Extraordinary Women: A Brief History of St. Louis Women

St. Louis: The Gateway to the West

St. Louis may be known as the gateway to the west or the beer capital of America, but the history of the area is much richer and more interesting. While there are extraordinary women all throughout history, when looking at the whole picture, some amazing women stand out. Doing research for this blog, gathering information from various sources and my own knowledge, it became clear: There really is no written history of the contributions of women to our great city.

First Mayor

It was not until 2017 that St. Louis elected its first mayor, Lyda Krewson. Who is not running for reelection. It was 2020 before the first woman was elected for United States Congress to represent St. Louis for the state, Rep. Cori Bush. In 2021 a new mayor will be elected and she too will be a woman.

Sure there are a handful of well known women who were born in or call St. Louis home, even if for a little while. The dancer Josephine Baker, singer Tina Turner, Maya Angelou and Betty Grable to name a few. But a deep dive was needed to uncover those who helped shape the city. Even the state of Missouri, as there isn’t enough info on women of St. Louis alone. So we will discuss those that we found that had a lasting impact.

A Most Extraordinary Woman

As far back as the 1700’s we have three women who owned property. Not just any women either. Free women of color in French colonial times in the area while under the French and Spanish laws. This was at a time when most women could not own property unless they were married. Not much else is know about Ester, Franiose and Jeannette, but its important to add them. They couldn’t vote or have many other rights, but owning land was not common.

Early suffragette, Virginia Minor, while living in St. Louis, was an officer in the National Woman’s Suffrage Association. During the presidential election of 1872, Minor went to register to vote and was refused by a ward registar. She and her husband sued him( Minor v. Happersett) Virginia started the movement in St. Louis and helped found the Women’s Suffrage Association of Missouri. Thus a full two years before Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony started the National Woman’s Suffrage Association.

Virginia Minor’s case was based on the 14th amendment. The amendment that stated “no state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States, nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty or property without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws”. ~this meaning All persons born in the United states, were not to be denied the rights given to them as citizens. ALL Persons and that is where she hung her hat. She was a person, She was born in the United States and She was being denied the right to register to vote. In Missouri, as in many other states at the time, women could not own property in their name, nor could they file a lawsuit, or be counted as a person or vote.. Legally, women were treated as property or as children. One lawmaker even said Women were dead to the law. SIDEBAR(see end for Evil Hospital)

As luck would have it…

Virginia was married to a lawyer. It was both Virginia and her husband Francis that took the suit to the U.S. Supreme Court. The lawsuit was thrown out as having no merit based on the assumption that the 14th amendment did not state voting as a right of citizenship. This did not stop Virginia. She would later not pay her taxes because, being a woman, she was counted as a ‘femme covert’ legal doctrine, meaning she could not own money, so legally, she did not have to pay taxes. The MO legislature, being held by all men, did not rule in her favor. Curiously because, it was by law her husband’s money, but she was held liable for it! Nothing like hypocrisy of men and politicians. Virginia Minor did not live to see Missouri become the 11th state to ratify the 19th amendment.

Other well known women

Susan Blow opened and ran the first public kindergarten in 1873. As a child, her home on the Mississippi riverfront was burned in the great fire and she lived through the cholera epidemic.

“If we can make children love intellectual effort, we shall prolong habits of study beyond school years”.

Harriet Woods became the first Lt. Governor in 1984, after getting her start in local politics. Jean Carnahan was elected the first female U.S Senator. Phoebe Couzins was the first US Marshal and the second female lawyer in the country, her mother, Adeline was an early suffragette. Margaret Bush Wilson was a lawyer and civil rights activist and the second person of color to practice law in Missouri. Virginia Masters, Sheryl Crow, Sara Evans, Rose O’Neal(illustrator of Kewpie dolls + suffragette), Jean Harlow, Phyllis Diller, Joyce Meyer and many more from the great state and everyday extraordinary women.

The Social Evil

When I first learned about this hospital, I thought it a joke. It was on a map I was researching for breweries in STL. In 1870, the boards of Health and St. Louis Police Commissioners initiated the Social Evil ordinance in an effort control and regulate prostitution. Taxing the brothels and women. Police were to visit brothels with a doctor to test and identify those infected with diseases and were then sent to the city hospital. When that proved to much, they established a separate hospital for prostitutes and a house of industry where they could be trained in vocational skills. This was called the Social Evil Hospital which opened in 1872. It soon became the Female Hospital for women and the training part closed. Evil women…how about curing the men from straying from their wives? In 1864 in England a similar experiment took place where women were tested for STD and locked away in ‘The Lock’ hospitals. Thus being why this experiment failed. The site of the hospital is now a park.

All through history, women are the ones expected to change, to get along. Not to speak out or not to walk alone at night, change our behaviour and men will not need to change theirs. We need More extraordinary women to keep up the right for equality. Remember, the Equal Rights Amendment has still not been ratified by all states needed to make it into law!?! Crazy right, 2021 and women do not have, by law, equal protection.(MO not one of the states to ratify). What are your thoughts? Who is a woman in MO history or history in general that you find extraordinary? Leave a comment.Video coming soon.