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"Adventure is worthwhile in itself."--Amelia Earhart "I want to do it because I want to do it. Women must try to do things as men have tried. When they fail, their failure must be a challenge to others."--Amelia Earhart |
By D.A. Watson
Why do we need a site about Female Explorers? Why not a site about all explorers. Here's my explanation...
More than a decade ago I moved to a small town in Central California and soon set about learning the history of my new home. One day the newspaper printed a feature about a famous woman explorer - Harriet Chalmers Adams - who had been a local resident. I was amazed to find that I not only didn't recognize Ms. Adams' name, but also had never heard of most of the other women explorers noted in the article's sidebar. Since that time I have been a passionate researcher and reader of the life stories of women explorers.
You've probably heard of Amelia Earhart and Isak Dinesen, but I'm willing to bet most of you have never learned anything about the lives of phenomenal female explorers like Gertrude Bell, Alexandra David-Neel, Florence Von Sass Baker, Isabella Bird Bishop, or Annie Peck. This site will change that!
In 1925 four women founded the Society of Women Explorers to fill a need for an organization which would support and encourage women in their explorations. At that time, no other "explorer" organization allowed women members. These four women, Marguerite Harrison, Blair Niles, Gertrude Shelby, and Gertrude Emersen Sen, determined that "geographer" should carry a broad meaning to include such disciplines as anthropology, geology, biology, archaeology, oceanography, ecology, and even specialized aspects of the arts. Today, the Society boasts more than 600 members, yet very few people outside the organization seem to know of its existence. This site will change that!
When the youth of today are asked to name explorers, they commonly mention Magellan, Columbus, Erik the Red, or Lewis & Clark. Nobody ever names Delia Akeley. This site will change that!
Women, especially young women, need a resource that will show them the possibilities in their lives. They need a place that will provide them with role models and resources for their personal life exploration. And men, especially young men, can benefit from a site showing that women, too, can be explorers and adventurers in their chosen fields. This site will do that!
So - please join me in an exploration of the lives of women explorers. Be prepared for adventure!
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| Women Who Dared II |
 A beautiful and inspirational poster with pictures and short vignettes of "women who dared." |
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| American Experience: Around the World in 72 Days (1997) |
 PBS Home Video. Many called her "the best reporter in America," and Nellie Bly truly achieved amazing successes. She got herself committed to an institution to expose abuses of the mentally ill and actually did travel around the world in 72 days. Discover the woman behind these and many other astonishing feats -- a serious yet spunky celebrity who mastered life through her cunning and wit. |
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| The Hawaiian Archipelago |
 By Isabella Bird. Six Months Among the Palm Groves, Coral Reefs and Volcanoes of the Sandwich Islands. |
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| Women of Discovery |
 A Celebration of Intrepid Women Who Explored the World by Milbry Polk, Mary Tiegreen. Across the centuries and from many lands, women have set forth on journeys of exploration. Visionaries, adventurers, artists, and scientists, these women challenged the limitations, both physical and social, of their times and, in the face of formidable challenges, expanded the world's body of knowledge. Yet despite their extraordinary achievements, they have remained unknown and unsung for too long. |
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| Amelia Earhart : A Biography |
 By Doris L. Rich. "Rich's portrait reveals a determined, independent woman, brave enough "to go where no one had gone and to do what no one had done" . . . [and] illuminates the public and private life of a legendary flier, bringing her back to earth as a courageous woman who dreamed and dared all." (Christian Science Monitor) |