Collections

The Smithsonian’s collections include iconic objects that tell the stories of American women, their struggles, and their accomplishments. Explore collection highlights and stories related to women and girls, or search our digital records.

A vibrant palette and daub-like forms commingle in a vertical stripe pattern to conjure fleeting elements of the landscape.
learn more about "Earth Sermon—Beauty, Love and Peace" by Alma Thomas, 1971
A tintype occupational portrait of a woman, likely a doctor or possibly a nurse or midwife, carrying a medical bag. The woman is standing tall at the center of the image, looking directly at the camera. She carries a medical bag in her proper left hand.
learn more about Vital Midwives
Collection Item
Fencing mask featuring an American flag across the front.
learn more about Ibtihaj Muhammad's Fencing Mask
Pages from Poems on Various Subjects
learn more about Phillis Wheatley's Poems on Various Subjects
Leather nametag with gold NASA logo and the name Mae Jemison.
learn more about Mae Jemison's Space Suit Name Tag
Book cover that reads "Blind Reading"
learn more about Solving Mail Mysteries
Collection Item
Jean Ritchie sits in a field, holding a plucked dulcimer. She stares off into the distance, thoughtful.
learn more about Jean Ritchie
Collection Item
The front of the black-and-white program features a centrally oriented, thatched illustration of Wilma Rudolph.
learn more about Wilma Rudolph
Collection Item