8 National Park Sites You Didn't Know Were Dedicated to Women's History

Clara Barton National Historic Site | Glen Echo, Md.Barton is known as the founder of the American Red Cross, though she also served as Civil War nurse, educator, and government clerk. After the Civil War she ran the Office of Missing Soldiers, helping families identify bodies of their loved ones and reunite with wounded soldiers.

Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site | Washington, D.C.Bethune overcame a challenging childhood of poverty and became the only child in her family to receive an education. She established a school for the education of African-American girls and also founded the National Council of Negro Women. Bethune also served as an advisor to former President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site | Hyde Park, N.Y.
"You must do the things you think you cannot do." This site is dedicated to America’s longest-serving first lady, wife of former President Franklin D. Roosevelt. She was also known as an American ambassador to the United Nations and chair of its Human Rights Commission who helped write the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

First Ladies National Historic Site | Canton, Ohio 
This site explores the wives of presidents after Mary Regula, the wife of a former Ohio Congressman, established a bibliography of these women leaders, which later turned into a national library and site.

Rosie the Riveter-World War II Home Front National Historical Park | Richmond, Calif.
The park is dedicated to the approximately 18 million women who joined the defense and support industries during World War II, including photos and quotes from real-life “Rosies.”

Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument | Dorchester County, Md.
After a legendary escape from slave-owners in 1849, Tubman led hundreds of slaves to freedom along the Underground Railroad, a secret network of safe houses. Later she became a leader in the abolitionist movement, and served in the Civil War as a spy for federal forces and as a nurse. In 1863 during the Civil War, she was said to free even more enslaved African-Americans after conducting an assault on Confederate plantations.

Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site | Richmond, Va.
In 1903, Walker became the first African-American woman in the United States to found a bank, where she served as president. She was known as a great businesswoman and community leader in Virginia after the Civil War.

Women's Rights National Historical Park | Seneca Falls, N.Y.
In 1848, the first women's rights convention took place at this national park site at the Wesleyan Chapel in Seneca Falls, N.Y. The convention drew over 300 people to talk about the "social, civil and religious rights and condition of woman."

By MAKERS Team :
Women have long been movers and shakers throughout American history though their achievements often go unrecognized. Today, only eight of the 410 U.S. national park sites are dedicated specifically to women's history.

Find details on eight national park sites dedicated to women who made significant strides to advance women and society at large in our gallery.

In addition to these eight sites, today some elected officials have been working on establishing other national park sites dedicated to women's history. 

The Harriet Tubman National Historical Park in New York was authorized by Congress in 2014 to share more history of Tubman's later life including her accolades after the Civil War, though the park has not yet been established.

And Senator Barbara Mikulski of Maryland introduced legislation in August to establish the Sewall-Belmont House in Washington, D.C., to commemorate Alice Paul who founded the National Woman's Party in 1916. Her home functioned as a space for women’s equality, and now serves as a museum with some of the best resources on women's suffrage and women's rights.

We hope women's history continues to be represented in the nation's historic sites and that these spaces inspire young women to shape their own history.
            So true ,  we have come a long way  with many more miles to  go . 
'The  Genie'  and  Witchy