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Women welders at Dravo Corporation pose for a group photo in 1943.
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Heinz History Center unveils storied legacy of Pittsburgh women through new exhibit

Courtesy of the Dravo Collection

Heinz History Center unveils storied legacy of Pittsburgh women through new exhibit

'A Woman’s Place: How Women Shaped Pittsburgh' showcases extraordinary women associated with everything from World War II to Mr. Snuffleupagus.

Suffragettes, athletes, pop icons, an illustrator for Sesame Street, a Black trans woman activist and more highlight the new “A Woman’s Place: How Women Shaped Pittsburgh” exhibit at the Heinz History Center.

The exhibition will open on Sat., March 23, and run through Oct. 6.

Included are more than 250 artifacts, immersive experiences and archival images that help illustrate the national and local impact of women from the region, spanning the early 1800s to the present day.

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With the new exhibit, the History Center plans to “flip the script and take an unprecedented deep dive into the lives of these fierce and unflappable women who helped change the world.”

The History Center pulled from its vast collections and recently secured archival gems.

Newer items such as original sketches from an illustrator who contributed to the PBS show “Sesame Street” are included with the inauguration dress of Pittsburgh’s first and only female mayor, Sophie Masloff.

The exhibit also shines a spotlight on women athletes such as Olympian and basketball star Swin Cash, a McKeesport native, and Suzie McConnell Serio, a two-time Olympic medalist in basketball and former head coach of the Pitt women’s basketball team.

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Pop icons have a presence as well.

You can’t miss the purple pantsuit worn on “Chiller Theater” by Terminal Stare, otherwise known as Donna Rae.

Parts of the women’s exhibit were in the works several years ago, to mark the 100th anniversary of the ratification of women’s voting rights. But the COVID-19 pandemic and closure of physical museum spaces dashed those plans. Still, it wasn’t for long, said History Center’s senior curator Leslie Przybylek.

The exhibit explores seven themes: Battle for rights; stunt girls, sob sisters and muckrakers; women’s work; sports; arts and advocacy; building community, and the impact of war.

“War brings sorrow and sacrifice. For women, it also upended the social order and gave them a chance to do things otherwise they would not be able to do,” Przybylek said.

The image of women in factories predominates.

“Rosie the Riveter – the strong, competent woman dressed in overalls and bandanna – was introduced as a symbol of patriotic womanhood,” she noted.

It’s not surprising that Pittsburgh women got busy working with the region hosting industrial giants.

“For us, it’s not pinpointing one story of Rosie, because there wasn’t just one,” Przybylek said

Additionally, female Pittsburgh factory workers weren’t all riveters.

They were welders, she said. And they helped out in more than just the World War II effort.

“There were thousands of women working in factories during the Civil War and World War I,” Przybylek said.

“The exhibit also encourages people to look at these things and look at a longer span of history.”

Women in the press is another historical theme.

Armstrong County native and intrepid investigative reporter Nellie Bly is featured along with one of her handbags on loan from the Freedom Forum in Washington, D.C.

Bly is part of a cadre of storied journalists and authors from the region including Jane Gray Swisshelm, Ida Tarbell and Rachel Carson.

While those are household names, a new face featured in the exhibit is the late Peggy Owens Skillen, a native of Monessen and an illustrator for Sesame Street.

Her illustrations of Mr. Snuffleupagus and Oscar the Grouch are a part of the women’s exhibit. The history center is still processing her collection, Przybylek said.

Speaking of the impact of women on children’s television programming, also featured is the late Josie Carey, host of WQED’s “The Children’s Corner” and creative partner of Fred Rogers.

Homegrown activist

A recent addition to prominent Pittsburgh women in the exhibit is Ciora Thomas, a Pittsburgh Black trans woman fighting for social and economic justice for LGBTQI+ people.

A pair of her boots and a megaphone are part of the exhibit.

Thomas, 35, is the founder and executive director of SisTers PGH, which operates Pittsburgh’s only trans-owned community center.

Thomas said she was humbled to be part of the exhibit.

She wore the exhibit boots during protests and events.

“So many times I was out there in those boots fighting for trans inclusivity,” she said.

Thomas had the megaphone since 2015 when she started organizing People’s Pride in Downtown, Pittsburgh as an alternative to another Pride event criticized for lacking inclusiveness.

A trans inclusivity activist for 20 years, Thomas was a teenage homeless sex worker who fought to help other trans people with resources.

“Back in the day when I was growing up the mayor wasn’t using words like ‘trans’ and ‘queer,’” she said. Her activism and the nonprofit she founded, has made a difference, Thomas said.

“Now I’m seeing that language utilized in city and county government.”

Thomas has spoken at hundreds of events in the last two decades.

She still gets a little nervous and is concerned about Black trans women being targeted for violence.

In 2022, the FBI hate crime statistics recorded a 10% increase in LGBTQI+ targeted crimes since 2021 and a nearly 40% increase in reported anti-transgender incidents during the same period.

“As I start talking, I understand the resilience and power it will take for other Black trans girls to be in these roles and a safe space. They will have folks to protect them and there’s a lot of community who have my back.”

She describes her works as “catching folks falling through the gaps,” providing resources such as temporary housing and training to solidify trans women and girls in safe spaces.

Her nonprofit, according to Thomas, is the longest tenured Black trans women-led organization in the city, county and state.

Their budget is currently about $500,000 annually, serving trans women and men between the ages of 15 and 25. About 80% of the people served are Black people, mostly trans women.

The most in-demand services are for homelessness.

Trans youth are four times more likely to live in poverty than cisgender youth, according to the Pittsburgh Foundation, which is one of the foundations supporting the nonprofit.

“There’s still not enough units for fair, safe and affordable housing for trans people,” she said.

“On top of that, parents are still throwing trans kids on the street. My organization works with parents to keep kids in the home. Some parents are transphobic. There is nothing I can do about that except catch the kids.”

Domestic violence and assault is one of the latest issues the nonprofit is working on. A federal grant is helping with a temporary housing program for trans women in abusive relationships. While women’s shelters exist, “nobody is talking about the inclusion of trans people in those,” she said.

First Published: March 20, 2024, 9:30 a.m.
Updated: March 21, 2024, 2:37 p.m.

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Women welders at Dravo Corporation pose for a group photo in 1943.  (Courtesy of the Dravo Collection)
Heinz workers are featured in the Heinz History Center exhibit, “A Woman’s Place: How Women Shaped Pittsburgh.”  (Courtesy of the Heinz History Center)
Josie Carey composed and wrote songs and paired with Fred Rogers to create WQED’s popular series.  (Courtesy of the Heinz History Ce)
As an illustrator, Peggy Owens Skillen helped to create the modern version of the PBS-TV series "Sesame Street." Pictured are her illustrations of Mr. Snuffleupagus and Oscar the Grouch.  (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
The purple pantsuit worn by Donna Rae, known as Terminal Stare on the Chiller Theater television show. On the right, is the suit worn by Uniontown native and reporter Nina Pineda when she covered the Sept 11, 2001 attack at the World Trade Center.  (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
A Rosie the Riveter costume customized for the Girls of Steel Robotics team at Carnegie Mellon University.  (Courtesy of the Heinz History Center)
Ciora Thomas, a Pittsburgh Black trans woman who is founder and executive director of SisTers PGH.  (Courtesy of Ciora Thomas)
Courtesy of the Dravo Collection
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