Passionate about making sure that she and fellow factory workers were compensated fairly, Aurélia Lebeau (1874-1955) became one of the first female textile union leaders in New England.
A staunch abolitionist, activist, and educator at heart, Deborah Weston (1814 -????) was key in promoting anti-slavery ideals in Massachusetts, especially in New Bedford and Boston.
Dedicated library assistant Dineia Maria (Amaral) Sylvia (1948-2003) was the welcoming face of New Bedford’s Casa da Saudade branch library from its 1971 opening.
A longtime member of the Sisterhood of Tifereth Israel Synagogue, Sylvia (Levy) Finger (1895-1982) worked hard to keep the Jewish community flourishing by building on Jewish rituals, values and customs.
A groundbreaking leader in employment counseling and civil rights, Zoe Alysse Washington Fabio (1925-2009) was an agent for change as both civil servant and activist.
Internationally-acclaimed artist Nancy Holt (1938-2014), with family roots in New Bedford that informed her life and art, worked in sculpture, landscape design, video, and other media.
Anna Murray Douglass (c. 1813-1882), born in freedom in Maryland, secured funds for enslaved Frederick to escape to New York, where the couple would marry before moving to New Bedford.
A well-respected journalist in southeastern Massachusetts and beyond, Minna Littmann (c. 1893-1984) was a staff writer for The Evening Standard and later The Standard-Times from the 1920s through the 1950s.