# Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative ## About the AWHI AWHI is anchored by a core staff and cohort of women’s history curators embedded at museums, libraries, archives, and research centers across the Smithsonian. This is a collaborative initiative that engages internal and external partners. Now a part of the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum, AWHI staff are contributing to the foundations of this new national institution. Funding from AWHI has enabled the Wolbach Library staff to undertake numerous projects detailed below. The Wolbach Library has taken a leadership role in efforts to research, preserve, interpret, and amplify women’s contributions –past and present– to astronomy. This page serves as an introduction to the Library’s women’s history projects enabled by the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative (AWHI), which represent years of collaboration between colleagues at the Center for Astrophysics and across the Smithsonian Institution. ![Drawing of Maria Mitchell Professor of astronomy at Vassar College seated and looking through a telescope](/sites/g/files/omnuum1806/files/wolbachlibrary/files/maria_mitchell.jpg) ###### [Maria Mitchell](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Maria_Mitchell.jpg), a noted astronomer in her own right, trained many of the [Women Astronomical Computers](/plate-stacks/women-at-hco) who worked at the HCO. ## AWHI at Wolbach Open all sections Close all sections ### Curator expand\_more Dr. Emily A. Margolis joined the Wolbach Library in 2020 as the curator of American women’s history in aviation, spaceflight, astronomy, and planetary science. Margolis is jointly appointed to the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and the National Air and Space Museum. She is part of a cohort of AWHI-funded curators that support women’s history projects at their units and convene with stakeholders at all levels for strategic planning related to collections, cataloging, data, archives, education, and programming. ### Wolbach Women’s History Group expand\_more Since December 2020, the Wolbach Library has convened a working group of scholars from across the Smithsonian to discuss topics related to the history of women in science with an emphasis on collective labor. Members representing the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, National Air and Space Museum, National Portrait Gallery, and Smithsonian Libraries and Archives gather to discuss relevant scholarship, ongoing projects, and learn from guest speakers. These conversations sustain community and foster collaboration. ### Sally’s Night expand\_more In June 2021, the National Air and Space Museum launched Sally’s Night, a celebration of women in STEM inspired by the life and legacy of Dr. Sally K. Ride, an astronaut, scientist, and educator. We celebrate Sally’s Night on or around the anniversary of one exciting episode of Dr. Ride’s extraordinary life, the night she looked back at Earth as the first American woman in space, on June 18, 1983. Sally’s Night is modeled after Yuri’s Night, an annual celebration of the first human in space, established in 2001 and celebrated around the world. The aims of Sally’s Night are two-fold: to recognize the contributions of women, past and present, to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), and to celebrate how science shines in all of our lives. The Wolbach Library is an important partner in Sally’s Night. Nico Carver, Librarian for Collaborative Programs, is a member of the planning team. He has contributed energy and resources to helping the National Air and Space Museum share the mission of Sally’s Night with learners around the world. Due to the COVID pandemic, the inaugural Sally’s Night celebration took place online. Nico contributed a hands-on activity to the virtual Celebration Guide which asked volunteers to calculate the distance to the moon using just their outstretched thumb and some math. This activity was inspired by the work of astronomer Mary Fowler who worked on creating more accurate distance calculations to the moon in the 1910s. Sally’s Night 2022 was hosted at Nationals Park in Washington, DC, on June 12 during the Washington Nationals’ game against the Milwaukee Brewers. One of the activity tables along the concourse featured an activity developed by Nico. Museum Explainers introduced learners to the work of the Women Astronomical Computers through facsimile glass plates and “flyspankers,” tools that the computers developed to aid in the classification of stars by studying their magnitudes and variability. ### Guide to Gender Inclusive Language – Women Astronomical Computer expand\_more In summer 2022, staff from the Wolbach Library convened to discuss the various terminology used throughout history to refer to the women who cared for and worked with the astronomical glass plates. Members of this group have developed a guide for telling their stories using gender inclusive language. ### Because of Her Story Internship expand\_more In summer 2022, the Wolbach Library hosted a virtual Because of Her Story intern to work on a project titled “[In Fleming’s Footsteps: Recognizing and Preserving Gendered Care Work in Astronomy](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7640557).” Since the 19th century, women at the Harvard College Observatory have been the stewards of one of the most significant astronomical data sets in history—a collection of 500,000 glass plates that record the entire night sky. The Curators of Astronomical Photographs, beginning with Williamina Fleming, have organized and maintained the plates and their data, and made them accessible to researchers around the globe. With the support of the Because of Her Story internship program, Wolbach Library began a project to recognize and preserve the stories of astronomy care workers involved in Project DASCH (Digitizing A Sky Century at Harvard). Since 2003, DASCH technicians and scanners have worked to digitize every plate and make accessible the data to researchers around the world. The restructuring of Project DASCH in 2022 was an opportune time to collect stories of the people who made this project possible. During her internship, Rice University student Sydney Coldren interviewed 4 current and former Project DASCH contributors who have followed “in Fleming’s footsteps.” She designed an interview protocol and questions based on best practices in the field of oral history. The interviews will be available to researchers following a period of embargo. More information is available on Zenodo. Recognizing that it will not be possible to interview all collaborators, Coldren has developed a template for Project DASCH collaborators to share their own stories. This template was inspired by Williamina Fleming’s contributions to the Time Capsule of 1900. To learn more about Coldren’s work, read her [blog post](https://wolba.ch/gazette/dasch-and-the-erasure-of-care-work-at-hco/). ![Wordmark - Because of Her Story - Smithsonian](/sites/g/files/omnuum1806/files/wolbachlibrary/files/awhi_bohs_logo-system_primary.jpg)