which also has some of her speeches. 

H.M. Baker Associates, founded and managed by Helen Baker Cushman (1922-) primarily aided other companies in celebrating their anniversaries through materials relating to their opening year or corporate history. Cushman’s papers and photograph collection contain correspondence, examples of the company’s work, and materials used for the business.  

Gale Ferranto (1969-) is the president of Buona Foods Incorporated, a mushroom wholesaler and farm located in Landenberg, Pennsylvania. Ferranto’s mother began the farm in 1972. Hagley staff interviewed Ferranto in 2019 as a part of an oral history project and in the interview, she discusses her and her mother’s roles at Buona Foods Incorporated. 

INVENTORS

The Hagley Museum has two collection highlights related to women inventors. The Fred M.B. Amram & Sandra A. Brick Woman Inventor Collection was created to bring attention to women’s creativity and the growing number of patents issued to women. In the nineteenth century, fewer than 1% of the patents issued were given to women, and the Patent Models by Women Inventors displays a selection of patent models received by women held within Hagley's collection. 

Patent Model - Improved Crib-Attachment for BedsteadsEmily Evans Tassey (1823-1899) is one inventor included within these collections. Tassey, a native of McKeesport, Pennsylvania near Pittsburgh, found herself surrounded by industry that used water for power, and, from 1876-1880, she earned five patents relating to marine technology. The museum holds two of her patent models. 

Another inventor included within Hagley’s collection is Harriet Ruth Tracy (1834-1918). From 1868-1915, Tracy received around twenty-seven patents, and Hagley has the model for her first patent, Improved Crib-Attachment for Bedsteads.  

Nora Edwards (1869-1962) invented a skirt supporter which fastened a dress skirt and shirtwaist, so that both would stay in place with daily wear. To market her invention, she established the Edwards Skirt Supporter Company in 1903 in Spooner, Wisconsin. The Nora C. Edwards papers hold Edwards’ correspondence and are also available to view online in the Hagley Digital Archives. 

Mary Hallock Greenewalt (1871-1950) was a pianist who toured with both the Pittsburgh and Philadelphia symphonies to perform piano recitals across the United States. For her performances, she introduced lighting effects to enhance the music, which she wrote about in her book, Nourathar: The Fine Art of Light-Color Playing, published in 1946. More information on Greenewalt is located within the Longwood Manuscripts, Group 10, Series A, File 851.  

A chemist known for inventing Kevlar, Stephanie Kwolek (1923-2014) worked within the Textile Fibers Pioneering Research Laboratory at DuPont’s Experimental Station in Wilmington, Delaware. Throughout her career, Kwolek received many awards for her work and contributed to twenty-eight patents. Much on Kwolek is included in the Stephanie L. Kwolek papers and some visual materials are included within the digitized Stephanie Kwolek photographs and videotapes collection. 

Sara Armstrong Mahler (1930-2004) was a pediatric doctor and from 1964-2001 she worked as an executive within the Clinical Division at the DuPont Pharmaceutical Company. Mahler invented Symmetrel, an antiviral therapy used to treat influenza. While it is no longer commonly used for influenza, it is still an effective treatment for Parkinson’s Disease. Hagley’s collection contains a newspaper clipping and a prescription for Symmetrel. 

In the mid-1990s, film director Jackson Hunsicker (1948-2017) created a personal recording device that could hold twenty seconds of audio called the Memo Mate. Hagley holds papers on the Memo Mate about its patent, marketing, and legal correspondence. 

INNOVATORS

A specialist in the field of occupational health, Alice Hamilton (1869-1970) extensively wrote about the realities of work conditions and their effect on workers. Hagley has digitized a selection of her published work in the online Alice Hamilton gallery. 

Dorothy Nickerson (1900-1985) was a color scientist and technologist who began her career at the Munsell Color Company and later worked at the Unites States Department of Agriculture. In 1931, she became a founding member of the Inter-Society Color Council, where she served as the secretary (1935-1952) and president (1954-1955). Her papers include correspondence, publications, and materials from her places of work and membership. 

Elva M. Chandler (1900-1990) was a business owner and a prominent clubwoman active in various women’s organizations in Delaware, best known for her role in the Delaware Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs. Her papers provide an account of her roles in these societies including as a charter member of both Beta Sigma Phi and the Pilot Club.  

Patent Model - Improved Crib-Attachment for BedsteadsA pioneer of computer science, Grace Hopper (1906-1992) worked for the Sperry Rand Corporation in the UNIVAC Division, where she developed the computer language COBOL. Hagley’s collections contain photographs from the Sperry Corporation, UNIVAC Division, some of which depict Hopper at work. Additionally, more information on Hopper can be found in the Sperry-UNIVAC records or from her 1979 oral history interview. 

In 1965, Rosetta Henderson (1932-) became the first Black female chemist hired by the DuPont Company, where she worked on pharmaceutical synthesis. She later served as a Program Manager in Delaware’s Upward Bound initiatives. Henderson was interviewed in 2022 as a part of Hagley’s Black STEM Pioneers in Delaware oral history project. She discusses her early life, education, and career in her interview. 

Throughout her twenty-six-year career with Bell Laboratories and AT&T, Lois K. Herr (1941-) was a standout advocate for women’s workplace rights. Her papers and supporting audiovisual materials chronicle her work, public appearances, and involvement with the National Organization for Women (NOW). 

Pam Cumming (1956-) worked for the medical imaging company Hologic, Inc. from 2001 to 2014. Through her work in the Marketing and Communications department, Cumming was able to contribute to creating a positive view of digital mammography among patients and doctors alike which she discusses with Hagley staff in her 2020 oral history interview. 

REFERENCE SOURCES

Catanese, Lynn. Women’s History: A Guide to Sources at Hagley Museum and Library. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1997. Location: Reference Library Stacks. Call Number: Ref HQ1121 .C38 1997.  

Elias, Allison. The Rise of Corporate Feminism: Women in the American Office, 1960-1990. New York: Columbia University Press, 2022. Location: Library Stacks. Call Number: HD6073.M392 U5236 2022.  

Greenewalt, Mary Elizabeth Hallock. Nourarthar: The Fine Art of Light Color Playing. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Westbrook Publishing Company, 1946. Location: Library Stacks. Call Number: D ML3840 .G73.  

Herr, Lois Kathryn. Women, Power, and AT&T: Winning Rights in the Workplace. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 2003. Location: Library Stacks. Call Number: HD4903.T32 H47 2003.  

Manko, Katina. Ding Dong! Avon Calling!: The Women and Men of Avon Products, Incorporated. New York: Oxford University Press, 2021. Location: Library Stacks. Call Number: HD9970.5.C674 A9563 2021.  

The Catalyst, Inc. reference publications include many works relating to women in corporate leadership from the former libraries of Catalyst leaders and the Catalyst Information Center. 

LEARN MORE!

Check out these selected articles by Hagley staff and researchers: 

Where Are the Women? Identifying Resources on Working Women in Hagley’s Archive 

The Courier’s First Lady: Jessie Vann on Film 

Catalyst Collection Opens to Researchers 

Ding Dong! Avon Calling! The Women and Men of Avon Products Incorporated 

SUPPORT WOMEN'S HISTORY PRESERVATION

The Lynn A. Catanese Fund for Collections in Women’s History and Design History: Hagley owes much of the depth of our collections on women’s history and our knowledge of these collections to the work of longtime Hagley curator Lynn A. Catanese. Hagley established this fund upon her passing in 2018 to support further development and accessibility of collections relating to the topics she cherished. 

CONTACT US

Have any questions about accessing and using Hagley collections? Email us at AskHagley.hagley.org, submit your question via our online Contact Us form, or leave us a voice message at 302-658-2400 ext. 227.