#OCLWomanoftheWeek

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#WCW: Katharine Wright Haskell

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Katharine Wright Haskell, OC Class of 1898

Born in Dayton, Ohio, Wright Haskell may be best known as the younger sister of Orville and Wilbur Wright, but she also accomplished many things independently. 

Born August 19, 1874; Died March 3, 1929

A.B., Oberlin College, 1898

The only member of the famous Wright siblings to earn a college degree

Taught Latin and English at the Dayton Steele High School

Managed the Wright Cycle Co. bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio

Received the Legion d’honneur, the highest French order of merit for military and civic achievements

MAJOR MILESTONES

1909- Accompanied her brothers to France to act as a translator and frequently represented them at public events

1914- Organized a march for women’s suffrage in Dayton, Ohio, which drew 1,300 supporters

1924- Became one of the first women to serve on Oberlin College’s board of trustees

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#WCW: Willa Beatrice Player

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Willa Beatrice Player, OC Class of 1930

The youngest of three children, Player was born in Jackson, Mississippi. She became an educator, college president, federal appointee, & civil rights activist.

Born September 9, 1909; Died August 29, 2003

A.B., Ohio Wesleyan, 1929; M.A., Oberlin College, 1930; Ph.D., Columbia University, 1948

Brought Martin Luther King to Bennett College to speak in 1958 when other colleges and churches in the region refused to host him

Served as president of Bennett College from 1956 to 1966

First African American to serve on Ohio Wesleyan’s board of trustees

Received honorary degrees from seven universities, including Ohio Wesleyan University, Morehouse College, Albion College, and University of North Carolina

MAJOR MILESTONES

1956- First African American woman to serve as president of an accredited, four-year college

1962- Named President of the National Association of School and College of the Methodist Church

1962- First female Director of the Division of College Support in the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare

[oberlincollegelibraries]

#WCW: Anna Julia Cooper

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Anna Julia Cooper, OC Class of 1884

Cooper was born Anna Julia Haywood in Raleigh, North Carolina. Enslaved at birth, she became a prominent scholar, author, educator, and activist.

Born August 10, 1858; Died February 27, 1964

Cooper was born into slavery in Raleigh, North Carolina

A.B., Oberlin College, 1884; M.A., Oberlin College, 1887; Ph.D., University of Paris, 1924

Taught Latin and served as principal at M Street High School in Washington, D.C. 

Author of A Voice From the South and Slavery and the French Revolutionists (1788-1805)

Served as both president and registrar for Frelinghuysen University

MAJOR MILESTONES

1892- Co-founded the Colored Women’s League of Washington, D.C.

1893- Became the only woman elected to the American Negro Academy

1924- Became the fourth Black woman in America to earn a Doctorate of Philosophy

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#WCW: Jewel Lafontant-Mankarious

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Jewel Lafontant-Mankarious, OC Class of 1943

Lafontant-Mankarious was born Jewel Carter Stadford in Chicago, Illinois. She was a high-ranking U.S. Presidential appointee, civil rights leads, and lawyer.

Born April 28, 1922; Died May 31, 1997

A.B., Oberlin College, 1943; J.D., University of Chicago Law School. 1946

Admitted to the Illinois Bar and began working for the Legal Aid Bureau of Chicago in 1947

Named Assistant U.S. Attorney for Illinois in 1955 by President Eisenhower

Served as Ambassador-at-Large and U.S. Coordinator for Refugee Affairs in the State Department from 1989 to 1993

Recipient of the Cook County Bar Association Achievement Award, the CARE Foundation’s International Humanitarian Award, and many others. 

MAJOR MILESTONES

1946- First African American woman to graduate from the University of Chicago Law School

1963- First Black woman to argue a case before the Supreme Court

1973- First female Deputy Solicitor General 

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#WCW: Mary Jane Patterson

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Mary Jane Patterson, OC Class of 1862

Born into slavery in Raleigh, North Carolina, Patterson devoted her life to educating herself and others.

Born September 12, 1840; Died September 2, 1894

Patterson was born into slavery, but moved to Oberlin, Ohio in 1856 with her family

A.B., Oberlin College, 1862

Taught in Chillicothe, Ohio upon graduation

Served as assistant to Fanny Jackson Coppin at Philadelphia’s Institute for Colored Youth

Increased enrollment at the Preparatory High School for Colored Youth from 50 to 172 students during her administration

MAJOR MILESTONES

1862- First African American woman to earn a bachelor’s degree

1871- Served as the first Black principal of Preparatory High School for Colored Youth, now Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Washington, D.C. 

1892- Co-founded the Colored Women’s League of Washington D.C.

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#WCW: Edmonia Lewis

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Edmonia Lewis, Oberlin Academy Preparatory School

Named Wildfire at birth and orphaned by the age of 9, Lewis because the first African American and Native American woman to gain international recognition as a sculptor. 

Born July 4, 1844; Died September 17, 1907

Attended Oberlin Academy Preparatory School and Oberlin College from 1859 until 1862 when she was accused of poisoning two of her white roommates. Although acquitted of the charge, Lewis was assaulted by unknown white vigilantes and not permitted to graduate.

Moved to Rome in 1865 to pursue her career independently, without the aid of abolitionist patronage

Lewis never married, is said to have dressed in��“mannish” attire, and associated with a group of openly gay women, which has led many to conclude that she was likely a lesbian herself. 

Included in Molefi Kete Asante’s 2002 biographical dictionary 100 Greatest African Americans

NOTABLE WORKS

1864- Bust of Civil War Colonel Robert Gould Shaw. Sales from the copies of the bust were able to finance Lewis’s move to Europe.

1876- The Death of Cleopatra, created for the 1876 centennial Exposition in Philadelphia

1877- Portrait of Ulysses S. Grant, commissioned by the former president himself. 

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#WCW: Doris Stevens

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Doris Stevens, OC Class of 1911

Doris Stevens was born Dora Caroline Stevens in Omaha, Nebraska. She was an American suffragist and women’s legal rights advocate. 

Born October 26, 1888; Died March 22, 1963

A.B., Oberlin College, 1911

Held several leadership positions in the National Women’s Party, including legislative chairman, vice chairman of the NY branch, and as a member of the executive committee

Spearheaded the creation of the Inter-American Commission of Women, an organization within the Organization of American States

Served as vice-president of the Lucy Stone League from 1951-1963

Stevens was portrayed by Laura Fraser in the 2004 film Iron Jawed Angels

MAJOR MILESTONES

1917- Began picketing campaign outside the White House with the Silent Sentinels

1920- Published Jailed for Freedom, her firsthand account of her involvement with the National Women’s Party

1931- Became the first female member of the American Institute of International Law

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#WCW: Niara Sudarkasa

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Niara Sudarkasa, OC Class of 1957

Sudarkasa was born Gloria Albertha Marshal in 1938 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She was an accomplished scholar, anthropologist, educator, and Africanist.

Born August 14, 1938; Died May 31, 2019

A.B., Oberlin College, 1957; M.A., Columbia University, 1961; Ph.D., Columbia University, 1964

"Niara" is derived from the Swahili word "Nia", which translates to "high purpose"

Named "Educator for the '90s” by Essence magazine

Author of numerous publications, including Exploring the African American Experience & Where Women Work: Yoruba Traders in the Marketplace and in the Home

Recipient of 13 honorary degrees and almost 100 civic and professional awards

MAJOR MILESTONES

1969-  First African American appointed to Department of Anthropology at University of Michigan

1986- First female president of Lincoln University

2001-  First African American installed as a Chief in the Ife Kingdom of the Yoruba of Nigeria

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#WCW: Elizabeth Doershuk O’Bear

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Elizabeth Doerschuk O’Bear, OC Class of 1931

Born in 1909, Elizabeth Doerschuk excelled at the German language and devoted her life to social work and education.

Born 1909; Died 1984

B.A., Oberlin College, 1931; M.A., Oberlin College, 1932; Ph.D., Ohio State University, 1954

Worked as a home visitor in the Cuyahoga County Relief Association

Taught for Drury College, Alfred University, and Otterbein College

President of the Modern Language section of the Ohio College Association

Every year, Otterbein University awards the Dr. Elizabeth Doerschuk O’Bear Award to a full-time student(s) who has been an outstanding student of Foreign Language

MAJOR MILESTONES

1935- Begins training in social work at the Ohio State University School of Social Administration

World War II- Staff aide for the American Red Cross in U.S. and overseas army hospitals

1960- Chairman of the Language Department at Otterbein College

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#WCW: Esther Close

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Esther Close, OC Class of 1893

Esther Annette Close was born in Sullivan, Ohio and spent much of her life in Oberlin where she attended school, worked, and was active in community.

Born June 25, 1866; Died February 1, 1956

Oberlin High School, 1884; Oberlin College Conservatory, 1884-88, 1894-95; Ph.B., Oberlin College, 1893

Worked as a library assistant at Oberlin College’s library for over 30

Served as staff advisor for the Equal Suffrage League at Oberlin College

Active member of the Oberlin Congregational Church, the Oberlin Women’s Club, and the Oberlin Women’s Christian Temperance Union

MAJOR MILESTONES

1884- Enrolled at the Oberlin College Conservatory

1893- Earned her bachelor of philosophy degree from Oberlin College

1933- Retired from Oberlin College after working as a library assistant for 34 years

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#WCW: Lucy Stone

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Lucy Stone, OC Class of 1847

Born in West Brookfield, Massachusetts, Stone was the eighth of nine children. She went on to become a leading abolitionist and suffragist. 

Born August 13, 1818; Died October 18, 1893

A.B., Oberlin College, 1847

First woman from Massachusetts to earn a college degree

Hired by William Lloyd Garrison, Stone wrote and delivered speeches for the Anti-Slavery Society

First married woman in the United States to keep her birth name

Helped form the American Equal Rights Association

MAJOR MILESTONES

1850- Organized the first National Women’s Rights Convention in Worcester, Massachusetts

1869- Established the American Woman Suffrage Association with Julia Ward Howe, T.W. Higgins, Henry Browne Blackwell, and others

1870- Founded the women’s rights periodical Woman’s Journal with husband Henry Browne Blackwell

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#WCW: Rowena Woodham Jelliffe

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Rowena Woodham Jelliffe, OC Class of 1914

Born in New Albion, Illinois, Woodham Jelliffe was a social worker who co-founded the nation’s oldest African American theater.

Born March 23, 1892; Died April 5, 1992

A.B., Oberlin College, 1914; Master’s degree in sociology, University of Chicago, 1915

Served as president of the Equal Suffrage League at Oberlin College

Co-founded Karamu House, the U.S.’s oldest African American theater with her husband Russell Jelliffe

Received the first ever Special Citation awarded by the Cleveland Arts Prize in 1963

“Karamu” translates to “a place of joyful meeting” in Swahili

MAJOR MILESTONES

1915- Co-founded the Neighborhood Assn. at 2239 E. 38th St. in Cleveland, which quickly became known as the Playhouse Settlement

1917- The Playhouse Settlement begins producing plays with interracial casts

1941- The Playhouse Settlement official renamed “Karamu House”

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#WCW: Adena Miller Rich

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Adena Miller Rich, OC Class of 1911

Born October 12, 1888; Died March 10, 1967

A.B., Oberlin College, 1911; Chicago School of Civics and Philanthropy, 1912

Worked as supervisor of visitors for the Immigrant’s Protective League in Chicago where she eventually served as director

Served as vice president of the Illinois League of Women Voters from 1923-1926

Lived at the Hull House Settlement in Chicago with her husband Kenneth Rich for over sixteen years where she acted as Jane Addams’ secretary and was eventually appointed head resident

Served as a trustee for Oberlin College

MAJOR MILESTONES

1916- Appointed civic director of the Women’s City Club in Cincinnati

1923- Elected vice president of the Illinois League of Women Voters

1926- Became director of the Immigrant’s Protective League