March is Women’s History Month and there are events across the city discussing women who helped shape Alexandria.
Events include a lecture by Jane Plitt, Director of the National Center of Women’s Innovations, on how women shaped the world of healthcare, from curing leprosy to developing cataract eye surgery, but it took years for their role in the field to be recognized.
“She will be sharing the buried stories of a number of women who were innovators in health care including Dr. Patricia Bath (cataract eye surgery), Dr. Katalin Kariko (mRNA development), Dr. Svetlana Mojsov (Ozempic), Chemist Alice Ball (cure for leprosy), and Drs. Doudna and Charpentier (genome editing technology),” the event listing said. “These women fundamentally altered health for so many of us, and yet struggled to be recognized for their roles.”
The lecture is scheduled for Sunday, March 10, from 12:30-2:30 p.m.
A tour later that month at the Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum (105-107 S. Fairfax Street) will examine the role of midwives in the city beyond just delivering babies.
Events include:
- Alexandria Hospital: Women Mobilize the Community — Alexandria History Museum at the Lyceum (201 S. Washington Street), open until March 31
- Lecture: How Women Changed the World of Health Care But Took Years to Be Recognized — Lyceum on Sunday, March 10, from 12:30-2:30 p.m.
- Dorcas Allen Lecture, by Dr. Alison Mann — Lyceum on Saturday, March 16, from 3-4 p.m.
- Specialty Tour: A Toast to the Ladies! — Gadsby’s Tavern Museum (138 N. Royal Street), Friday, March 8 and Saturday, March 9 from 6-7:30 p.m.
- Call the Midwife! Women in Historic Medical Care — Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum (105-107 S. Fairfax Street), Friday, March 22, 6-7 p.m. and Saturday, March 23, 10-11 a.m.
- Civil War Women’s Day — Fort Ward Museum & Historical Site (4301 W. Braddock Road) on Saturday, March 30, from 11 a.m.-4 p.m.