Civic Engagement - Lighting the Way, Historic Women of the SouthCoast

Marie Equi

New Bedford prepared physician and political agitator Marie Equi (1872-1952) for a lifetime of social justice advocacy. Marie’s Oregon medical practice and nationwide activism were influenced by her working class experiences while growing up in New Bedford.

Sarah R. Delano

“If you bulldoze your heritage, you become just anywhere,” have become the most repeated words of Sarah R. Delano (1904-1994).

Rosetta Douglass

Abolitionist and social reformer Rosetta Douglass (1839-1906) continued a family legacy of activism that began in New Bedford with her father, Frederick Douglass.

Rosalind Poll Brooker

Rosalind Poll Brooker (1928-2016) was a trailblazer for women in the fields of law and politics.

Lydia Grinnell Brown

New Bedford’s Lydia Grinnell Brown (1892-1945) became the first African American graduate of Simmons College in Boston.

Elizabeth Carter Brooks

Equality was the vision of Elizabeth Carter Brooks (1867-1951) in her work as educator, social activist and architect.

Cecil Clark Davis

Her portraits won prestigious awards, her travels included battlegrounds, and her feminism was pervasive.

Valentina Almeida

The child of Cape Verdean immigrants, Valentina Almeida (1913-2009) is best known for her advocacy work with immigrants within the local Cape Verdean community.