Amelia Earhart   (1897 - 1937)
The first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean, and the first to fly solo across the Pacific Ocean. Earhart was a strong individual who inspired other women to take risks in non-traditional arenas.

Sylvia A. Earle  (1935 - )
An undersea explorer since age 13, Earle became an internationally recognized marine biologist, author, lecturer and scientific consultant. Denied the opportunity to participate in the U.S. Navy "Tektite Project" to study the ocean, she founded "Tektite II", an all-female expedition that spent two weeks exploring the ocean floor. The founder of two companies to design and build undersea vehicles, she is chief scientist and consultant to oceanographic and marine research centers throughout the world.

Catherine East  (1916 - 1996)
"The midwife of the contemporary women's movement," as described by Betty Friedan. East was a key staffer on President John F. Kennedy's first-ever Presidential Commission on the Status of Women in the 1960s. East persuaded Friedan and others to create the National Organization for Women to lead the drive to eliminate gender discrimination.

Crystal Eastman  (1881 - 1928)
One the major leaders of the women's right to vote and equal rights movements, she was co-founder of the American Civil Liberties Union and author of the first national labor safety law guidelines. In 1919, she organized the First Feminist Congress, and she was one of the four authors of the Equal Rights Amendment proposed in 1923.

Mary Baker Eddy  (1821 - 1910)
The only American woman to found a lasting American-based religion, the Church of Christ (Scientist). Her personal struggles led her to believe in a system of prayer-based healing. In 1908, two years before her death at 89 she started The Christian Science Monitor.

Marian Wright Edelman  (1939 - )
Attorney and civil rights advocate who founded the Children's Defense Fund, the nation's strongest advocacy group for children. A passionate champion for youth, Edelman's organization works on health care and assistance for homeless children.

Gertrude "Trudy" Ederle  (1906 - 2003)
In 1926, Ederle became the first woman to swim the English Channel, setting a new time record that would stand for the next 35 years. Ederle's accomplishment was a milestone as it expanded opportunity for other women in athletics.

Gertrude Belle Elion  (1918 - 1999)
1988 Nobel Prize winner who spent a lifetime creating drugs to combat leukemia, gout, malaria, herpes and other auto-immune diseases. Elion's work saved many lives, and led to the development of the first major AIDS drug AZT.

Alice Evans  (1881 - 1975)
Scientist who found the organism which caused undulant fever, a killer disease. Evans's discovery led to mandatory milk pasteurization, saving countless lives worldwide. An outstanding scientist, she also advocated women entering the scientific professions.