UNLADYLIKE2020 now available in Spanish. Click here to learn more.

UNLADYLIKE2020 now available in Spanish. Click here to learn more.

  • Watch
  • Explore
  • My List
  • Home
  • Watch All Films
  • Explore+
    • Explore All Stories
    • Bonus Content
    • Glossary
    • My List
  • Events+
    • Events & Screenings
    • Host Your Own Event
  • About+
    • Project
    • Team
    • Behind the Scenes
    • Funders
    • Advisors
    • Partners
    • Awards, Press & Festivals
  • Latest News
  • For Educators+
    • Education Summit
    • Free Lesson Plans
    • Purchase the Series
  • Contact

Watch

Watch all 26 of animated documentary shorts about UNLADYLIKE2020’s trailblazing heroines below or on the American Masters YouTube channel.

See the one-hour PBS special, American Masters – UNLADYLIKE2020: The Changemakers, here via PBS Passport (membership required). 

Grace Abbott

Social Work Pioneer & Champion of Children, Immigrant, and Women's Rights

1878-1939

Charlotta Spears Bass

Newspaper Editor, Civil Rights Crusader & First African American Woman Vice Presidential Candidate

1888-1969

Gladys Bentley

Gender-Bending Harlem Renaissance Performer and Musician

1907-1960

Zitkála-Šá/Gertrude Simmons Bonnin

Composer, Author & Indigenous Rights Activist

1876-1938

Louise Arner Boyd

First Woman to Lead Arctic Expeditions

1887-1972

Martha Hughes Cannon

First Woman State Senator & Public Health Pioneer

1857 - 1932

Sonora Webster Carver

Daredevil Equestrian & Advocate For the Blind

1904-2003

Margaret Chung

First American-Born Chinese Female Doctor

1889-1959

Bessie Coleman

First African American Woman Aviator

1892-1926

Gertrude Ederle

First Woman to Swim the English Channel

1905-2003

Williamina Fleming

Trailblazing Astronomer and Discoverer of Stars

1857-1911

Meta Warrick Fuller

Trailblazing Sculptor & First African American Woman Recipient of Federal Art Commission

1877-1968

Lillian Moller Gilbreth

Pioneering Inventor & Industrial Engineer

1878-1972

Jovita Idar

Educator, Journalist, Suffragist & Civil Rights Activist

1885-1946

Sissieretta Jones

Opera Star & First African American Woman to Headline Concert at Carnegie Hall

1868-1933

Queen Lili‘uokalani

First Sovereign Queen and Last Monarch of Hawai‘i

1838-1917

Annie Smith Peck

Record-Breaking Mountaineer, Suffragist & Educator

1850-1935

Susan La Flesche Picotte

First American Indian Physician

1865-1915

Ynés Mexía

Accomplished Latina Botanist

1870-1938

Jeannette Rankin

Suffragist, Peace Activist & First Woman Member of Congress

1880-1973

Rose Schneiderman

Pioneering Labor Organizer & Suffragist

1882-1972

Tye Leung Schulze

Advocate for Trafficked Women & First Chinese American Woman Federal Government Employee

1887-1972

Mary Church Terrell

Educator, Suffragist, Civil Rights Activist & Co-Founder of the NAACP

1863 - 1954

Maggie Lena Walker

Entrepreneur & First African American Woman Bank President

1864-1934

Lois Weber

Actor, Screenwriter & First Woman to Direct a Feature-Length Film

1879-1939

Anna May Wong

Trendsetting Movie Star and Fashion Icon

1905-1961

Learn More about Grace Abbott

Learn More about Charlotta Spears Bass

Learn More about Gladys Bentley

Learn More about Zitkála-Šá/Gertrude Simmons Bonnin

Learn More about Louise Arner Boyd

Learn More about Martha Hughes Cannon

Learn More about Sonora Webster Carver

Learn More about Margaret Chung

Learn More about Bessie Coleman

Learn More about Gertrude Ederle

Learn More about Williamina Fleming

Learn More about Meta Warrick Fuller

Learn More about Lillian Moller Gilbreth

Learn More about Jovita Idar

Learn More about Sissieretta Jones

Learn More about Queen Lili‘uokalani

Learn More about Annie Smith Peck

Learn More about Susan La Flesche Picotte

Learn More about Ynés Mexía

Learn More about Jeannette Rankin

Learn More about Rose Schneiderman

Learn More about Tye Leung Schulze

Learn More about Mary Church Terrell

Learn More about Maggie Lena Walker

Learn More about Lois Weber

Learn More about Anna May Wong

Social Media

March 13th is the start of National Deaf History M March 13th is the start of National Deaf History Month, and today we're highlighting the amazing stories of Susan La Flesche Picotte and Gertrude Ederle, two deaf women who made history in their fields.

Susan La Flesche Picotte was born in 1865 on the Omaha Reservation in Nebraska. After attending multiple schools across the country, she graduated from the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania in 1889 at the top of her class, becoming the very first American Indian medical doctor. As she practiced, though, she faced a chronic illness that left her deaf in one ear at the age of 40. Even so, she continued to fight for the rights of indigenous peoples in many different ways all the way up until her death in 1915.

Gertrude Ederle, the first woman to swim the English Channel, was born in New York City in 1905. Her father taught her how to swim at a very young age, but this passion soon became detrimental to her health. After a case of measles as a child, she suffered permanent hearing loss which would only become worse the more she swam. Despite it all, she set countless records for women in swimming throughout her career and even taught children to swim at the Lexington School for the Deaf.

Learn more about these inspiring groundbreakers through the link in our bio.

#unladylike2020pbs #unladylike2020 #americanmasterspbs #trailblaizerspbs #nationaldeafhistorymonth #gertrudeederle #susanlafleschepicotte
This #internationalwomensday, we're celebrating th This #internationalwomensday, we're celebrating three women who were internationally renowned throughout their careers: Sissiereta Jones, Annie Smith Peck, and Anna May Wong.

Born in Virginia in 1868, Sissiereta Jones became a world-famous opera star and the first African American woman to headline at Carnegie Hall. Her performances took her all over the country and through the Caribbean.

Annie Smith Peck, record-breaking mountaineer, educator, and suffragist, both learned and taught in many universities in various states and even in Germany and Greece throughout the 1870s and 1880s. When she took up mountain climbing, her passion took her all across Europe and Latin America. In 1911, at age 61, she planted a Votes for Women banner atop Mount Coropuna in Peru.

Last but not least, Anna May Wong, the first Chinese American Hollywood star, travelled across the world for her movies. She acted in British, French, and German films, leaving a remarkable impression on audiences everywhere.

To learn more about these three incredible women, check the link in our bio.

#unladylike2020pbs #unladylike2020 #americanmasterspbs #trailblaizerspbs #sissierettajones #anniesmithpeck #annamaywong
Unladylike2020 launched three years ago during #wo Unladylike2020 launched three years ago during #womenshistorymonth to celebrate the amazing woman leaders of the past and present. By 2023, we've gained over 5.6 million viewers. We'd like to encourage you all to continue to be inspired by the historic women whose stories we were honored to bring back to life. 

#unladylike2020pbs #unladylike2020 #americanmasterspbs #trailblaizerspbs #womenshistorymonth

Major funding for UNLADYLIKE2020, including the 26 documentary shorts, a broadcast hour for PBS American Masters, educational curriculum, this resource-rich website, and our impact and engagement campaign, is provided by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Additional funding is provided by numerous private foundations and ten state humanities councils, as well as individual donors.

All UNLADYLIKE2020 original artwork by Amelie Chabannes.

Join Our Newsletter

Major Funders

  • Watch
  • Explore
  • My List
  • Latest News
  • Contact
  • About
  • Project
  • Team
  • Behind the Scenes
  • Funders
  • Advisors
  • Awards, Press & Festivals
  • Partners
  • Events
  • Events & Screenings
  • Host Your Own Event
  • Privacy Policy
  • For Educators
  • Education Summit
  • Free Lesson Plans
  • Purchase the Series

UNLADYLIKE2020 is a production of Unladylike Productions, LLC in association with THIRTEEN’s American Masters. © 2023