A Message from Board Member Marie Turley Executive Director, Boston Women’s Commission	ProclaimHer is published by the Boston Women’s Heritage Trail 22 Holbrook Street Boston, MA 02130 617-522-2872 howsmoyer@aol.com www.bwht.org Board of Directors President: Mary Howland Smoyer Vice President: Sylvia McDowell Secretary: Liane Curtis Treasurer: Gretchen O’Neill Meg Campbell Charlotte Harris Vera Johnson Diana Lam Barbara Locurto Maria de los Angeles Montes Beverly Morgan-Welch Patricia Sarango Elaine Taber Marie A. Turley Susan Wilson Advisory Board Barbara Clark Elam Carol Geyer Jean Gibran Polly Welts Kaufman Loretta Roach Nan Stein Joyce Stevens Stephanie Wong-Fan Consultant Bonnie Hurd Smith The Boston Women’s Heritage Trail is a nonprofit organization founded in 1989 as a program of the Boston Public Schools. Through educational programs, publications, and outreach initiatives, the BWHT is dedicated to weaving the lives and work of women back into the story of the City of Boston. We are available for research assistance, speaking engagements, and to collaborate on programs and projects. Editor: Mary Smoyer Design: Patricia Sarango Logo design: Ginny O’Neil
My first recollection of the Boston Women’s Heritage Trail was hearing the following story. While I know it is truly anecdotal, it remains my favorite: Returning from a field trip along Boston’s Freedom Trail, a Boston teacher asked her students their impressions of the experience. One girl responded, “It was good, but where are the women?” As I recall the story, that was how the Boston Women’s Heritage Trail was born. The Boston Women’s Commission has enjoyed a wonderful relationship with the BWHT since the Trail’s debut in 1989. Celebrating Women’s Equality Day, recognizing Women’s History Month, participating in festivities honoring the establishment of Lucy Stone Day, and providing technical and moral support to help Boston composer Amy Beach become the first woman to have her name inscribed on the Esplanade’s Hatch Shell – these are but a few of the projects that the Commission and the BWHT have worked on together. The mission of the Boston Women’s Commission includes the commitment to “promote the education of girls on their full range of life options.” One way to do this is to encourage everyone to appreciate women role models from both past and present. It is vitally important for both girls and boys to learn the contributions of women to the rich history of Boston – a task which the BWHT has so successfully executed over the past decade. This shared philosophy has led to a natural alliance between the Commission and the Trail. Among the many links between our city and the Trail are the following: – The Boston Women’s Commission is regularly represented on the BWHT Board. – On behalf of the Commission, Mayor Thomas M. Menino sponsored the publishing of brochures for the Trail’s downtown and Beacon Hill walks. – In April 2001, the Commission partnered with the BWHT on the Women’s History Art Exhibit. Boston Public School students created works inspired by women featured on the Trail and by the Boston Women’s Memorial; Mayor Menino hosted a reception in the Eagle Room and an exhibit in the Mayor’s Art Gallery in City Hall. – The longest collaboration of the two organizations has been the Boston Women’s Memorial Project, featuring the likenesses of Phillis Wheatley, Lucy Stone, and Abigail Adams. From its inception, the Board of the Bos-ton Women’s Heritage Trail has steadfastly supported this public art project, scheduled for installation in 2002. – Later this summer, the Women’s Commission will work with the BWHT and the Museum of Fine Arts to produce another publication sponsored by Mayor Menino. It will be a new Back Bay trail created to complement and accompany the MFA Exhibit opening on August 15, “A Studio of Her Own: Women Artists in Boston, 1870-1940.” Through all these efforts, we hope to help answer that age-old question, “Where are the women?”
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