STL Women-Owned Biz & Women of St. Louis History in Honor of the 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment
Today, August 18, 2020, is the 100th Anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment which finally secured the vote for Women in the United States. Of course, the vote was not a cure-all – there’s still plenty of progress to make for Women, and many others, but I’m going to celebrate the win it was today, because I think, in the discussion of how far we have to go we’ve forgotten how big a deal this was. It took a three-generation fight to finally secure more citizens these voting rights.
In honor of the anniversary of the 19th amendment, I want to talk about some fantastic women-owned businesses and amazing women from St. Louis’ history who have largely been forgotten.
First up, we have The St. Louis Surge! The St. Louis Surge are St. Louis’ only professional sports team, and their games, while small are super fun and affordable. Pro tip: don’t plan on relying on the concession stand though. Oh, and their owner is a really bad-ass awesome local, Khalia Collier, who became one of the youngest owners in the country after taking ownership of the franchise at 23 years old.
Big Heart Tea Co. - Owned by Lisa Govro and co-run by Kunthearath Nhek-Morrissey, these two lovely women make you feel fabulous about supporting them and their tea makes you feel fabulous too. Big Heart tea is dedicated to supporting women internationally, locally, and all the way through the supply chain. We’re talking fair trade, lots of love, and lots of female empowerment. I highly suggest starting with Cup of Sunshine and Royal Treatmint. Learn more about them and hear from Lisa and Kuntherath in this segment.
Golden Gems - Also run by two fabulous, kind, and wonderful local ladies (and sisters), Amanda and Susan always have something fun at their brick-and-mortar on Cherokee St. (It’s also super Instagramable.) So much love for the fun and creative designs they come up with.
Colleen’s Cookies - Such fantastic food. Colleen is real and she seems like an awesome person too. Almost all of their cookies are sooo delish and I promise you - you have never had a better crust on Quiche.
Place Value Pottery - Malaika is an extremely talented local ceramic artist. She creates beautiful, earthy pottery decorated with maps of different local neighborhoods and other places around the world.
Lux & Nyx - The brainchild of the delightful Lisa Hu, Lux & Nyx has created the perfect everything bag for the working woman on the go. And several more you’ll dream about. Plus a portion of proceeds goes to building schools and supporting female empowerment organizations around the world, plus she’s keeping sustainable fashion in mind.
Clementine’s Creamery - Delicious flavors you won’t find anywhere else, also a front-runner and trailblazer for boozy ice cream with four very Instagramable locations around town. Need I say more?
Mount Indigo - Jessica Conick started Mount Indigo to move sustainable fashion forward. It’s super interesting to talk to this fashion industry veteran about the future of sustainable fashion and her up-cycled jackets are so cute. She’s a delightful person you’d feel good supporting even without the socially conscious mission and work of her company.
And now for some pretty spectacular local ladies of St. Louis history:
Mme. Marie-Therese Chouteau - the founding mother of St. Louis. Marie-Therese or Veuve Chouteau (“Widow Chouteau”) was a remarkable woman for any time - let alone the late 1700s and early 1800s. She was the mother of Auguste Chouteau and partner of Pierre Laclede (credited with founding St. Louis) and was extremely important and influential part of the small trading post developing into the Gateway to the West and incredibly city we are today. She also had the only stone house in a time when stone structures were luxurious and very uncommon (Yas Queen!).
Mary Meachum – This 19th Century abolitionist and educator defied threats, jail, and more to help hundreds to thousands cross the Mississippi River on their way to freedom and help so many African-Americans earn an education when other schools would not admit them. Her story is truly incredible. Among the tributes she earned is that The Mary Meachum Freedom Crossing (the first site in Missouri to be accepted in the National Park Service's National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom) was named after her you can visit it here as well as her grave in Bellefontaine Cemetery.
St. Rose Philippine Deschene – Born in 1769, this Visitation Sister, came over from France with a small group of fellow sisters and embarked into the frontier territory knowing nobody and no English. They established the first free school west of the Mississippi here in our St. Louis region and did a lot to care for both the people living in St. Louis and St. Charles but also the surrounding Native American tribes – in particularly the Potawatomi.
Dr. Mary H. Mclean – Dr. Mclean became the first woman to hold an official position at the St. Louis Female Hospital and the first woman admitted to the St. Louis Medical Society. She also established the Evening Dispensary for Women where women could have better access to care and those who could not afford care could access free care.
Edna Gellhorn - The first president of the Missouri chapter of the League of Women’s Voters, she helped organize the 1916 Golden Parasol walkless parade at the Democratic National Convention and the 1919 jubilee Meeting of the National Women’s Suffrage Association which were both held in St. Louis. She did a great deal to promote women’s suffrage locally and was instrumental in the passage of the 19th Amendment. She’s also Martha Gelhorn’s mother.
I hope you enjoyed this round-up, and learning more about women in our history and some of our present-day women-owned and operated businesses in St. Louis. Happy 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment!