Oregonians
Marie Aioe Dorion (Metis, Ioway) (c. 1786-1850) and Sacagawea (Lemhi Shoshone) (c. 1788-1812): Women who traveled to Oregon, the only female members of their parties, and often serving as interpreters and guides. Part of a fur trapping expedition, Dorion’s husband was killed in Oregon; she managed to survive the winter alone with her young children, eventually settling near Saint Louis, OR. Sacagewea traveled with the Lewis and Clark Expedition, an interpreter and guide.
Beatrice Morrow Cannady (1890-1974):
Lawyer and civil rights advocate, Cannady was the first Black woman to graduate from law school in Oregon, and also the first Black woman to run for state representative. She led protests against the KKK, advocated for civil rights legislation, and helped desegregate schools.
Kathleen Saadat (b.1940): Black lesbian civil rights pioneer, Saadat helped organize Portland’s first Pride parade in 1975, worked on affirmative action in the 1980s, and led initiatives for community oversight of the police. She worked tirelessly to make sure anti-gay Ballot Measure 9 did not pass in 1992.
Harriet “Hattie” Redmond (1862-1952): Suffragist and activist, Redmond worked to improve the lives of black women in Portland. She was a president of the Colored Women’s Equal Suffrage Association, which helped Oregon women gain the right to vote in 1912. She would help women register to vote and remained active in political campaigns.
Mary Riddle (1902-1981), Leah Hing (1907-2001) and Hazel Ying Lee (1912-1944): These women were some of the first female pilots in the United States. Riddle (Quinault, Clatsop) was the second indigenous woman to receive a license. Hing was the first Chinese-American woman to receive a license. Lee was the first Chinese-American woman to fly for the US military.
Kathryn Hall Bogle (1906-2008):
Bogle was the first Black journalist paid for work in The Oregonian. She could not find full time employment due to her race, so she worked as a freelancer, writing for papers across the country. She also worked as a social worker for nearly 20 years. In 1998, she received a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Portland Association of Black Journalists.