Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site

Carter G. Woodson

Mary McLeod Bethune

Unita Zelma Blackwell (1933-2019)

Learn how two teachers, Mary McLeod Bethune and Carter G. Woodson, worked together to share scholarship on Black History with the public.

The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote, but some New Jersey women could vote as early as 1776. African Americans in the state could vote if they met the residency and property requirements. They lost these rights in 1807, only to fight to regain them.

Mary McLeod Bethune Council House. African American Civil Rights Network

Mary McLeod Bethune -- educator, club woman, and stateswoman -- asserted the universality of equality in and through all things. Her contributions to the women’s suffrage movement were evident in her rhetoric challenging American society to become a true democracy, as well as in her utilization of institutional spaces to plan, strategize, and allocate resources.

Tucked in a row of brick townhouses lining Vermont Avenue in Washington, DC, is a headquarters that played a pivotal role in advancing civil rights for African Americans and women. As furnishing and exhibits return to the house, the legacy of Mary McLeod Bethune, the National Council of Negro Women, and its many historic visitors remain within these walls and is felt outside of them.

Women’s history is found in more than 400 national parks across the country and still being made today. National parks come in many different shapes, sizes, naming designations, and reasons for being created. Explore national parks that were created and named in honor of specific women and take a closer look at these women’s lasting legacy on American history.

Signed into law July 2, 1964, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlawed discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Many national parks were created to preserve and tell the story of the struggle for civil and human rights leading up to the Act and beyond as we continue to work towards realizing the dream for all people.

Learn about current and projected rates of sea level rise in the greater DC area, based on local water level data collected by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)