Local History

Women’s History

Towsley, Matilda and Della Pierce

In 1849 Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman in the United States to earn a medical degree. In the Kalamazoo area, Matilda Towsley and Della Pierce practiced medicine in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.

Austin, Marilyn “Mamie”

There are many times when people never get a chance to see the impact of their work. Kalamazoo photographer Mamie Austin is one of those individuals. Her images taken for the Kalamazoo Public Library’s Art Department in the late 1930s and early...

Balch, Nelda K.

Kalamazoo is known world-wide for many things, with a focus often upon industry ... but it should be just as imperative to draw light upon those educational institutions that have also widened Kalamazoo’s reputation beyond our borders.

Blankenburg, Frieda

“Mrs. Blankenburg is widely known in Kalamazoo and Michigan for her patriotic, social and civic activities and club affiliations. She has been keenly interested in historical research, particularly as it…

Brown, Olympia

In 1999, the pioneering life of Olympia Brown, a native of Prairie Ronde Township, was added to the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame, making her only the fifth woman from…

Burchnall, Dorothy

The earliest brewers in Bronson (Kalamazoo) Village were of the do-it-yourself variety and many of them were women. As society would have it, her husband’s name was on the label, but the operation was clearly under Dorothy Burchnall’s command.

Chaffee, Ada Gilmore

Kalamazoo-born artist Ada Gilmore Chaffee was a leading pioneer as a painter and woodblock printer, known primarily for her affiliation with the Provincetown Printers and their unique advances in the use of multi-colored woodblocks.

Crane, Caroline Bartlett

One of the most interesting and productive careers ever to unfold in Kalamazoo began with an unusual childhood. Caroline Bartlett was born in Hudson, Wisconsin, in 1858 to Lorenzo and Julia Bartlett. Her father was owner and captain of a small...

Eames, Lucy C.

Lucy Eames opened a select school for young women at a time when institutions of higher learning for women were rare. She helped organize the Ladies Library Association in Kalamazoo and served on its board of directors for many years.

Ham, Caroline

First elected to the Kalamazoo City Commission in 1975, Caroline Ham has the distinction of being the city’s first woman mayor, having beat out several other candidates in 1981 in…

Henshaw, Luna "Lou"

Luna “Lou” Henshaw (later Zwisler) holds the distinction of being the first woman elected to sit on the Kalamazoo City Commission.

Howard, Ruth M

For nearly 30 years, Ruth Howard took Kalamazooans on weekly “trips to the stars” in the city's first planetarium. As a charter member of the Kalamazoo Weavers Guild, she taught them how to weave stunning fabrics from natural materials.

Hull, Blanche

Most Kalamazooans remember Blanche Hull as the donor of the Hull Preserve adjacent to Milham Park, but that gift was only the last act in a long life as a civic and cultural leader. She came by her leadership qualities honestly...

Johnson, Pauline Byrd

Pauline Byrd Johnson was many things: an outspoken critic of forced desegregation policies, an active member of the Kalamazoo Republican Party, a tireless advocate for the value of education, and…

Kalamazoo Corset Company

At the turn of the 20th century, when respectable women risked their health by squeezing themselves into tight corsets in pursuit of a fashionable silhouette, the Kalamazoo Corset Company was the largest employer in the city...

Kalamazoo Lassies

In the early years of the 1950’s baseball was booming in Kalamazoo. On any given summer night, teams from local businesses, groups of school kids, or professional barnstorming teams would be swinging their bats and hoping for home runs at parks...

Ladies' Library Association

The Kalamazoo Ladies' Library Association was the first woman’s club organized in Michigan and the third in the nation. Members held meetings in various places around the village between 1852 and 1879, when local builder Fred Bush completed...

Las Amigas Club

Organized on 28 February 1948 the African American women’s group Las Amigas (The Friends) Club emerged to provide a variety of civic services and social programs, mostly focusing on supporting young adults and their educational pursuits.

McCrea, Annette Maxson

Reputedly the first American female landscape architect, Annette Maxson McCrea, began her career in Kalamazoo.

Michigan Female Seminary

The Michigan Female Seminary was established in 1856 under the auspices of the Presbyterian Synod of Michigan. Located on a 31 acre bluff overlooking Gull Road and what is now Riverview Drive, the Seminary stood as a landmark in the city for more...

Minott, Margaret

Margaret Minott was the first African American elected to the Kalamazoo Board of Education. She was instrumental in the effort to desegregate Kalamazoo Public Schools and it was through her efforts that the Oshtemo Branch Library came to be.