“Early American Women in Science: Stories of Practice and Perseverance” presents case studies of women who practiced science in the early nineteenth century, including Lucy Way Sistare Say, the first woman elected to the Academy of Natural Sciences, and Almira Hart Lincoln Phelps, the author of numerous scientific textbooks on botany, chemistry, and natural philosophy (as well as one-time resident of West Chester), among other lesser-known women and girls. This talk will provide examples of how women in early America practiced science and explain why some women were able to succeed as scientific practitioners while others faded into obscurity.
About the Speaker: Jessica C. Linker is Assistant Professor of History and Co-Director of Huskiana Press, an experiential letterpress studio, at Northeastern University. Her current book project thinks about women in science in early America and eighteenth and nineteenth century factors that led to the current gender gap in STEM. Her work has appeared in academic journals and popular magazines including Early American Studies, Pennsylvania Legacies, and Fine Books & Collections. Linker or her work have been featured in The New York Times, ABC’s Start Here Podcast, Chemistry World, Science News, and Physics Today. She has received numerous awards to support her research including from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Library Company of Philadelphia, the McNeil Center for Early American Studies, the New York Public Library, and the American Philosophical Society, among many others.
Admission is Pay as You Wish! Your donation is greatly appreciated. All proceeds benefit the development of future programming and the preservation of the History Center and its collections. The History Center is home to over 750,000 manuscripts, 100,000 photographs, and 70,000 artifacts. Your donation helps us to preserve and share those resources. Register here for this pay-as-you-wish event
Presentation is via Zoom, and will be recorded and available for 7 days for all registered participants. We will email out a Zoom link the day of the presentation, and email a link to the recording within 24 hours. Note: the Zoom link emailed out the day of the presentation only takes you to the live presentation; the link emailed out the day after will contain the recorded version.
This presentation is made possible by the generous support of The Haverford Trust Company.
225 N. High Street, West Chester, PA 19380 | 610-692-4800
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