From Jeannette Rankin of Montana, the first woman elected to Congress, to the new Members of the 109th Congress, women have made their mark in American history as Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Now, in Women in Congress, 1917–2006, their varied, colorful, and inspirational stories are told in the most comprehensive source available on the more than 200 women who have served in the U.S. Congress.

Designed for students and a general audience, this authoritative volume features four- to six-page biographical profiles of individual Representatives and Senators. Former Member profiles are arranged chronologically and are introduced by contextual essays that explain major events in congressional and U.S. history. Profiles of the women Members of the 109th Congress are included in a separate section of the book and are arranged alphabetically. Containing more than 1,000 pages, Women in Congress also includes:

• Portraits of every woman who has served in Congress, as well as other rare historical images
• Bibliographies for further reading and manuscript collection references
• Statistical graphs and charts
• Appendices on women's committee assignments; women committee and subcommittee chairs; women in Congress by state; and minority women in Congress
• A comprehensive index

Authorized by a U.S. House resolution, and researched and written by the Office of History and Preservation in the Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, Women in Congress is the first in an official four-part series about minorities in Congress. Future volumes will profile African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Asian-Pacific Islander Americans who have served in Congress.

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An Introduction:

Like all history, the story of women in Congress is defined by change over time: From a complete lack of representation in Congress before 1917, women have advanced to party leadership at the start of the 21st century. At times during the roughly 90 years women have served in Congress, change has been almost imperceptible, as exemplified by the subtle shift in women’s committee assignments after World War II. At other times, change has been bold and dramatic, as evidenced by the 1992 “Year of the Woman” elections.

Several questions, important not only to women’s history in Congress but also to the development of Congress itself, have recurred throughout the process of researching and writing this book. How have women Members of Congress reacted to the political culture and traditions of Capitol Hill? Have women changed the way Congress conducts its business, or have they modified their behavior to conform with the institution? Have the experiences of the women Senators differed from those of women Representatives and, if so, what might account for these differences? What kinds of experiences do Congresswomen have in common, despite the differences in their legislative styles and political ideologies? ...

Women in Congress, 1917-2006 GPO's Web Site

Prepared under the direction of
The Committee on House Administration of the U.S. House of Representatives
Vernon J. Ehlers, Chairman
Juanita Millender-Mcdonald, Ranking member

By the
Office of History and Preservation,
Office of the Clerk,
U.S. House of Representatives

This document (H. Doc. 108-223), was compiled and edited under the direction of the Joint Committee on Printing.

Visit Women in Congress Official Website

Since 1917, when Representative Jeannette Rankin of Montana became the first woman to serve in Congress, 243 more women have served as U.S. Representatives or Senators. This Web site, based on the book Women in Congress, 1917–2006, contains biographical profiles of former women Members of Congress, links to information about current women Members, essays on the institutional and national events that shaped successive generations of Congresswomen, and images of each woman Member, including rare photos.

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