Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame

The Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame (CWHF) is a non-profit organization founded in 1993 in Hartford in response to The Connecticut Forum presentation, "American Women in Focus: Breaking New Ground," highlighting accomplished women at the national level.

In planning the Forum event, organizers wanted to engage organizations in Connecticut that promoted women's accomplishments. Finding none, leadership at the Forum, along with others wanting to honor and promote the accomplishments of Connecticut women, founded the Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame. It was important to have the key financial and strategic support provided by all three organizational founders: The Connecticut Forum, Hartford College for Women and Bank of America (then Shawmut).

A core group of dedicated founders and trustees and other volunteers engaged in research, dialogue, oral history, and investigation to identify great Connecticut women of past and present who contributed to the state, nation, and the world in ways that should be celebrated and preserved. Geena Clonan, founding president of the Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame, worked tirelessly with other volunteers to sustain the organization and see it grow.

For the first time in 300 years of state history, the collective achievements of Connecticut women, past and present, were publicly honored. The first induction ceremony, held May 19, 1994 at the Wadsworth Atheneum, recognized the achievements of 46 women, 36 posthumously. It established a pattern to be followed in the years to follow:

Revisiting the achievements of well-known women such as Ella Grasso, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Katherine Hepburn, and Marian Anderson.

Uncovering important stories that had been forgotten or overlooked of women such as Evelyn Batchelder --sculptor of Bushnell Park's "Spirit of Victory," Betty Tianti --Connecticut's first woman Commissioner of Labor, Maria Sanchez --the first Latina elected to the State legislature, and Emeline Roberts Jones --the first female dentist in America.

Acknowledging the special contributions of those that took on establishment ideas and institutions such as Prudence Crandall --who was run out of town for her attempts to educate "Young Ladies of Color", and Alice Hamilton --America's first professor of industrial medicine, who fought for legislation to protect workers against toxic substances.

CWHF now numbers over 86 women whose lives are celebrated and documented on its website visited by over 3,000 individuals each month, including international researchers and local schoolchildren. The newest traveling exhibit, "We Fight for Roses, Too: Connecticut Women and the Quest for Equality," has been presented in educational, cultural, and community-based venues throughout the State and has been seen by over 250,000 men, women and children. CWHF also offers the public free access to its oral history archives, the files and archival materials it preserves on its inductees, and the Speakers' Bureau.

Since its founding, CWHF has expanded its mission to include an important variety of educational and cultural programs. The Connecticut Women's Heritage Trail is a constellation of museums and historic sites committed to interpreting women's history and culture. Connecticut Girl Scouts can earn a badge by visiting Heritage Trail sites and work toward a national badge in women's history. Connecticut Women: Across the Curriculum, Throughout the Year provides teachers with useful and attractive instructional materials on our inductees. The Ella Tambussi Grasso Center for Women in Politics sponsors an annual Youth Action Conference at the Capitol.

Each year women and men gather for the CWHF Induction Gala to honor and induct Connecticut women of accomplishment. In 2007 over 700 assembled to recognize Women in Sports: Celebrating Athletic Achievement and the 35th Anniversary of Title IX. CWHF begins its 15th year with a gala celebration honoring the achievements of Connecticut Women in Science, October 2008 in Hartford. (Please check back for Gala/Induction updates)

Indeed, in its first 15 years, the Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame has achieved far more than its original founders might have imagined. In 1999, its first capital campaign raised the funds to hire its first executive director. In 2003, it celebrated its tenth anniversary and launched a new logo. True to its mission, the Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame continues to honor Connecticut's women and preserve their stories, to educate the public about their achievements, and to inspire future generations to follow their example.