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May 6CalendarMay 8
This Day
07May

18 indexed achievements across recorded history.


1429
Joan of Arc
Politics

Wounded at Orléans

Joan of Arc was wounded leading an assault during the siege of Orléans.

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Joan of Arc·Saint Joan of Arc | Biography, Facts, & Death
1845
Mary Eliza Mahony
Medicine

Birth of Mary Eliza Mahony

Mary Eliza Mahony was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Her birthdate is primarily recorded as May 7, 1845.

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Mary Eliza Mahony·Wikipedia - Mary Eliza Mahoney
1866
Clare Atwood
Arts

Birth of Clare Atwood

Clare Atwood was born on May 7, 1866, in Richmond, Surrey.

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Clare Atwood·Wikipedia
1920
Lily Parr
Sports

Plays in first recognised women's international football match

Parr played for Dick, Kerr Ladies as England beat France 4–0 at Deepdale, Preston, in what is widely regarded as the first recognised women's international football match.

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Lily Parr·Lancashire Evening Post - Remembering the Preston nurse who became football's first female superstar
1927
Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
Literature

Born in Cologne, Germany

Ruth Prawer was born to a Jewish family in Cologne, Germany, on May 7, 1927.

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Ruth Prawer Jhabvala·Wikipedia: Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
1929
Sally Liberman Smith
Science

Birth of Sally Liberman Smith

Sally Liberman Smith was born on May 7, 1929, in Washington, D.C.

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Sally Liberman Smith·Sally Smith, 78; Lab School Founder
1930
Totie Fields
Arts

Born in Hartford, Connecticut

Totie Fields was born Sophie Feldman on May 7, 1930, in Hartford, Connecticut, to Russian Jewish immigrant parents.

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Totie Fields·Totie Fields - Wikipedia
1940
Angela Carter
Literature

Birth of Angela Carter

Angela Carter was born on May 7, 1940, in Sussex, England.

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Angela Carter·Angela Carter - Wikipedia
1941
Lois Mailou Jones
Arts

Wins Robert Woods Bliss prize for landscape painting

Jones's painting 'Indian Shops, Gay Head, Massachusetts' won the Robert Woods Bliss prize at the Corcoran Gallery's 10th Biennial, though she had to hide her race.

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Lois Mailou Jones·Out of the Shadows: A Black Painter Finds Her Place in the Sun - National Gallery of Art
1943
Ayn Rand
Literature

'The Fountainhead' published

Bobbs-Merrill published Rand's novel with a modest 7,500-copy first printing; it became a slow-building bestseller and cultural phenomenon.

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Ayn Rand·The Fountainhead - Wikipedia
1945
Jane Kendeigh
Medicine

First Navy flight nurse to land at Okinawa

Jane Kendeigh lands at Okinawa, expanding her role in wartime evacuations.

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Jane Kendeigh·TDH: Jane Kendeigh - Tara Ross
1951
Marguerite Higgins
Literature

First woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting

Higgins became the first woman awarded a Pulitzer Prize in the International Reporting category, honored for her Korean War coverage.

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Marguerite Higgins·The Pulitzer Prizes: Marguerite Higgins
1965
Lillian Gilbreth
Science

First woman elected to the National Academy of Engineering

Became the first woman elected to NAE, pioneering in engineering.

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Lillian Gilbreth·PBS - Pioneering Inventor Lillian Gilbreth
1976
Arlene Blum
Exploration

First American woman to attempt Everest

Blum joins the American Bicentennial Everest Expedition, becoming the first American woman to attempt Mount Everest.

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Arlene Blum·Going for the Gusto – UC Berkeley Equity & Inclusion
1980
Mothers Against Drunk Driving
Activism

Early organizing of Mothers Against Drunk Drivers

Grassroots organizing begins in California for Mothers Against Drunk Drivers, an early milestone in the formation of MADD.

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Mothers Against Drunk Driving·History of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)
1982
Bev Francis
Sports

Women's World Powerlifting Championships victory (82.5 kg class)

Bev Francis won the Women's World Powerlifting Championships with a 497.5 kg total in the 82.5 kg class, part of her six consecutive world titles.

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Bev Francis·Bev Francis Career in Focus
1983
Bev Francis
Sports

World-record total at Women's World Powerlifting Championships (82.5 kg class)

Bev Francis set a world-record total of 577.5 kg in the 82.5 kg class at the Women's World Powerlifting Championships.

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Bev Francis·Bev Francis Career in Focus
2011
Rosie Napravnik
Sports

Historic Kentucky Derby ride on Pants On Fire

Rosie Napravnik rides Pants On Fire to a ninth-place finish in the Kentucky Derby on 2011-05-07, the best Derby finish by a female jockey to that date.

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Rosie Napravnik·A Talented Jockey Is No Longer a Secret - The New York Times