October 5 – 11
Oct. 5, 1940
Anita Newcomb McGee dies. McGee was married and the mother of a young daughter when she earned her MD from Columbian University (now George Washington University). She founded the US Army Nurse Corps but was unable to serve as its superintendent because she was not a trained nurse, as the legislation creating the corps required.
Oct. 6, 1970
Edith Gregor Halpert dies. Halpert opened her Downtown Gallery of Contemporary Art with a partner in 1926 as a venue for modern American art. Halpert (who bought out her partner in 1935) introduced and promoted the work of Stuart Davies, Charles Demuth, Arthur Dove, John Marin, Ben Shahn, Charles Sheeler, Jacob Lawrence, and many more. On the other end of the spectrum, she saw a market for folk art and established American Folk Art Gallery with expert Holger Cahill in 1929. The popularity of folk art helped underwrite the promotion and marketing of the contemporary works. Halpert worked with Abby Aldrich Rockefeller to assemble the folk art collection now housed at the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, Colonial Williamsburg. Halpert’s personal collection and the stock from the Downtown Gallery were sold at auction by Sotheby’s in 1973 for a record $3.6 million.
Oct. 7, 1866
Martha McChesney Berry is born. She founded Berry College in Georgia.
Oct. 8, 1883
Maria de Ramirez Kramer is born. She operated hotels in New York City and Washington, DC which she branded as the Maria Kramer Hotel System.
Oct. 9, 1823
Mary Ann Shadd Cary is born. She was the first female African-American newspaper editor/publisher in North America.
Oct. 10, 1982
Laura Tirocchi Cella dies. After immigrating from Italy in 1905 and settling in Providence, RI, Laura and her half-sister Anna Triocchi opened A. & L. Tirocchi in 1911, a high-end dressmaking business.
Oct. 11, 1939
Elsie M. Murphy is elected vice president of S. Stroock & Co., a fabric manufacturer.
Last week in women’s business history
Sept. 28, 2002
Patsy Takemoto Mink dies. Trained as a lawyer, Mink ran a private practice for a decade before moving to Washington, DC as congresswoman from Hawaii. One of her greatest legislative achievements was Title IX which outlawed gender-based discrimination in schools and programs that received federal funding.
Sept. 29, 1935
Nina Swan Gould dies. With her husband, geologist Charles N. Gould, Nina created the engineering firm Gould & Gould of Oklahoma City.
Sept. 30, 1883
Nora Stanton Blatch Barney is born. An engineer, architect, and real estate developer, she was also very active in the women’s suffrage movement following in the footsteps of her grandmother, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and her mother, Harriott Stanton Blatch.
Oct. 1, 1921
Edith E. Lauterbach is born. She co-founded the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA served as treasurer of the organization.
Oct. 2, 1696
Ann Smith Franklin is born. She was the first female printer in colonial Newport, RI.
Oct. 3, 1902
Isabelle Taylor is born. She was an editor who headed Doubleday’s popular imprint The Crime Club.
Oct. 4, 1996
Marion Stephenson dies. Stephenson joined NBC Radio in 1944 as a budget clerk and, eighteen years later, was named vice president.
© 2026 Ferret Research, Inc.
