CNN Editorial Research
(CNN) — Here is a look at women in business, education, government and sports who have broken through the glass ceiling and become the first in their respective positions in the United States.
Business
1739 – Elizabeth Timothy is the first woman newspaper publisher, of the South Carolina Gazette.
1867-1919 – Madam C.J. Walker is the first woman to become a self-made millionaire. Her business develops and sells hair care products for Black women.
1934 – Lettie Pate Whitehead is the first woman to serve as a director of a major corporation, the Coca-Cola Company.
1967 – Isabel Benham is the first female partner at a Wall Street bond house, R.W. Pressprich & Co.
1972 – Juanita Kreps becomes the first woman to serve as a director of the New York Stock Exchange. In 1977, she is the first woman appointed secretary of Commerce.
1972 – Katharine Graham is the first woman to be CEO of a Fortune 500 company, the Washington Post.
July 1999 – Carly Fiorina is the first woman to serve as CEO of a Fortune 20 company, Hewlett-Packard.
October 1999 – Martha Stewart is the first woman to become a self-made billionaire. Her creative home brand includes books, a magazine, home furnishings and entertaining and gardening TV shows.
2011 – Beth Mooney is the first woman to serve as CEO of a top 20 US bank, KeyCorp.
2013 – Mary Barra is the first woman to serve as CEO of a major automaker, General Motors.
September 10, 2020 – Citigroup names Jane Fraser as CEO, the first woman to lead a major US bank.
December 12, 2022 – The Wall Street Journal names Emma Tucker as its next editor. Tucker will be the first woman to head the newspaper.
Education
1648 – Margaret Brent of Maryland appears before a court to request the right to vote. She is considered the first woman to practice law.
July 16, 1840 – Catherine Brewer is the first in a group of 11 women to earn bachelor’s degrees,…
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