(Photo By Flickr User yochillum)
According to WICS-TV, two women from Peoria, IL have topped a new Illinois Top 200 list.
Lydia Moss Bradley, the founder of Peoria’s Bradley University came in at number one of the list of groundbreaking women in Illinois history.
Betty Friedan, author of “The Feminine Mystique” and co-founder of the National Organization for Women came in at number two.
The top 10 “groundbreaking women” chosen in online voting:
Lydia Moss Bradley – In 1875, she became the first woman to serve on the board of a national bank. She was among the first to demand a prenuptial contract before marriage. Bradley is in the National Women’s Hall of Fame.
Betty Friedan – Friedan, a Peoria native, helped spark a new wave of feminism with her 1963 book, “The Feminine Mystique.” She also helped found the National Organization for Women.
Jane Addams –Addams was a pioneering social worker, activist and advocate for women’s rights. She co-founded Chicago’s Hull House, a center for educating and assisting the poor. She received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931.
Michelle Obama –Obama, a lawyer and writer, was the first African-American first lady of the United States. She became a role model for women and an advocate for poverty awareness, nutrition, physical activity and healthy eating.
Oprah Winfrey – Winfrey is a talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. She is best known for her Chicago-based talk show, which was the highest-rated show of its kind in history.
Hillary Clinton – Raised in Illinois, Clinton was the first woman nominated for president by a major political party. She also served as U.S. secretary of state, U.S. senator from New York and first lady of the United States.
Ida B. Wells – Born into slavery, Wells devoted her life to fighting discrimination against African-Americans and women. She helped call attention to the nation’s epidemic of lynching and was a co-founder of the NAACP.
Mary G. Harris “Mother” Jones – After losing her family to yellow fever and her business to the Chicago fire, this teacher and dressmaker became a union organizer. Her motivational skills earned her the label “most dangerous woman in America.”
Mary Lincoln – The wife of Abraham Lincoln, was a well-educated, politically astute woman who helped her husband’s political career. She endured the deaths of three sons and witnessed the assassination of her husband.
Mary Ann “Mother” Bickerdyke – This Galesburg resident devoted herself to improving medical treatment for Civil War soldiers. She treated soldiers in 19 battles and established 300 field hospitals, ignoring any officers who got in her way.
The Illinois Top 200 is a joint initiative of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, The (Springfield) State Journal-Register and the Illinois Bicentennial Commission.
Voting in the next category, minority trailblazers, is underway at www.IllinoisTop200.com. The nominees include Barack Obama, Harold Washington, Black Hawk, and “Free Frank” McWorter.
