By Anne Arnold

Every year, March is designated Women’s History Month by presidential proclamation. The month is set aside to honor women’s contributions in American history.

Women’s History Month started as Women’s History Week

Women’s History Month began as a local celebration in Santa Rosa, California. The Education Task Force of the Sonoma County Commission on the Status of Women planned and executed a “Women’s History Week” celebration in 1978. The organizers selected the week of March 8 to correspond with International Women’s Day. The movement spread across the country as other communities initiated their own Women’s History Week celebrations the following year.

In 1980, a consortium of women’s groups and historians, led by the National Women’s History Project (now the National Women’s History Alliance), successfully lobbied for national recognition. In February 1980, President Jimmy Carter issued the first Presidential Proclamation declaring the Week of March 8th 1980 as National Women’s History Week. Discover more about Women’s History Month and its importance here.

Women’s History Month and the Red Cross: Honoring Unsung Heroic Women Who Served in Wartime

Women have played an important role in fulfilling the lifesaving American Red Cross mission since Clara Barton founded the organization more than 140 years ago. Known as the “Angel of the Battlefield,” Clara had cared for wounded soldiers during the Civil War before establishing the Red Cross in the U.S., where she was a visionary leader in serving those in need.

This March — which is recognized as both Red Cross Month and Women’s History Month — we take a look at some of the Red Cross women who stepped up to help throughout history, exemplifying Clara’s humanitarian spirit and courageously supporting U.S. service members in wartime. To read more about some of the heroic women in our Red Cross history, click here. You can also get to know our modern-day women leaders by checking out our #LeadLikeClara blog series, which started in March 2022.