Sarah Elizabeth Doyle

“The women’s sphere is one of infinite and indeterminate radius.” —Sarah Elizabeth Doyle

Born this day in 1830: Sarah Elizabeth Doyle (1830–1922), suffragist and social reformer who co-founded the Rhode Island School of Design and engineered women’s access to Brown University

Doyle was a native of Providence, Rhode Island. After high school she was a popular and by all accounts inspirational teacher. She also served as a principal for many years. Doyle believed deeply in the need to promote women’s advancement. She was a member of the Rhode Island Woman Suffrage Association and lobbied for state suffrage when Rhode Island was drafting a new constitution. She saw not only suffrage but also the organization of women as key to their advancement. She helped found the Rhode Island Women’s Club in 1876 and served as its president until 1884. She also helped found the Rhode Island State Federation of Women’s clubs. She contributed greatly to promoting women’s access to higher education. In 1887 she was instrumental in founding the co-educational Rhode Island School of Design and through her efforts Brown University opened its doors to women in the 1891.

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Alice Freeman Palmer

Born this day in 1855: Alice Freeman Palmer (1855–1902), promoter of women’s higher education and president of Wellesley College

Palmer was born Alice Freeman in Colesville, New York. An enthusiastic student, she convinced her parents to finance her college education by promising to pay them back and to pay for the educations of her siblings. Energetic and disciplined, Freeman sacrificed her own opportunities to fulfill her pledge. Finally, in 1879, she was able to accept an appointment as head of the history department at Wellesley College. By 1881 she was named president of the college—at the ripe old age of 27! (She was the second woman named president of Wellesley, but is regarded by many as the first because her predecessor did not operate independently of Henry Durant, the school’s founder.) During her tenure (1881–1887) she transformed the school from little more than a finishing school to an institution of serious academic pursuits.

In 1887 she married Harvard Professor George Herbert Palmer. After marrying, she stepped down as president of Wellesley. Her resignation was met with cheers and jeers, depending upon how one viewed women in positions of power. But Palmer proved everyone wrong by continuing to exert strong influence over the direction of women’s higher education in the United States. She served as dean of women at the University of Chicago, was involved in the push to establish Radcliffe College, was a trustee of several institutions (including Wellesley), served as president of the Association of Collegiate Alumnae, and served on the Massachusetts State Board of Education, which oversaw teacher training schools.

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